How to store cured meats so they last

Why cling film ruins them, how long a whole piece keeps compared with slices, whether they can be frozen and when to throw them out.

The main rule: let the meat breathe

Dried and smoked products keep giving up moisture slowly. Wrap them in polythene and the moisture stays in, and the surface turns sticky and sour.

Wrap them in parchment, waxed paper or cotton cloth. Opened vacuum packaging is the one exception — move what is left into paper. Keeping times differ between air-dried and cooked and smoked, as below.

How long they keep

A whole piece of air-dried meat lives happily for several weeks at 2–6 degrees. Slices last two or three days: thin slices have a huge surface in contact with the air and dry out quickly.

Cooked and smoked keeps the least, usually up to a week once opened. Go by the date on the packaging and by the smell. If you order for delivery, the cold chain on the way to you matters as much.

Can they be frozen

Cooked and smoked products can be, though they lose a little texture. Air-dried should not be: freezing breaks the fibre that took weeks to form, and after thawing the slice crumbles.

When to throw them out

A sticky surface, a sour or musty smell, or grey and green patches of mould that are not the even white bloom on a casing — all of these mean the product is finished. A dried edge on a cut is not a problem: trim it off and the rest is fine.