New meat curing technique from Hannan Meats
Hannan Meats, Northern Ireland's award winning catering butcher, has developed a new sugar-pit technology for curing beef and pork.
The company, based at Moira in county Down, has already a
successful track record in ageing meat in what is now the world's
biggest Himalayan salt chamber, is already supplying the sugar-pit
beef and bacon to leading restaurateurs and retailers in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Peter Hannan, founder and managing director of Hannan Meats,
explains: "Our success with the Himalayan salt aged products
encouraged us to look at other techniques that would offer
deliciously different taste profiles.
"The first stage is to dry-cure the meat such as ribs and briskets. The reason for this is to extract moisture, around 18-20 per cent.
This, in turn, makes the meat like a sponge and this enables it to
absorb the sugars once placed in the pit receptacle.
"The sugar blend is a combination of three different types of sugar, to balance in perfect harmony with the saltiness of the cure.
"The sugar-pit product needs to be cooked at a low temperature to
prevent the sugar from burning. This produces a meat that is salty, sweet, sticky and soft…and immensely tasty," he adds.
"It's another development from our ongoing dialogue with key clients who have been talking to us about new products offering different
flavours for their customers. We stay ahead of competitors by
working alongside our customers in the development of original
meat flavours and textures."
Hannan Meats is among Ireland's most successful meat processing
businesses. It has won a series of international awards for productsoffering outstanding taste. These include a UK Great Taste Supreme
Champion Award in 2012 and a host of other awards for its expertise
in dry-ageing beef and dry-cure bacon.
The company, formed by Mr Hannan over 25 years ago, supplies products throughout the UK and Ireland. In addition, it provides meat to
leading restaurants in France and, most recently, Portugal. The
company employs around 40 people at its operation in Moira.
The company, based at Moira in county Down, has already a
successful track record in ageing meat in what is now the world's
biggest Himalayan salt chamber, is already supplying the sugar-pit
beef and bacon to leading restaurateurs and retailers in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Peter Hannan, founder and managing director of Hannan Meats,
explains: "Our success with the Himalayan salt aged products
encouraged us to look at other techniques that would offer
deliciously different taste profiles.
"The first stage is to dry-cure the meat such as ribs and briskets. The reason for this is to extract moisture, around 18-20 per cent.
This, in turn, makes the meat like a sponge and this enables it to
absorb the sugars once placed in the pit receptacle.
"The sugar blend is a combination of three different types of sugar, to balance in perfect harmony with the saltiness of the cure.
"The sugar-pit product needs to be cooked at a low temperature to
prevent the sugar from burning. This produces a meat that is salty, sweet, sticky and soft…and immensely tasty," he adds.
"It's another development from our ongoing dialogue with key clients who have been talking to us about new products offering different
flavours for their customers. We stay ahead of competitors by
working alongside our customers in the development of original
meat flavours and textures."
Hannan Meats is among Ireland's most successful meat processing
businesses. It has won a series of international awards for productsoffering outstanding taste. These include a UK Great Taste Supreme
Champion Award in 2012 and a host of other awards for its expertise
in dry-ageing beef and dry-cure bacon.
The company, formed by Mr Hannan over 25 years ago, supplies products throughout the UK and Ireland. In addition, it provides meat to
leading restaurants in France and, most recently, Portugal. The
company employs around 40 people at its operation in Moira.