Air-Dried Alpine Meat
Pieces of lean meat salted with mountain herbs then slowly dried in the cold, dry air of the alps, until they become a reserve that lasts through winter. Sliced thin to eat raw.
Pieces of lean meat salted with mountain herbs then slowly dried in the cold, dry air of the alps, until they become a reserve that lasts through winter. Sliced thin to eat raw.
The cold, friend, is our best salting house. In autumn, we take lean meat, rub it with coarse salt and the herbs dried in the granary, and hang it where the air from the peaks blows brisk and dry. Patience again: for weeks, the wind does its work and the flesh tightens, hard and fragrant. When the snow walls us in, I slice this treasure with a knife, thin as a leaf, and a crust of dark bread does the rest. That is how a free man lasts all winter without bowing his back to anyone.
- •Lean beef or chamois meat — a fine piece (base)
- •Coarse salt — abundantly (preservation)
- •Dried mountain herbs (thyme, juniper, wild garlic) — to taste (flavor)
Air-Dried Alpine Meat
Pieces of lean meat salted with mountain herbs then slowly dried in the cold, dry air of the alps, until they become a reserve that lasts through winter. Sliced thin to eat raw.
Why this dish? In the high valleys of Uri, where winter cuts off the world for months, drying meat in the cold wind of the alpine pastures was a survival necessity — the reserve that every mountaineer, including Tell, kept in his stilt granary.
The cold, friend, is our best salting house. In autumn, we take lean meat, rub it with coarse salt and the herbs dried in the granary, and hang it where the air from the peaks blows brisk and dry. Patience again: for weeks, the wind does its work and the flesh tightens, hard and fragrant. When the snow walls us in, I slice this treasure with a knife, thin as a leaf, and a crust of dark bread does the rest. That is how a free man lasts all winter without bowing his back to anyone.
Ingredients (period version)
- Lean beef or chamois meat — a fine piece (base)
- Coarse salt — abundantly (preservation)
- Dried mountain herbs (thyme, juniper, wild garlic) — to taste (flavor)
Ingredients
- Lean beef (top round, inside round) — 1 kg (base)
- Coarse salt — 500 g (preservation)
- Juniper berries, thyme, bay leaf — 1 tbsp total (flavor)
- Coarsely ground black pepper — 1 tsp (seasoning)
Method
- Completely coat the meat with coarse salt mixed with herbs and crushed berries; place in a cool spot.
- Let salt for 24 to 48 hours depending on thickness, turning the piece.
- Rinse briefly, dry thoroughly, then wrap in a clean cloth.
- Hang in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place (cellar, refrigerator on a rack) for 3 to 6 weeks.
- The meat is ready when it has lost nearly a third of its weight and is firm; slice very thinly.
How it was made : Air-drying in cold air is an ancient preservation technique documented throughout the Alpine arc (the Grisons dried meat is its heir). Salting then exposure to the dry, cold mountain wind allowed proteins to be kept all winter, without ice or costly spices.
The contemporary twist : Served in thin rosettes with shavings of hard cheese and a drizzle of honey, the dried meat becomes a very trendy "100% alpine" appetizer board.
Sources : Patrimoine culinaire suisse / Kulinarisches Erbe der Schweiz (inventaire des spécialités, patrimoineculinaire.ch)
William Tell · Charactorium