Where to buy pink salt in Dallas?

Fastest bet would be go to google,or the folks you know.
Next bet would be call the couple butcher shops closest to you and see if they'd sell some.

Try a large Ace Hardware store,sometimes they have it,TQ and other supplies.

Can't discourage making recipes,and they have a great book,but over a half century of eating tasso-in the traditional uses-I'd bet you can't tell TQ from pink salt,or neither.

If I remember ,their recipe only smokes for 4-5 hrs,around 170º-190º,so the pink salt isn't for safety.The old LA smokehouses would cold smoke for 2 days and require it.

We like Chef Alex Patout's,from down in New Iberia with my "coonass" relatives,or John Folse's,and these get about 7-8 hrs and no cure.

Now,the three days setting in the cold with the cure will sure make it a bright pink.

Have fun and let us know how it turns out.

Hope this helps a little.

Good suggestions, Tom. I've eaten a fair amount of tasso, but I've never made any, so I'm looking forward to this experiment. I never bring enough tasso or andouille back when I go back home to visit.

I've been looking at recipes and processes. John Folse's recipe here http://www.jfolse.com/mm_ingredients.htm is simple and smokes for 2.5 hours. No pink salt. The writer of Nola Cuisine has a recipe with just a pinch of Prague powder. Charcuterie use their own curing mix that is probably similar to TQ. I also found Alex Patout's recipe on the gumbopages site (Chef Patout's own site seems to be down), which doesn't have pink salt either.

There are slight variations in process and ingredients, but the main difference is between those recipes that use pink salt and those that don't.

I'm going to try both styles, and I'll report back when I'm done.

Donald Link also has an interesting brine-cured and smoked Tasso in his book Real Cajun, which I just got. I may try his method too.

Over the years of trying many,the differences get to be in the meat used.

The length of time using old heritage/fatter bred hogs' butts/shoulders ,needs much longer cook time to render fat and break down collagen.

In SW LA,after fall hog killin's,when all the main cuts are parceled out,the better trimmin's everywhere on the hog are saved out for tasso-rather than ground for sausage.

Almost like tenderloin tips of beef,that can be quick cooked.

They can be thinner strips of lean pork and can overcook.
Thus,a little seasoning and smoke can go a long way.

Using the loin from today's leaner/younger/smaller market hogs needs much less time.

I've seen pork tenderloins and beef sirloin tips made into tasso.

Today's tasso may also be made from young/lean hams and almost a Danish ham texture.Thin slice and wrap around figs from south LA fig trees,or melon,or shrimp.

I guess since I use mine mostly for traditional country/Cajun, cooked ,one dish meals,I prefer thicker/heavy smoke/heat to hold up to the longer cooking and influencing the dish.

We'll look forward to your experiments.