Stoopid Question of the Day

Bacchus · May 2010

okay, maybe not....but close.

Since I have started with some "curing" processes I bought a thermomter for my fridge. All the advice seems to say to keep the meats between 32-40deg. I have been keeping it near the bottom,with the fridge on setting 9, with 10 being the coldest. Therm measured 42, so I turned it up to 10. It now mesures 40, so I guess Im relatively safe....? Anyway, so I go to pour a glass of tea, and its frozen(from the top shelf). Moved the gauge to the top and it measures 29deg. Why would the temp at the bottom be higher than the top, when cold air sinks?

PhilsGrill · May 2010

Knowing that, cold air comes in from the top and naturally sinks to the bottom for circulation. That's why the controls are at the top.

Rolling Egg · May 2010

I dunno. Maybe your duct comes into the top of the fridge where the tea is. By the time it sinks down through all the stuff you got in there it's not as cold?

B & C · May 2010

I am just guessing Ron but it will probably take a little while for everything to change temp. The cold air spills down from the freezer on most refrigerators and there are shelves in the way to keep it from spilling straight down really fast.

hornhonk · May 2010

Your fridge is upside down :laugh:

Bacchus · May 2010

I was thinking that I was upside down.

Mr. & Mrs Potatohead · May 2010

hornhonk is on to something here...Really!
Does your fridge have the freezer on the top or bottom?
I truly believe that with a freezer on the top…The top of the fridge is colder.
I also know from fact (living as long as I have) that the back of the fridge is colder then the front. That one I can not speculate on, but with the freezer location I’m 99.99…% sure on

!

Bacchus · May 2010

It's a side by side. The tea and therm is at front of the top shelf.

BananaChipz · May 2010

the cold air flows from the freezer in a side by side. Most likely when the compressor is on it'll be coldest at the top until things even out over time.

Fridges are never exact or even (just like ovens), that's why it's recommended to get a thermometer when curing meat.

Unknown · May 2010

The answer to your question is your fridge is not being directly cooled but indirectly with a vent. The way most fridge freezer combos work is you have a dial in the freezer controlling how cold it gets and simply a vent opening between the freezer and fridge to control the temp of the fridge. A bit of a hack job and messy but that's how the go.

milesofsmiles · May 2010

A shot of Rum will prevent the tea from freezing, all else will just be cold. :laugh:

Jai-Bo · May 2010

hornhonk wrote:

Your fridge is upside down :laugh:

Me 2....My fridge freezes (partial) the top shelf in the back....that's where the beer goes!!!! :woohoo:

thirdeye · May 2010

Sorry, can't help with the mechanics of a refrigerator, I'm still trying to figure out the light mystery.......

One thing about curing temps, 32° is way too cold... The ideal temperature for your refrigerator during curing is 38° to 40°. Colder than 38° will slow down the curing process, I don't recommend using temperatures warmer than 42°.

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · May 2010

i still owe you some literature i found that suggested a range of something like 40 to 50 degrees. i was surprised, but i'm pretty sure it was for hams, after injecting along the bone and doing a dry-rub of cure on the surface. i guess the rationale is that the food is safe from the moment you start, since the injection gets things running, and the surface bacteria are killed off. what is also implied is that the cure is faster (just as it conversely slows at the lower temps).

used to be that they just layer cure/ham/cure/ham/cure/hams, etc. in a barrel and ship them in unrefrigerated train cars across country.

i think to our current thinking, having had fodd safety drilled into us, the 50-degree number seems unsafe. but i think, practically, it was a very real and workable method. i am not prepared to try it, honestly... but just as we can store hams at ambient temps safely (country ham, anyone?), assuming the cure kills the bacteria, i guess the idea is there's no reason they can't cure at warmer (40+ degrees) temps as well. and in fact USED to be cured that way.

...still. agreed, little voice in the back of one's head still says 'no'.

thirdeye · May 2010

Yeah, I'd like to see that.

I beleive the HiMountain Buckboard instructions call out 40-45 degrees for their ideal temp.

Bacchus · May 2010

Wayne, It's right at 40deg. Thanks for your input. Your help has been invaluble.
I'm using TQ on this one(belly)with brown sugar and a touch of black pepper.

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