some arbitrary questions

[sambal badjak]

Hi guys,
I guess I could have posted this at "project b2", but it's a little too much off topic I think.
Anyway, I will be flying to Europe in the next couple of days and I am looking at improving my set-up/equipment.
So far I have ordered a sausage stuffer (lem 5 lbs with ss tubes) and several sizes of mincer plates.
I am now looking at the following and would like to know if these are good ideas or not:

- a single hot plate to use in conjunction with my proQ cold smoke generator (so I can smoke at higher temperatures as required in some of the recipes?)

- a salinometer?
I have made some smoked chicken and just calculated the brine. Seems to work OK, at least they tasted fine. Do I really need one?

- a marinade/brine injector
Do I need one and what should I look out for? What size would you recommend? I don't really see myself doing hams etc, but bacon would definitely be on the books.
So far I 've done one slab of bacon according to this recipe :http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle ... cipes.pork It turned out very salt, but tastes good if not eaten on its own (in pasta sauces etc etc)

- starter cultures
Now we really heading into the unknown for me.
Can I actually make fermented meat/sausages in my climate? The winter lasts about 2 months with minimum night temperatures of 7oC and max day temp of 24 oC. Most of the time we hit 15-20 oC at night and 30-40 oC at day time
I found 2 starter cultures and they are just named "starter culture" and "rapid starter culture".
So the first question is: should/can I make fermented meats and the second: if yes, what culture should I buy?

- smoke powder
I assume this is an alternative to liquid smoke. Has anyone ever used it and is it worth while?

Any help/insight/comments are appreciated

[el Ducko]

- a single hot plate to use in conjunction with my proQ cold smoke generator (so I can smoke at higher temperatures as required in some of the recipes?)

I'm not familiar with that brand of smoker. However, I use an electric hotplate and temperature controller in my MasterBuilt gas smoker (not at the same time, of course!) and it works well.

- a salinometer?
I have made some smoked chicken and just calculated the brine. Seems to work OK, at least they tasted fine. Do I really need one?

It's a good way to check your formulation, and it's very inexpensive. (It's a weighted glass float.)

- a marinade/brine injector
Do I need one and what should I look out for? What size would you recommend? I don't really see myself doing hams etc, but bacon would definitely be on the books.

Anything thicker than, say, 2 inches should probably be injected. (There are various "rules of thumb" about this.) Anyway, injecting can't help but distribute the brine more thoroughly. I use a small plastic injector which came with a bottle of marinade. Nicer ones (metal, glass) are sold by supply houses. (Don't buy one that's way too big!) It should be interesting getting them past x-ray machines and customs agents at airports!

- starter cultures
Now we really heading into the unknown for me.
Can I actually make fermented meat/sausages in my climate?... should/can I make fermented meats and the second: if yes, what culture should I buy?

I'll have to defer these to someone more experienced.

- smoke powder
I assume this is an alternative to liquid smoke. Has anyone ever used it and is it worth while?

It should be equivalent. However, it will never be quite as good as actual smoking, in my opinion. (But that's just me.)

Good luck, and have a safe trip!
Duk

[sawhorseray]

I applaud your dedication Sambal! It makes me realize I kind of take for granted just being able to sit at my computer and have whatever I want or need just show up right on my doorstep in a few days. Hope you don't have any problems getting that stuff back into your country, good luck. RAY

[sambal badjak]

Thanks guys!
Yeah, it can be hard to get stuff, but to me it is worth while as I cannot get the cold meats and sausages that I want around here.
Most of you can go and get all kind of sausages and still make them yourself. Now that's whar I call dedication

I've more or less decided to leave the starter cultures as they should stay cold and besides that,I don't think I'm ready to make those type of sausages yet. I still got a lot to learn!

I will get the salinometer, hot plate and maybe the marinade injector ( maybe I just use syringes though).
I am going to get me a precission scale as well. They are unaffordable here!

[el Ducko]

A good scale will be your best investment ever. Get one that has resolution 0.1 gram, so you can do small (1 kg) batches. Anything with worse resolution will be useless unless you make 10 kg or larger batches.

...and you are wise to keep things simple until you practice a bit and build confidence and expertise. (Fortunately, the simple stuff is delicious too.)

Happy shopping!