Cure Calculator: Salt, Curing Salt and Dextrose by Weight
Curing salt is the one ingredient in salami you can't eyeball. Use too little and you lose a key protection against botulism; use too much and nitrite itself becomes the hazard. This calculator turns your meat weight into exact gram amounts so you can weigh, not guess.
New to salami? Start with our step-by-step guide, How to Make Salami at Home, then come back here to work out your batch.
How to use the calculator
Meat weight (pounds or grams)
Enter the weight of the trimmed meat and fat that's going into the batch, weighed after trimming and before you add anything else. Count meat and fat only: not water, wine, spices or other ingredients. Federal cure limits are figured on the meat weight (9 CFR 424.21), and every other number on this page is figured as a share of this weight too, so if it's off, everything is off. You can enter pounds or grams; results always come out in grams.
Cure type (#1 or #2)
Pick the curing salt you actually have in your hands, and check the label. The two are not interchangeable (see below). The default dose is 0.25% of meat weight (2.5 g of cure per kg of meat), the same rate cure labels give as about 1 level teaspoon per 5 lb. With Cure #1, that works out to 156 ppm nitrite, the federal maximum for chopped products like salami (9 CFR 424.21). You can go lower; the tool won't let the result go higher (see "Hard limits" below).
If you choose Cure #2, pick your brand: Oregon State generic (6.25% nitrite, up to 4% nitrate, per OSU Extension), InstaCure #2 (6.25% nitrite, 1% nitrate, per Spokane Spice), Excalibur (5.67% nitrite, 3.63% nitrate, per Butcher Supply), or Enter from your label. Cure #2 recipes vary by brand, so check your label.
Hard limits on the result
The calculator checks the result, not just the dose. It won't produce a batch above 156 ppm nitrite or 1,718 ppm nitrate, the federal maximum ingoing levels for chopped products (our arithmetic from 9 CFR 424.21(c): ¼ oz nitrite and 2¾ oz nitrate per 100 lb of chopped meat, divided by 1,600 oz). Why the result and not just the dose? A cure you enter from your own label could be stronger than standard, so even 0.25% could push nitrite past 156 ppm. When that happens, the calculator blocks the result, shows you the calculated ppm, and offers the highest dose that stays at or under both limits. Nothing changes unless you click to apply it. It's also a good moment to double-check the nitrite and nitrate percentages you entered from your label. Every result shows its nitrite ppm on the cure line, plus nitrate ppm for Cure #2.
Salt % of meat weight
This is the total salt your recipe calls for, written as a percent of meat weight, including the salt that comes in with the cure. Default: 2.5%, adjustable from 2% to 3%. WSU Extension notes "Most sausages contain 2–3% salt" (WSU Extension, EB1661); that's for sausage in general, so follow your salami recipe if it differs. Curing salt is mostly salt: Cure #1 is 93.75% salt (Oregon State University Extension, PNW 784), so the calculator subtracts the salt already in your cure and tells you how much plain (non-iodized) salt to add on top. That way the cure doesn't push you past your recipe's salt level. For Cure #2, the tool uses the composition of the brand you pick or the percentages you enter; it doesn't assume one salt figure for every brand.
Dextrose % of meat weight
Dextrose (glucose) is a simple sugar. Sugar helps "counteract the harshness of the salt," and dextrose is required for fermented sausages "because some fermentation bacteria require simple sugars to produce lactic acid" (WSU Extension, EB1661). That lactic acid is what lowers the pH (WSU Extension). There's no default: enter the amount your tested recipe and your starter culture maker specify.
What you get
- Cure (g): how much Cure #1 or #2 to weigh out, with its nitrite and nitrate in ppm.
- Added salt (g): how much plain salt to weigh out. This is your total salt minus the salt already in the cure.
- Total salt (g): all the salt in the batch, cure included. It matches the salt % you entered, so you can check it against your recipe.
- Dextrose (g): how much dextrose to weigh out.
- Target finished weight (g): based on the weight-loss % you enter from your recipe (explained below).
Cure #1 vs. Cure #2: which one do you need?
Both are pink-dyed curing salts, and both contain sodium nitrite. The difference is nitrate.
- Cure #1 (Prague Powder #1, Insta Cure #1) is sodium nitrite blended with salt (OSU Extension, PNW 784). OSU Extension recommends it for curing bacon at home (OSU Extension, PNW 784). More broadly, cooked sausages "are usually cured with nitrite" and then heated (WSU Extension, EB1661), so Cure #1 is the usual pick for products that will be cooked.
- Cure #2 (Prague Powder #2, Insta Cure #2) contains sodium nitrite plus sodium nitrate. Nitrate "acts as a slower, time-release curing agent," and the blend "is intended for use in cured meats that will not be cooked before eating, such as salami or prosciutto" (OSU Extension, PNW 784). That's why it's the usual choice for long, dry-cured salami.
- Don't swap them. Cure #2 is "not recommended for curing bacon" because it's likely to produce more nitrosamines when cooked at high heat (OSU Extension, PNW 784). Also note that Cure #1 has no nitrate, the slow-release part of Cure #2 (OSU Extension).
