The causes of low nitrite levels in traditional low-nitrite cured meat from northeastern Chongqing were investigated and efficient nitrite-degrading bacterial strains were screened to optimize the processing technology of low-nitrite cured meat. Nitrite contents of cured meat samples collected from four counties and districts in northeastern Chongqing were determined. Samples with low nitrite levels were selected for microbial analysis, and dominant lactic acid bacteria were isolated and identified. Nitrite degradation performance was evaluated, and the effects of salt addition and curing temperature on nitrite content were further examined. The results showed that the low nitrite content of cured meat from northeastern Chongqing was primarily attributed to efficient degradation by lactic acid bacteria. Lactobacillus sakei FBG1-D33 was successfully isolated, exhibiting a nitrite degradation rate of 95.20% within 24 h, which was significantly higher than previously reported values. When the inoculum size was 108 CFU/g, the pH of the cured meat ranged from 5.0 to 5.2. The optimized processing conditions were as follows: salt addition of 3%, curing temperature of 4 ℃, curing time of 7 days, inoculum size of 108 CFU/g for strain FBG1-D33, and fermentation at 37 ℃ for 24 h. Under these conditions, the final nitrite content of the cured meat was less than 1 mg•kg-1, outperforming similar studies. These results demonstrate that the strong nitrite-degrading capacity of L. sakei FBG1-D33, combined with optimized processing parameters, provides a theoretical basis and technical support for the production of low-nitrite cured meat.