How to make Tim Hayward’s duck ham

Farmed duck breasts are easily available in supermarkets. The meat is full of flavour and the thick fat layer is wonderfully tasty when cured. It’s a smaller piece of meat, so salt quickly extracts the first moisture, and hanging and drying completes the process in just a few days.

Duck is also a great starting place for air-drying experiments because it tastes equally good when dried to a tight, hammy texture at 30 per cent moisture loss or when taken on to a more leathery ‘jerky’ style.

If you would like to experiment with flavourings, choose aromatic compounds that are oil-based. Thyme, rosemary and juniper are useful herbs, and dried orange peel can add a twang.

Mix the aromatic component with the peppercorns and salt to create a cure. Coat the duck breast with a thick layer, then place in a freezer bag or a non-reactive dish and cover with any remaining cure. Refrigerate for 24 hours.

Wash off the cure. Pat the breast dry. Season it with a little ground pepper and wrap it in muslin.

Tie the breast tightly with butcher’s string in several places. This holds the breast in a pleasant shape and allows you to hang it without penetrating the meat with a hook. Hang in a cool airy place for a week. Slice and serve.

Rabbit loin can be cured in exactly the same way, though it will lose weight more quickly as it doesn't have the same flavourful layer of fat and skin.

Reproduced from Food DIY: How to Make Your Own Everything: sausages to smoked salmon, sourdough to sloe gin, bacon to buns, by Tim Hayward, published by Fig Tree.