Jowl at 92 degrees: Guanciale carbonara · 243

Look for a marbled cross-section rather than one solid fat seam — the laced pieces are the ones worth the price. Often ungraded at retail — buy on firm white fat and a fresh, sweet smell, not a stamp. The cheek and throat, worked constantly by chewing, so lean muscle and fat end up laced through each other rather than stacked in layers. Cured it becomes guanciale, the fat that makes a carbonara; grilled fresh it is the cut Korean barbecue calls hangjeongsal, and a whole pig yields only a few hundred grams of it.

Colour, sinew, where the fat sits, and thickness are what you check before you pay. Ask for the thickness that matches “Guanciale carbonara.” Use 92 degrees and 92 when you cook. Salt after you know the job. Do not play with undercooked meat. Cook Jowl to 92 degrees and serve it as “Guanciale carbonara.” The other figure to watch is 92. Do not time a hard-working muscle like a thin steak. Colour before heat is not doneness. The fat here renders faster than you expect. Take it off while the centre still looks faintly moist and let carry-over finish the job.

Cook Jowl to 92 degrees and serve it as “Guanciale carbonara.” The other figure to watch is 92. Do not time a hard-working muscle like a thin steak. Colour before heat is not doneness. The fat here renders faster than you expect. Take it off while the centre still looks faintly moist and let carry-over finish the job.