Charcuterie - Show us your work

Thanks Larry!

alaskanassasin said:

@lkapigian the book I am reading mentions spraying everything with a bleach water blend to sanitize. Over the top? Or good advice?

I may get flamed but, not necessary, it is good practice, in some cases .

I do use bleach but not on everything…star San is a good sanitizer …. There is a lot of salubrious bacteria that we kill off with bleach,

I changed my process after attending a class in Washington and I asked that question , his 8 foot butcher block only sees a block brush and maybe vinegar…, 

when the Italian charcuterie makers came to the states , they could not replicate what they did back home because of sterility and lab conditions, they were forced into lab starter cultures 

some makers have received special permission to go back to wood ( blocks )and away from stainless ( yes the class I took never passed health dept but they looked the other way ) 

yes you should was your hands, but there is some very good bacteria that will inoculate and get the good bacteria going in your cured meats ,

I’m sure @nolaegghead and @JohnInCarolina would have better insight , but I don’t go heavy on bleach , I DO pay attention to everything that’s going on with the process, feel, smell , Sight, heck I even talk to the meats lol

On another note, with my catering , SafeServ all the way even if it’s over kill, but not in sausage or charcuterie 

these guys are healthy and happy , and I care for them like kids ..

alaskanassasin said:

Roger. I will use brewing protocols, I wash everything and star san everything. Thanks for taking the time to answer 

Lol, a bit of a long winded answer 

Alright Larry, I am confused. The peperone recipe that I am using calls 5lbs of beef and 20 grams of Bactoferm F-RM-52.   The package of Bactoferm says 25 grams for 100kg. 

Am i supposed to make a starter? and 20 grams of the starter?

So it says 1/4 cup/20 grams of bactoferm.    does this mean I put 6.25 Grams of bactoferm into 1/4 cup of distilled water?

alaskanassasin said:

Thanks for the clarification Larry.

for your 5 pound 1/4 tsp is all you need

I quit using starter cultures all together a while back and like it better ...if I ever use anything for that tang, I have been using ECA

@nolaegghead, that is a bargain @alaskanassasin those will certainly work ....

caliking said:

lkapigian said:

Pulled a pressed chub out today, going to let the rest mature 2 or 3 more weeks then start some more 

I so wish I lived closer to you. MOG, that looks good. 

Thanks @caliking, I’m going to be coat 1 on the cops and 1 Lonzino with Chaimen to make a Faux Basturma, I’ll send you some to try 

alaskanassasin said:

 It is amazing how quickly the moisture comes down when the freezer kicks on

Mine has no fan over coil cooling so it does not swing much, those links above look great!

what are your humidity settings ?