Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Talk about anything here as long as it is not against the rules.
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Scogar
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Post by Scogar » Wed Jan 09, 2019 01:31

Hi, just introducing myself. Been making fresh sausages since about the time that Ruhlman wrote Charcuterie. In fact that's what finally kicked me into gear. I had bought a #32 Porkert Grinder and a sausage stuffer from The Sausage Maker back in 1999. But a divorce and a bunch of other things got in the way of me starting back then. So finally with Ruhlman's book I finally jumped off in in about 2005 or 2006.

I have a number of Marianski books including my most recent of two days ago...Polish Sausages. I had feared it would be a rehashing of many of the earlier books but I was excited to find it may be the best purchase I have made. I cure bacon, make pancetta, corn beef, and pastrami. In fact it's probably safe to say I am comfortable with fresh meats (including butchering) as well as anything with Cure #1.

I'm not afraid of Cure #2 but haven't ventured down its path yet as I am pulling my chamber together and taking things slow, mostly due to time constraints and simply I'm not bored with my present options. And of course it is new and simply will entail additional learning so I'll get there when I do.

I've been a member of Sausage Debauchery on Facebook for a while but am not a lover of Facebook, so I am mostly a lurker but I post here and there as needed. I've seen this site for years but didn't really realize what it was until reading the preface of Polish Sausages. Man have I missed some great info over the years.

I live in Atlanta (and for those in Atlanta...technically Duluth GA) and am looking forward to learning all that I can and taking this hobby up another few notches. One of the goals would be to never buy commercial bacon or sausage again (unless it was artisanal or properly made). Hope to be in that space soon.

Looking forward to learning and I'll contribute if I think I can. Thanks

Scott
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Butterbean
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Post by Butterbean » Wed Jan 09, 2019 15:20

Welcome Scott. I surely understand the divorce thing. Glad to have a fellow Georgian onboard and while I'm about four hours south of you in cyberspace I guess we are neighbors so nice to meet you. :lol: Lots of good information here and everyone is glad to help you anyway they can.
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Scogar
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Post by Scogar » Wed Jan 09, 2019 15:56

Thanks Butterbean, looking forward to it.
JasonB
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Post by JasonB » Fri Jan 11, 2019 15:56

Hi guys! Thanks for having another newbie. I have been lurking for a little bit and made a few products following redzed's recipes. I hope to learn more and become better at making sausages and cured meats.
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Butterbean
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Post by Butterbean » Fri Jan 11, 2019 17:50

Welcome Jason. Can't wait to see some of your products.
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redzed
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Post by redzed » Sat Jan 12, 2019 07:38

Welcome Scogar and JasonB! Glad to have you aboard. Don't hesitate to post questions and engage in discussions here. We are ready to help and take you beyond just following recipes. It's a great and rewarding hobby. Beats building bird houses! :grin:
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by IskraTS11 » Sun Feb 17, 2019 10:04

Hello everyone!

My name in Maciej, I was born in Poland, and I have been living in Portland for the last 18 years. And now that I have children, I would like to start doing as much of my own food as possible for health reasons. Plus, I would like them to discover the recipes of their ancestors!
That's why I joined this forum. I hope I will learn great things and that I will be able to cook great stuff as well!
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redzed
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by redzed » Sun Feb 17, 2019 16:47

Witaj Maciek! Welcome to our forum. We are happy to have you come aboard! Sausage making and other aspects of charcuterie is a wonderful, rewarding and practical hobby. And it's something where you never can stop learning, no matter how experienced and knowledgeable you might be. Our site contains a plethora of recipes and instructions for all kinds of sausages, traditional Polish, those that originate from other parts of the world, and those that have evolved in the new world. We encourage our members to go beyond just making sausage according to a recipe, but understanding the ingredients and processes involved. We are here to help, so start making sausages and don't hesitate to ask questions.
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Butterbean
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by Butterbean » Sun Feb 17, 2019 21:57

Welcome Maciej! Glad you found us. Make time for this and your children because they grow up so fast. This is an excellent hobby where you can spend quality time with your children and learning this will help them in more ways than you can imagine.
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by mjpsails » Mon Feb 18, 2019 20:50

Hey, just glad to have access to a lot of good info. I am somewhat new to sausage making (around 7 years) but have made much fresh sausage and am going to explore fermented/dry-cured meats (beyond tasso ham or pancetta). I look forward to building a fermentation chamber and drying chamber and was interested in any input regarding "airspeed" control and the monitoring thereof as regards dryzcured sausage.
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Bob K
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by Bob K » Tue Feb 19, 2019 18:14

Welcome to the forum MJ !
Chances are that you will not need constant air movement in a refrigerator sized chamber. