Homemade Sausage Making

Hello everyone. I'm new to sausage making and I'm jumping right in. I'm choosing Salami mainly because I love cured meat and I wanted to try something simply spiced. I've got a 3 lbs pork shoulder and I'm picking up some fat back this evening. I've got the spices, grinder, and insta cure #2. I'm using proportion of live culture yogurt for my starter culter at 1 tsp per lb bloomed for 12 hours or so.

I'm also a home brewer so I've got a temperature controlled chamber already, and I'm using a bowl with a towel tied to the top rack and wicking water up and a fan to control humidity. It's sitting at a nice 87% RH with this method right now.

I'll upload picture as I go, but please any advice to offer feel free to. I look forward to this community!

Hi rgauthier,
To avoid disappointment and give you the highest possibility of success in fermentation, may I suggest that you use a professionally developed starter culture? A culture used for dairy products is quite different than those used for meat. Stan Marianski wrote:
"Although lactic acid bacteria are naturally present in a sausage mass, the quantity and qualities are hard to predict. In most cases they are of a hetero-fermentative type and that means that they not only produce lactic acid by metabolizing carbohydrate, but also create many different reactions, which can produce unpleasant odors and affect the entire process".

On the other hand, starter cultures of the "homo-fermentative type" will produce lactic acid ONLY. The specific commercial starter cultures for meat products are produced by isolating the desired bacteria strains that are naturally found in meat. By purifying and then growing them under controlled laboratory conditions, the desire characteristics are obtained. The "chance factor" is removed. The consumer knows exactly what is going into his product. He knows it will be safe.
If you add a hetero-fermentative culture, you are possibly adding unwanted microorganisms and even pathogenic bacteria. Please reconsider adding a professionally-prepared culture for meat - A Bactoferm™ product if you will - a lactic acid-producing culture such as T-SPX, F-RM-52, or LHP, with up to ten million bacterial cells per gram - to assure microbial dominance over undesirable microorganisms that might be present.

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon

Chuck, thank you very much for the notes. I have read a number of your posts and always learn something new. I have read a lot on the starter cultures and about using substitutes outside of the commercial options. I know it seems odd that as my 1st try I'm making this an experiment. I guess it's the home brewer in me. Not to mention that 1 package costs $15 plus shipping which is more than what the meat costs all together for this thing. I will be monitoring pH levels with pH strips throughout fermentation also.

I will be sure to update as I go. Thanks again!

First batch was ground and stuffed today. Currently sitting in the fermentation chamber at 25C and 95 rh%. Learned that I need a better grinder for sure. Hand grinding is for the birds. Also need to prepare better for hanging the sausages after stuffed. I've got ph strips coming tomorrow so I'm able to confirm fermentation is done. I'll need to figure out how to put pictures up later.

Sorry for the sideways view. This is as of 6pm yesterday.

rgauthier20420 wrote:Not to mention that 1 package costs $15 plus shipping

Eat your heart out with a very blunt knife: Knowing the production prices I think nobody ought to pay more than $6,50 for a T-SPX like culture -and even that price would leave a pretty headroom for the distributor. Or did you quote the price for a pouch for 200 kg?? (I almost hope you did....).

Somebody out there are seriously ripping you guys off!
I think it's pathetic to witness how well intentioned and serious hobby-meat enthusiasts who are striving to create healthy high quality products, are being exploited in this obscene manner while the industry whose chemistry-loaded products we all want to avoid can buy the same cultures for (I guess) almost one third of the price mentioned above.
It´s a kind of twisted hypocrisy

Best advice: get friends with the production manager of a large scale salami factory and strike a B2B price-level deal with him whenever you need a pouch.

I am wondering if you don't use the right starter culture could you be at risk for food poisoning?

Fermentation was confirmed with ph strips to be right around 5 ph. I would like to get ph strips with a little tighter range because the ones I'm using go in .5 increments. There are no of smells at all or discoloration of the sample meat that's not in cases.

What was your starting pH? And did you dilute one part meat to two parts distilled water to take your sample? Pictures would be great!

redzed wrote:What was your starting pH? And did you dilute one part meat to two parts distilled water to take your sample? Pictures would be great!

red,

Unfortunately, I didn't have the pH strips until 1 day after I'd stuffed the sausages and began fermentation, so I don't know a starting pH. To measure the pH, I diluted 10 g of meat mixture with 20 g of distilled water. I am in search of better pH strips with a tighter range for next time. I've learned so much just from this first attempt that I can't wait to do it again. However, one of the biggest things I've learned is that in order to make a decent product you need to have good equipment. Not the best....but still good. I was using a very old style hand crank grinder from a friend that just didn't get the job done as I'd like.

I don't have any pictures of pH measuring process either. Again, 1st time jitters let's call it. They've been sitting at about 55 F and 71% RH for only about 3 days now and they are already looking to be drying nicely. As far as finished product, I'm very hopeful they will turn out safe and edible. However, I'm worried about the taste at this point. When fermenting the smell was very strong of garlic and I fear I may have used too much. I guess only taste will tell.

Carpster wrote:

I am wondering if you don't use the right starter culture could you be at risk for food poisoning?

The answer to your question is yes. That's why I put my trust in professionals like Chr. Hansen - the makers of Bactoferm™ - you know... the folks who employ accredited researchers and qualified personnel who make the stuff for a living!

Considering those same people that supply those cultures charge $15 + shipping for their product makes it uneconomical at times. Also considering it's been shown that certain bacteria present in certain probiotics will sufficiently ferment the meat I'm perfectly fine with using them. Yes, if I begin making cured meat on a regular basis I'll likely purchase a culture to use, but this was more readily available and the cost was there.

The chorizo seems to be drying nicely. They have a nice smoky garlic smell to them and were inspected tonight for any signs of mold and showed none what so ever. I am seeing a sort of oily coating on the exterior of the links. What is this? Here's an updated picture.

Have you posted the picture yet? I can't see it. A previous post of yours alluded to a picture too (you said it was sideways), but I am not seeing any pictures at all in this thread.

Tasso, I've updated the pictures from my own Imgur account. The 1st one is just after stuffing and the 2rd is of last night. 4 days drying.

Thanks, rgauthier. Your sausages are looking great!