Charcuterie receives national nod

A LOCAL butcher has won top honours for one of their Italian-style cured hams.

Salt Kitchen Charcuterie was declared national champion in the Australian Meat Industry Council’s 2022 Charcuterie Excellence Awards’ dry cured meat category for their Mr Canubbi fiocco.

The charcuterie’s founder and director, Mick Nunn said it’s terrific to win a championship medal for the organisation’s inaugural awards.

“To be a category winner up against some of the biggest producers around the country was really humbling and a bit of a shock,” he said.

“Fiocco originates from Italy and comes from a small muscle from the pig’s back leg. It’s essentially a single-muscle prosciutto that we make.

“It gets a little bit of smoke and we rub it with our own mix before its matured for about three months.”

The winners were announced during a gala event last month, with the four remaining major categories for bacon, salami, ham and smallgoods products.

The awards received more than 350 entries, and Salt Kitchen Charcuterie also won a gold medal for their wagyu pastrami in the general charcuterie category.

Ten judges presided over the meats under a head judge.

The Mr Canubbi fiocco was one of six products introduced in 2016 with the establishment of Salt Kitchen Charcuterie’s maturation room.

Mr Nunn said its success at the awards is giving it some added attention.

“We’re a small regional producer and we’ve never been busier. We pretty much can’t make any more of it at the minute,” he said.

“We had a little bit of stock for the fiocco when we entered it but that seems to be eroding quickly now. It’s had such an uptake.”