Turkey Peperoni that curls (Roni Cups)

[typecase]

Hello,

I've been on the lookout for some turkey pepperoni and have had good success with Boar's head in terms of taste but it doesn't give you that picture perfect curl. According to Modernist Cuisine, the cupping is due to the casing that shrinks in the heat (collagen apparently gives good results). Finding pork products that curl is no problem but I've been having a really hard time finding beef or turkey pepperoni that curls. Can anyone point me to a product that might work? May host a party and want to have this as an option for my guests.

[Jackitup]

I've always maintained that the ones that curl the best will have natural casings. I just ran across this that outlined all the theories very well WITH his own experiments and research. He usually does a pretty good job!

https://www.seriouseats.com/the-pizza-lab-why-does-pepperoni-curl#:~:text=The%20thicker%20the%20slice%2C%20the,causing%20the%20pepperoni%20to%20curl.

[TXCraig1]

I think your best bet may be to find turkey pepperoni in stick form and cut it a bit thicker than normal.

Modernish is not entirely correct. It actually has more to do with how the casing is stuffed than the casing itself. A pepperoni that cups generally doesn't need the casing on to cup.

We get a bit of a warped perspective here. In the real world, most people prefer pepperoni that lays flat - not that they ever think about it. Most pizzerias certainly do - not because it tastes better, it doesn't, but because the same quantity looks like a lot more pepperoni on the pizza.

[wotavidone]

Modernish is not entirely correct. It actually has more to do with how the casing is stuffed than the casing itself. A pepperoni that cups generally doesn't need the casing on to cup.

I think natural skins that shrink quickly help, but I recently read something along the lines of "do not hold the skins on the filler too tight so that skin doesn't come off easily and the meat curls back on the filler tube. If the meat fills in a U shape, the sausage will tend to cup when cooked."

[TXCraig1]

If the meat fills in a U shape, the sausage will tend to cup when cooked."

Yes, that's the gist of it. It's actually easier to make a pepperoni that cups because a smaller than ideal stuffing horn is simpler for the people loading the casings. The small horn causes the meat to curl back on itself in the "U" shape. Lots of engineering effort has been spent on stuffing horn technology to prevent this and ensure flat pepperoni. When I worked for Hormel years ago, they would always stress how flat the pepperoni cooked on the pizza. It was a big deal.

[jkb]

Why turkey?

[typecase]

Yes, that's the gist of it. It's actually easier to make a pepperoni that cups because a smaller than ideal stuffing horn is simpler for the people loading the casings. The small horn causes the meat to curl back on itself in the "U" shape. Lots of engineering effort has been spent on stuffing horn technology to prevent this and ensure flat pepperoni. When I worked for Hormel years ago, they would always stress how flat the pepperoni cooked on the pizza. It was a big deal.

Craig, you're like an onion. Each post peels away another interesting layer. You make some of finest neapolitan pies I've laid eyes on in an Acunto no less and your pizza knowledge of all styles seems inexhaustible. Now I find out you actually worked for Hormel. Very interesting.

I think aside from the aesthetics of flat pepperoni, I wonder if industry also wanted flat pepperoni for liability reasons so mouths wouldn't burn.

Why turkey?

I have some guests coming who love pepperoni but don't eat pork. From what I heard, they were bitten by the lone star tick and developed alpha-gal synrome and apparently can tolerate turkey products but no red meat.

[TXCraig1]

I think aside from the aesthetics of flat pepperoni, I wonder if industry also wanted flat pepperoni for liability reasons so mouths wouldn't burn.

I've heard that given as a reason, but it was long after leaving the meat business in 2005. I don't remember it ever coming up when at Hormel. Before Hormel, I was a broker rep for Doskocil-Wilson which made a LOT of pizza toppings. I don't remember it coming up there either. Doskocil-Wilson later became Foodbrands America, then IBP, then Tyson - after Hormel, I worked for a small part of IBP when Tyson bought them. I've been around a lot of meat   

Ironically, it wasn't until years after selling pizza toppings that I learned what real pizza was