Meat product, and method of its manufacture

Abstract

A pork meat product resembling lean ham or the like is prepared by utilizing essentially scrap meat pieces or chunks, and pork belly wherein the pork belly is deboned and gristle and cartilage removed, as well as a major portion of the fat therefrom to result in a slab (10) of rind (12 ) and a thin layer of fatty tissue (14). This slab is treated in a pickling solution in a drum where it is gently massaged to break down the meat protein contained therein which will form a sticky mass (16). The meat chunks or pieces (18) are placed on the sticky mass (16) and adhered thereto, the sticky mass being coagulated by cooking in a cooking bag. The resulting product can be smoked, cooled, and then can be packaged, for example in a plastic foil, resulting in a product resembling cooked ham and of essentially comparable quality.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.