Yes, you want to poke holes all over your salumi, after casing, for a couple of reasons...it lets any trapped air out (air pockets, etc) as well as facilitates even and uniform drying. You can use a sterilized pin/needle (sterilize in alcohol and flame) or one of the ready made salum prickers that h...

Yep, and if I open a botle to use for rinsing then I get to drink the rest of the bottle...win win!

Thanks BB. I have made many a coppa, bresoala, etc. and they are always fantastic. I cure, rinse cure off, rinse with red wine (not necessary, I know!), dust with spices of choice, and stuff into a beef bung. Never used anything like dextrose or CSS, probably won't start now. I was just curious! tha...

Question for Chris, Bob, etc I saw a coppa recipe from someone that said to rub dextrose and corn syrup solids on coppa before casing, along with whatever spice blend one may be using. What's the reason for adding these sugar components to the surface of the coppa before casing? Necessary? Makes a d...

You don't have to bring your bacon temp up to 138, etc. If the smoke is too much, simply reduce the time in the smoker. You may only need 30 mins in your small Bradley with the wood puck, is hose Bradleys are very small and a little smoke from them goes a long way. Smoke is simply particles in the a...

Thanks guys, I will continue making bacon the same way as I have been for years, but will reduce my cure #1 % to .192% as suggested.

Thx!

Since my bacon comes out of the fridge at about 34 deg F, and goes into my smoker at that temp, my bacon has probably come up to ambient temp after 4 hours of smoking and sitting in the smoker. Probably has an IT of anywhere from 70-90 degrees, depends on the temp outside that day. I use an a-maz-n ...

Thanks Bob! I will drop my cure #1 % to .192% (.00192) from now on. Why do you think almost all of the homeade bacon recipes out there pre cook to IT of 140? A simple internet search shows 9 out of 10 recipes call for hot smoking or cooking to IT of 140 immediately after curing, before slicing, wrap...

Hey guys, Chris, Bob, Butterbean, etc. Question for you all... I have been making my own bacon for quite a long time, using a base cure consisting of cure #1 at .25% (.0025), 3% kosher salt (.03), and 1-1.5% (.01) brown sugar. Then I add any spices I want. I cure in ziplock bags in fridge for around...

What kind of casings did you use? The mold may have been prevented by the premature drying of the cases, and the low humidity initially. May cause a bit of case hardening on the end product, but no mold growth would be worth it to me! Case hardening can be reversed to some degree by vac packing and ...

Chris, F-LC is what I plan on using, sopressata, finocchiona, genoa, and pepperoni. Maybe a Spanich chorizo as well. Casing size will be 2.5" fiberous mahogany casings, soaked for 20-30 mins in water before stuffing. Fast fermentation at higher temp (85-90 F) for arpund 24 hours until PH drops and p...

Thanks Bob! So when I ferment, as long as my PH drops below 5.3, then I should be safe, correct? And the farther the PH drops, the "tangy/sour" taste will increase? And so the total sugar regulates the final PH? More sugar (up to 2% max), the lower the final PH will be? And sugars can come from othe...

Thanks Chris, Bob! Appreciate the advice! I will see how it goes with the fiberous casings....hopefully I can keep the mold at bay! :-) What fast fermenting culture do you guys suggest, that you have had good results with? And whats the % sugar by meat weight that I would use as a starting point, fo...

Did some reading myself, and it looks like natamycin is the winner when it comes to inhibiting molds and yeasts. Commercially used in salumi, cheese, baked goods, etc. Trade names like Delvocid, etc But hard for a hobbyist to get in the USA, due to it being an anti fungal/antimicrobial. Anyone know ...

Thanks guys! So if I go the fiberous casing route, should I soak the dry fiberous casings in anti mold agents? Or just spray the outside of the casings with anti mold solution, once stuffed? (Kind of like we do with the M600 mold solution, after fermentation and stuffing) And do I wait until after f...