What is Kuivaliha?
Kuivaliha is a style of dried meat popular in Finland and throughout Nordic Europe. The meat is prepared in thin strips and either dried or smoked to obtain a hard, leather texture. It generally resembles jerky appearance and taste. Most of the time is a reindeer of reindeer, although most of the large animal can be used.
In Finnish, the word kuivaliha is best translated as "dried meat". However, the actual drying practice must usually be performed in a relatively accurate way. Not only no dried meat qualifies for recognition as a kunalie. Refreshments with this designation are in Finland something that is very national pride and has an important place in traditional Finnish cuisine, especially in the northern part of the country.
Generally speaking, only a certain part of the animal can be used in the preparation of the kuvhaliha. The dense muscle is the best, usually from the hind legs and the upper part of each joint of the legs. Some tendons and connection use fibers, but the muscle is usually the cleanest possible. The final result is ODFresh, which is incredibly slim, often fat -free.
The chefs cut the muscles into strips of about 2 inches (5 cm) wide, which are then soaked in brine for several days before they are suspended to dry. The drying process usually takes about 6 weeks.
Finnish people ate this kind of dried meat for centuries. In the far north, especially in communities sitting on the Arctic circle or over the Arctic circle, Saturday meat was once a basic source of food for most people. Hunters probably began to dry hard muscles in strips to maximize killing and collect as many meat products as possible. The food was also desirable because it would not spoil, so it would turn out that the way to keep the meat killed in one season to endure the next.
Traditional preparation requires the meat to be outdoors, suspended on long wooden dowels facing the sun. Must be left unattended, dTerms are not completely dry, usually anywhere from two to three weeks. In most parts of Finland, spring is the only season in which the chef can successfully dry the meat outside. During autumn and winter, the air is so cold that the meat often freezes before it can dry. Insects are likely to contaminate and consume strips during the milder summer months.
More modern chefs have found ways to modify the original methods so that refreshments are prepared throughout the year. It can be as simple as an indoor glass drying room or complex as a pressure chamber controlled by temperature. Some modern hunters also smoke their meat. This is leaving traditional practice, but often lends a richer and tastier final product. No matter how ready, its simplicity is the essence of the snack.
The ease of production allowed many commercial manufacturers to start producing and sales throughout Northern Europe. In order to reduce the market confusion about the acquisition of these products, the European Union in 2010 youIt consisted of what is known as a "protected designation" for Kuivaliha, which comes from reindeer from Northern Finland. This designation "Lapin Poron Kuiveliha" can only be used for certified Finnish reindeer meat and serves as something as a seal of authenticity.