Federal rules set separate limits for nitrite and nitrate in cured meat, and for different product types (dry-cured vs. chopped), stated as weights per 100 pounds of meat (9 CFR 424.21). For chopped (comminuted) products like salami, the maximum ingoing level is 156 ppm sodium nitrite and 1,718 ppm sodium nitrate (our arithmetic from 9 CFR 424.21(c): ¼ oz nitrite and 2¾ oz nitrate per 100 lb of chopped meat, divided by 1,600 oz). Higher "dry-cured" limits apply to dry-cured products, not chopped products like salami.
Why the right amount of cure matters
Too little: Nitrite and nitrate are used in cured meats because they're "an effective inhibitor of Clostridium botulinum growth and toxin production" (OSU Extension, PNW 784). C. botulinum is the bacterium behind botulism (OSU Extension). Skimp on cure in a sausage that hangs for weeks at cellar temperatures and you remove one of its main safety hurdles.
Too much: Nitrite "is used in very small quantities in cured meats, and overdoses can be harmful" (Washington State University Extension, EB1661). Curing salts have "relatively high toxicity, so they must be used in the quantities established in researched recipes" (OSU Extension), and federal law caps how much can go in (9 CFR 424.21). Keep curing salt labeled and away from your table salt.
Why grams and a digital scale?
The amount of cure for a home batch is small, and the difference between right and wrong is a fraction of a teaspoon. WSU Extension notes it's "difficult to accurately weigh the small quantities needed," which is exactly why home cooks use a pre-blended commercial cure instead of pure nitrite (WSU Extension, EB1661). Teaspoons vary with how the powder packs; a scale doesn't. At the 0.25% default, a 1 kg batch needs just 2.5 g of cure. A scale that only reads whole grams would show that as 2 or 3 g, which is off by up to 20%. Use a small scale that reads in tenths of a gram for the cure.
What the target finished weight is for
USDA FSIS treats fermented, dried sausage as a multi-step process: target pH, starter cultures, salt, sugar and nitrite or nitrate during fermentation, then a target water activity during drying. It also warns that "fermentation and drying alone are not particularly effective lethality treatments," and it recommends processes that achieve at least a 5.0-log reduction of Salmonella and STEC (in beef) and at least a 3.0-log reduction of Listeria monocytogenes (FSIS Guideline FSIS-GD-2023-0002).
As salami dries, it loses water and gets lighter. Enter the weight-loss % from your tested recipe (there's no default), and the calculator gives you a target weight to watch for. Log your weigh-ins with our drying tracker. Weight loss is not a validated safety endpoint. FSIS lists target water activity, not a weight-loss number, as the critical drying parameter (FSIS-GD-2023-0002). Hitting the weight doesn't replace proper fermentation, a pH check and a safe drying chamber; see our salami guide.
FAQ
Can I use Cure #1 for salami? Cure #2 is the blend intended for meats that won't be cooked, like salami (OSU Extension). Cure #1 suits cooked or short-cure products. Follow a tested recipe for the product you're making.
Can I use more cure than the default? No. At 0.25%, Cure #1 already hits the 156 ppm federal maximum for chopped products (our arithmetic from 9 CFR 424.21(c): ¼ oz per 100 lb ÷ 1,600 oz). The cap the calculator enforces is the 156 ppm nitrite limit (and 1,718 ppm nitrate), not the 0.25% dose itself, so a stronger cure can hit the cap at a lower dose. Any result over either limit is blocked. You can always use less.
Can I use teaspoons instead of grams? We don't recommend it. Small quantities are hard to measure accurately (WSU Extension), and volume measures vary. Weigh in grams.
Is pink curing salt the same as Himalayan pink salt? No. Most curing salts are "dyed a pink color so they are distinguishable from table salt," and they "are not the same as Himalayan Pink salt, which is pink due to trace mineral content" (OSU Extension, PNW 784).
Can I use "natural" celery powder instead? This calculator is built for Cure #1 and #2 only. "Natural" products use plant ingredients that are naturally high in nitrates, such as celery juice powder. Because nitrite or nitrate isn't added directly, these products can be sold as "natural, uncured" (OSU Extension, PNW 784). Federal labeling rules require products made without added nitrate or nitrite to be called "Uncured" and to say "No Nitrate or Nitrite Added" (9 CFR 317.17). The calculator doesn't dose these products, so follow the maker's directions.
Is homemade salami safe during pregnancy? The CDC advises people at higher risk, including pregnant women, to avoid unheated "fermented or dry sausages" and eat them only "reheated to 165°F or until steaming hot" (CDC, Preventing Listeria Infection).
Safety disclaimer
This calculator is a weighing aid, not a recipe or a guarantee of safety. Always follow a tested recipe, check your cure's label, use a scale that reads in grams, and double-check the results before you mix. Curing salt is toxic in excess: store it labeled and out of reach of kids. When in doubt, consult your local university extension service.