The influence of spices in fermentation

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redzed
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Post by redzed » Thu Feb 18, 2016 00:14

Take a look at this article on the effect of hot pepper powder on the fermentation of kimchi. Without going into detail, tests showed that the pepper actually slowed down the fermentation during the early phase, but in the end there was little difference. I wonder whether a similiar reaction takes place when we ferment that spicy soppressata or chorizo?

http://microbialfoods.org/science-diges ... mentation/
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Post by Butterbean » Thu Feb 18, 2016 22:35

That's interesting. I have always found most chemical biological/processes/reactions are the same no matter the medium. Of course if you were seeking research grants you would want to get funding to study things in more detail just to be sure but that info is good enough for me. Thanks.
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Post by redzed » Fri Feb 19, 2016 20:30

Butterbean wrote:That's interesting. I have always found most chemical biological/processes/reactions are the same no matter the medium. Of course if you were seeking research grants you would want to get funding to study things in more detail just to be sure but that info is good enough for me. Thanks.
I think that you are onto something BB. Let's apply for government grants and make this a better world to live in! Should not be too difficult as bureaucrats and politicians consider collected taxes as play money. :twisted:

However, as we go further into this, we have to recognize that certain spices and their amounts can make a difference in the fermentation. Below is an excerpt from "Influence of Processing Parameters on Cultures Performance" Louise H. Stahnke and Karsten Tjener, p.192 in Toldra's bible. Worth noting is the comment about paprika, especially when some chorizo recipes have as much as 30g of it per kg.!

SPICES A number of different spices are used for fermented meat products, the most typical being black and white pepper. Apart from the obvious function as flavorings, some spices have been found to stimulate the growth of lactic acid bacteria and thereby the rate of lactic acid formation (Nes and Skjelkvåle 1982; Zaika and Kissinger 1984). Black pepper, white pepper, mustard, garlic, allspice, nutmeg, ginger, coriander, clove, mace, cinnamon, cardamom, and red pepper all stimulate acid production to varying degrees depending on the concentration and the bacterial strain (Nes and Skjelkvåle 1982; Zaika and Kissinger 1984; Adams 1986). The content of manganese ions in the spices is the primary factor (Zaika and Kissinger 1984; Hagen et al. 2000). In addition, spices such as paprika contain amounts of fermentable sugars so high that the final pH drop may be significantly altered in sausages like the Spanish Chorizo (Lois et al. 1987; Incze 1992).
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Post by redzed » Fri Feb 19, 2016 20:52

I looked into this further and I was amazed at the amount of sugar in paprika. Nutrition sheets show that it contains sugar in the range of 10-17%. What that means that if are adding 25g/kg to your Spanish chorizo, you are adding 2.5-4.5g of sugar! So adjustments in the amount of dextrose we add to feed the starter cultures should be considered.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/spi ... erbs/198/2
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Post by Butterbean » Sat Feb 20, 2016 01:05

Maybe its just me but I find all this amazing when we understand the chemistry/microbiology behind these processes people have been doing for centuries. Its like we are just understandign the why of why it worked for them. They may not have understood it but they knew it worked.

I wonder if its merecoincidence that most of the chorizos containing high paprika concentrations are typically found in regions that have higher temps thus needing a quick drop in pH? OK, maybe I'm going to deep with this so I'll shut up and go back to chewing my crayons.

Redzed, as for the research grant our chances of being successful will be increased tenfold if we said we were going to perform the research to see how climate change will effect the fermentation. Its nearly a sure bet if we add these buzz words.
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