“passionate about cured meat – and sharing the knowledge”

< me >

How it Began.

I’ve been learning and practicing meat curing for a few decades. Eat Cured Meat began in 2018.

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A person in a blue checkered shirt and jean shorts, identified as Tom Mueller, is crouched down next to racks filled with hanging red chili peppers. The person is looking at the camera, and the scene appears to be indoors on a tiled floor.
A smiling person proudly displaying a cutting board with fresh radicchio heads in a kitchen setting.

Background

In 2006, I started meat curing – studying, testing, building curing chambers, and savoring cured and smoked meats. It grew into my primary passion.


2018 I started writing about it – this site aims to create a useful helpful source that’ demystifies’ cured meat and shares proven advice about curing and smoking meat.


I want to share what has been the most passionate subject I’ve had all my adult life, both from a curing and honouring the animal perspective and also from a flavor angle, of course!

The slowest food in the world!

I call myself a Cacciatore (Italian for Hunter) and Norcini (Traditional Travelling Italian Meat Curing Butcher). I do have some Italian genetics also.

Experience

I was partially raised on a farm and in the city. I have been fishing and hunting since I was about 5 years old. Luckily, I live in a place with plenty of wildlife and opportunities to hunt everything from rabbits to deer (too many in many instances).

After tertiary studies, I was hunting larger wild game. I wanted to glorify the meat, I discovered whole-muscle meat curing. I started talking, learning, networking and practicing with artisanal butchers producing cured meats.

I’ve un-covered and engaged with many commercial and homemade meat curers internationally over the decades. Across Europe, United Kingdom, USA, Australia and New Zealand.

Some of my favorite Meat Curers Globally:

  • Salumificio Livasi, Calabria, Italy – especially Njuda and Pancetta
  • Salumeria Gardoni, Province of Parma, Italy – epic salumi, no website, but is showcased in Japanese Anime comic books!
  • Smoking Goose, Indianapolis, USA – new age cured meats (Chris is a legend!)
  • Prosciutteria Del Corso – Spoleto, Italy – no website, showcasing the finest Umbrian Black Pig cured meats

Expertise

A person slicing a piece of cooked meat with a large knife on a wooden cutting board. The meat appears medium-rare with a reddish-pink center and darker outer edges, typical of hot smoking. The person is holding the knife with one hand and steadying the meat with the other in this beginner's guide technique.
A person is seen using a sausage stuffer to fill sausage casings over a large metal tray in a kitchen. The tray contains several links of cured meat. The individual is wearing a dark shirt and a striped apron, with the kitchen counter visible in the background.
A variety of cured sausages hanging inside a modified refrigerator, being used as a drying and curing chamber.
Assorted homemade salami and sausages laid out on trays, showcasing a variety of spices and seasonings.
Thinly sliced cured meat served on a wooden cutting board.
A collage of various store cured meats, including whole muscle cuts, salami, wild venison pastrami, and smoked ham, showcasing the rich variety and artistry of charcuterie.
A tray of uncooked bacon slices, representing every bacon style, being held by a person amidst lush green foliage.
A triptych of meat delicacies: freshly grilled sausages on the left, a person holding a pair of cured sausages in the center with salami making equipment nearby, and a

I’ve had the pleasure of running courses in person to teach meat curing. This has also developed into my online course teaches here on Eat Cured Meat.

I’ve worked in commercial meat curing operations and completed meat curing courses.

I’ve written over 5 novels worth of articles on this site (and more all the time), which are all about helping others learn this glorious craft and skill.

Some other aspects:

Writing, researching, and presenting have always been skills I have enjoyed developing (I can talk, too, but I have slowly developed the subtle important art of listening).

This was some of what came out of 3 pigs we harvested and made salami, sausages and cured meats from.

Learning includes Failing (tool a while to learn that one)

From every type of meat, wild and farmed, I can get my hands on, I’ve tried meat curing. Expanding into dry cured fish also.


Many mistakes and learning have happened over the decades of practicing this craft.


Many weekends with a friend, we have spent 2-4 days processing from whole animal to whole muscle meats, grilling sausages, emulsified sausages, and dry cured salami.


I’ve taken every opportunity to work with butchers, smokehouses, prosciutto factories, and salami makers in New Zealand, Australia, America, Europe, and the U.K.


I’ve written articles about pellet grill smokers and hot smoking for a company where I had to assemble and use various smokers.
Over the years, I’ve converted six fridges, both domestic and commercial, into drying areas for many types of cured meat projects.


In the last few years, a close friend purchased a Stagionella commercial drying fridge from Italy. This large-capacity drying fridge has also been an exciting experience; here is what it often looks like (this is all non-commercial production for learning, friends and family)

A person standing contemplatively beneath rows of hanging cured hams in a traditional dry-curing room.

I’m born in New Zealand – lived a sophisticated gypsy life thus far

Areas of the World I’ve Lived

  • As a kid – New Zealand, Australia, England, Japan
  • As an adult:
  • Australia
  • London
  • Scotland
  • Italy

Personal Story

Two hikers, including Tom Mueller, taking a break in a lush green forest, surrounded by moss-covered ground with trekking poles and a heavy backpack.

My father was an expert entertainer and talker. At an early age, I was involved in meat and in charge of many catering events around a charcoal, wood, or gas/propane grill.

Catching curing and smoking trout began in my adolescence.

After studying and working in various food-related fields, I’ve evolved from a cook to a meat-curing enthusiast. I now teach others about meat curing and smoking.

We have produced some enticing wild venison biltong, Hungarian salami, and spicy fruity fresh chili salami with dozens of recipes refined over many years of production.

We now enjoy a private charcuterie processing facility—a dedicated ‘man cave’ for those passionate about salami!

After building my first DIY curing chamber over twenty years ago, I started to experiment and expanded into variations from Mediterranean/European styles of meat curing as well as Asian and African styles.

Learning the simple techniques of cold smoking and dry curing from a professional Dutch butcher was also insightful in my 20s. I would turn up with a wild boar or pig and learn.

This was at a time when there wasn’t any information available on the subject online.

In the Media

Readers Favorite Articles

Fun Facts about Tom

  • Often, I put my nose nearly in cured meat when smelling it!
  • A blend of spices (“what I call spice bombs”) makes me incredibly excited
  • I hunt and fish to procure quality meat; as I’ve matured, I’ve mellowed a lot when it comes to hunting, and I’m often distracted by foraging!
  • Foraging for mushrooms, fruit, spices, shellfish, and whatever is in the area has been an excellent way to be more aware of the small details surrounding us.

Connect with Me – Social Media

p.s. I don’t use social media; I only use it for business.

Email – tom@eatcuredmeat.com

I’m the founder of Eat Cured Meat – here is the about page for the company.