Pastourmas

Pastourmas (Greek Cured Beef with Fenugreek Crust)

Pastourmas is Greece's air-dried, pressed beef, coated in a pungent paste of fenugreek, garlic, paprika and hot pepper. This is a multi-week project requiring precise salting, pressing and drying, finished with a fragrant spice crust.

Prep

90 min

Total

90 min

Serves

1 large piece (about 1 kg / 2¼ lb finished)

Difficulty

Hard

Recipe ingredients

• •2 kg (4½ lb) beef round or silverside, one solid, lean piece with no internal fat seams
• •400 g (14 oz) coarse sea salt, non-iodised
• •100 g (3½ oz) fine sea salt, non-iodised, for the second salting
• •10 g (3 tsp) cure salt (Prague powder #1), optional but recommended for safety; if omitting, keep total salting time at full duration
• •250 g (9 oz) fenugreek seed, whole, for the paste
• •60 g (2 oz) sweet paprika, Greek or Hungarian
• •40 g (1½ oz) hot red pepper flakes or cayenne, adjust to heat preference
• •60 g (2 oz) garlic, about 20 cloves, peeled
• •20 g (2 tbsp) ground cumin
• •10 g (1 tbsp) ground black pepper
• •200 ml (7 fl oz) red wine vinegar, for the paste
• •100 ml (3½ fl oz) water, as needed to loosen paste

Steps

1. 1 Trim the beef of all surface fat and silverskin. You need one solid, lean piece roughly 2 kg (4½ lb) that will shrink to about 1 kg (2¼ lb). Pat completely dry.
2. 2 Mix the coarse salt with the cure salt (if using). Pack the beef entirely in salt in a non-reactive container, cover, and refrigerate at 1–4°C (34–39°F) for 10 days. Turn and re-pack the beef in fresh salt mixture every 2 days, draining any liquid that accumulates.
3. 3 After 10 days, remove the beef and rinse off all salt under cold running water. Pat thoroughly dry with clean towels.
4. 4 Mix the fine salt with the cure salt (if using) and apply evenly over the whole surface. Wrap the beef tightly in muslin or cheesecloth, place on a rack set over a tray, and refrigerate at 1–4°C (34–39°F) for a further 7 days, turning once.
5. 5 Unwrap the beef. It should feel firm and dense, with no soft spots. Weigh it and note the weight - you want a total loss of about 40–50% of the original 2 kg (4½ lb).
6. 6 Press the beef: wrap it in clean muslin, place it between two boards or in a press, and weight it down with about 5–8 kg (11–18 lb) - heavy books or canned goods work. Press for 48 hours at cool room temperature (15–18°C / 59–64°F), draining any expressed liquid daily. The beef should be flattened and very dense.
7. 7 Hang the pressed beef in a cool, well-ventilated place at 12–18°C (54–64°F) with good air circulation for 2–4 weeks, until firm and dried throughout with no soft centre. In a modern kitchen, a wine fridge set to 15°C (59°F) is ideal. The beef is ready when a thin slice cut from the thickest part is uniformly firm and leathery, with no pliable core.
8. 8 To make the paste (çemen): soak the fenugreek seeds in the red wine vinegar overnight (at least 12 hours) until swollen and softened.
9. 9 Drain the fenugreek, reserving the vinegar. Blend or pound the fenugreek with the garlic, paprika, hot pepper, cumin and black pepper, adding reserved vinegar and a little water to make a thick, spreadable paste the consistency of wet clay. Taste and adjust salt - it should be noticeably salty.
10. 10 Pack the paste thickly and evenly over the entire surface of the dried beef, about 5–8 mm (¼ inch) deep, pressing it on firmly. Leave no bare spots.
11. 11 Wrap the coated pastourmas loosely in muslin and rest it in a cool place (12–18°C / 54–64°F) for 5–7 days so the crust sets and the flavours meld.
12. 12 To serve: keep refrigerated. Slice paper-thin against the grain with a very sharp knife or a meat slicer. Serve cold as part of a meze platter with olives, cheese and bread, or fry slices briefly (30–60 seconds per side) in a dry hot pan until the edges crisp.
13. 13 Storage: wrapped in muslin in the refrigerator, pastourmas keeps for 2–3 months. Once cut, wrap tightly in cling film and use within 2 weeks.