[USA]Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore

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Chuckwagon
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[USA]Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore

Post by Chuckwagon » Wed Jun 06, 2012 15:18

Hi Smoke Addicts!
Have you heard of, or tried, Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore meaning "Italian hunter`s sausage" ? It's an Italian dry-cured sausage carrying a European Certificate of Origin: (PDO 08/09/2001). They are gorgeous little things and are quite secret - protected by a PDO. Photos of this secluded, surreptitious, salami sausage may be seen at this link: http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Salami ... 19&bih=506

To understand the European Certificate of Origin (protective labeling), click on this link: http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/sausages-b ... n-sausages. Written by Stan Marianski, it should help you understand why the authentic product has to be protected. It is much like a copyright in the world of literature.

However, the PDO certainly does not preclude you from making your own delicious salamini. Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore is now a product of several locations in Italy, (including Friuli Venezia Giulia, Veneto, Lombardia, Piemonte, Emilia Romagna, Umbria, Toscana, Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise), but it began in the hillside areas of the Lumbard territory at the times of the Longobard invasions when the barbaric people ate much preserved pork. Hunters carried smaller versions of the salami (salamini) to accommodate their packs and the reduced size is yet preferred by consumers. Salamini Italiani alla cacciatore is most often served as an appetizer with various cheeses and red wines. The salamini with a hint of allspice and ginger, perhaps comes from the area where Campobasso is located in the province of Molise. Although you will never find the original flavor in anything but the original sausage, you may come close by making your own. Try my recipe for this old, traditional sausage. I really believe you`ll be surprised. You`ll want to make plenty and you`ll be the hit of the neighborhood. Please let us know how your sausages turn out and don`t forget the photos!

Chuckwagon`s Simulated Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore
(A Real Fraudulent, Pseudo, Bogus, Shameful Counterfeit Clone!)

6 lbs. pork shoulder, 1-1/2" dice
3 lbs. beef eye-round, 1-1/2" dice
1 lb. pork backfat, (3/8" small dice)
0.6 g. Bactoferm™ T-SPX culture
------ Bactoferm™ Mold-600 culture
11.5 g. Instacure #2
100 g. kosher salt
10 g. powdered dextrose
15 g. sugar
3.5 g. pulverized garlic
7.0 g. coarse black pepper
1 g. ground allspice
1 g. ground nutmeg
1.5 g. ground ginger
1/3 cup (0.078 liter) dry, red wine (NOT a fruity-sweet wine)
1 cup (0.236 liter) icewater
61 mm. (2-3/8") clear synthetic protein-lined fibrous casings (Sausagemaker #25100)

Directions:
Prepare the T-SPX and the Mold-600 and have them both ready. Remove the fat from the pork and beef and dice it with the knife. Dice the backfat by hand into desired size, and then freeze it with only the pork shoulder fat. (Discard any beef fat). Cut the lean pork and beef into 1" dice. Combine the Instacure #2, salt, dextrose, sugar, garlic, pepper, allspice, nutmeg, and ginger, in a mixing bowl with the water and blend all the ingredients into a soupy mixture. Pour the mixture over the meat and toss the diced meat to coat the pieces. Place the meat into a non reactive container, cover it, and refrigerate it overnight. About twenty minutes before grinding the meat, place it into the freezer along with the plate, grinder knife, and the grinder`s throat housing. Grind the pork and beef through a 3/16" plate and into a bowl set in another bowl of ice. Add the T-SPX culture and mix the sausage while spraying the wine into the blend with a spritzer until it is evenly combined and the mass becomes sticky. When pulled apart, the sausage should show sticky "peaks". Remove the bowl from the mixer and evenly fold in the frozen, diced, backfat by hand. Add enough shoulder fat to equal 30% total fat with 70% lean. Finally, stuff the sausage into 61 mm. (2-3/8") clear synthetic protein-lined fibrous casings (Sausagemaker #25100) and tie 6" links (four links per 24" casing). Spray the links with the Bactoferm™ Mold-600 solution and place them into a fermentation chamber at 68°F. in 90% relative humidity reduced to 85% after three days. Finally air-dry the sausage in a dry-room at 55°F. (13°C.) in 80% humidity for four to six weeks, until it reaches an Aw of <.85. Following the loss of 35% moisture, store the sausages at 55°F. (13°C.) in 75% humidity.

I almost forgot to tell you. Salamini Italiani Alla Cacciatore is considered a "high-class" salumi and people can`t get enough of it in Italy. It is mostly used as an appetizer. You can`t believe the research I had to do just to come up with this "clone". Please give it a try.

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
Last edited by Chuckwagon on Sun Jul 08, 2012 05:14, edited 3 times in total.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by Keymaster » Thu Jun 07, 2012 01:55

I'm going to jump on this band wagon. I have a Iron chef contest to do this weekend, required ingrediants are Portabella mushroom, skirt steak and corn meal. I will do this recipe the following weekend for sure!! I plan to use something I found on this forum for the contest.
Thank you for the recipe Chuckwagon and all your time researching the background of this fine salami!!!

