Beef basturma at home in Armenian

Step-by-step cooking

1. Step 1:

   

   How to cook beef basturma at home? Prepare all the necessary products. Take a piece of fresh beef without bones and veins, as well as all the other components. Rinse the meat well under running water and dry it with paper napkins. I had a piece of about 1.5 kg, so I increased the amount of spices a little.

2. Step 2:

   

   Make punctures with a fork on all sides of a piece of meat.

3. Step 3:

   

   Transfer the beef to a suitable container and cover with table salt. Send it to the refrigerator to be salted for two days. Next, remove the meat, rinse and fill with cold water, leave this way for 20-30 minutes. Drain the water, and dry the piece again with a towel.

4. Step 4:

   

   Wrap the beef with paper napkins or cloth, put it in a container. Build a yoke on top (I put a plank on the beef and install a brick wrapped in a cellophane bag). Send it to the refrigerator for two days.

5. Step 5:

   

   After the allotted time, remove the napkin (cloth), thread a thick thread or tourniquet from one edge (as in the photo).

6. Step 6:

   

   Hang the meat in a well-ventilated room at room temperature for 3-4 days. I was drying beef in the kitchen near the window.

7. Step 7:

   

   Prepare chaman. Add fenugreek to warm water, mix with a whisk so that there are no lumps. The mixture should turn out like liquid sour cream. In general, chaman according to the original recipe is recommended to be prepared in advance and sent to infuse in the refrigerator for a day. I didn't do it and it turned out flawlessly anyway.

9. Step 8:

   

   Add ground black or allspice, paprika, bitter pepper, garlic passed through a press and a pinch of salt to the fenugreek.

10. Step 9:

    

    Mix again until smooth.

11. Step 10:

    

    Coat the dried beef on all sides with chaman. You can do this with a silicone brush or with your hands.

12. Step 11:

    

    Spread all the seasoning evenly on all sides of the meat. Send the future basturma to a container, cover with cling film and leave in the refrigerator for 8-10 days. During this time, periodically remove the beef and distribute the chaman evenly again, if required.

13. Step 12:

    

    Remove the piece from the refrigerator and hang it to dry for 3-4 days. Feel the basturma, if it is dry, then everything is ready!

14. Step 13:

    

    Wrap a piece of meat in plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for storage.

15. Step 14:

    

    Cut the basturma into thin slices and serve it to the table!