Aaron
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Post by uwanna61 » Fri Jun 08, 2012 21:56

CW
I'm in, I picked up a fresh beef eye-round this afternoon and will kick this thing hard in the shorts this weekend!

Wally
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Post by Chuckwagon » Sat Jun 09, 2012 06:42

Grrreat! It sound like Story28 is going to start a batch on Monday also. Should be an interesting project.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by story28 » Sat Jun 09, 2012 14:16

That is right. I should have a few pictures up by Friday. We will be making ours from a portion of the whole pig (minus the top round) we are getting in on Thursday. We will probably be doing a 7.5 kg batch.
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Post by uwanna61 » Mon Jun 11, 2012 23:02

Hey all
Well I got off to late start this weekend, too many things going on. CW I will admit, I cut the batch in half to 5lbs.
Now if this salami tastes anything like the nose tickling aroma that comes out of the slurry meat mix, this should be kick butt salami!
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Post by Chuckwagon » Tue Jun 12, 2012 04:01

Yeee Haww! Wally. I think you'll like this one. I believe the secret to this salami is to let the natural pork flavor shine through without bogging it down with too many spices. We need just a hint of nutmeg and ginger. Like Stan told us, the secret is in HOW we make it. Good luck pal. Keep us abreast of your progress. Your photos are always very nice.

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by uwanna61 » Wed Jun 13, 2012 00:26

Ok so here it is marinated, ground and stuffed. Definitely a great aroma coming out of the fridge. I used the 42mm beef round casings, I have been hung up on these, I like the durability and the authentic salami look while they are hanging. Rain forecasted here the next couple days, perfect timing! keeping my fingers crossed :razz:
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Post by Chuckwagon » Wed Jun 13, 2012 07:40

Keymaster wrote:
I have a Iron chef contest to do this weekend, required ingrediants are Portabella mushroom, skirt steak and corn meal. I will do this recipe the following weekend for sure!! I plan to use something I found on this forum for the contest.
Thank you for the recipe Chuckwagon and all your time researching the background of this fine salami!!!
You are very welcome Aaron. How did you do with the weekend contest you were talking about? Did you bring a blue ribbon home? Inquiring minds want to know! :roll:
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by Keymaster » Thu Jun 14, 2012 16:44

Chuckwagon, Thanks for asking. Voting is still going on in a poll form on another forum. I will pm you the forum Link as I would not want to promote another forum on this forum. I will post my entry in the BBQ Section and need to thank the person I copied on this forum for the idea.
Those look excellent Wally, I need to get mine going this weekend.

Aaron
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Post by nuynai » Mon Jun 18, 2012 17:03

CW, any benefit or problem leaving them rest/dry longer. Will this intensify the flavors. Thanks in advance.
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Post by Chuckwagon » Tue Jun 19, 2012 04:13

Hey, hey, Nuynai,
There shouldn't be a problem with a little more time in the chamber if you desire a stronger flavor. However, most Americans don't realize that high-quality European salamis have a mild taste, as they usually contain little or no added sugar. Raw sugar is not normally added to this type of sausage because the lactobacillus/pediococcus conversion may easily become overly active, giving sausage too much "tang" or sour taste. In other words, as long as there is sugar being supplied to the lactobacilli for nutrition, the acidity will continue to develop. Once the sugar has been utilized, the conversion will cease. When this happens, any additional time in the chamber is ineffectual. Perhaps we've come to expect the tangy taste of the west. At any rate, here are a few points to consider while making this recipe:

... The speed of fermentation is directly attributed to the temperature inside the fermentation chamber. Up to a point, the higher the temperature, the faster the fermentation.
... The degree of acidity in a sausage not only depends upon the amount, but also the type of sugar it contains.
... Fermentation ceases when there is no longer "free water" or more sugar available to the lactobacilli or pediococci in a sausage, or the temperature falls below 50°F. (10°C.). All bacteria require some amount of "free water".
... The curing chamber must contain some type of small fan producing slow-moving air to inhibit the growth of slime on the surface of sausages. However, too much air speed will dry the surface too quickly, not allowing the proper amount of moisture to leave the interior of each sausage.
... Lactobacillus and pediococcus (lactic acid bacteria) are used independently of one another as each function best at contrasting temperatures for maximum growth.

Good luck with your project.
Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by uwanna61 » Thu Jun 21, 2012 02:46

Hey all
So its day 9 and the project is going well, and growing the natural white mold slowly. I did not use the mold 600, last time I used mold 600 it was all over the place, so I opted out and kept my fingers crossed for the natural white stuff. Not to mention, it`s an extra cost using the mold 600.
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Post by Chuckwagon » Thu Jun 21, 2012 03:56

Thanks for checkin' in pal. It's lookin' great.
And :shock: for your trouble, may a thousand wild and 'loose' camels keep the bad spirits and colored mold away from your fermentation chamber!
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by nuynai » Fri Jun 22, 2012 15:34

Man, that's some good looking eats. Can't wait for the final product. Way to go.
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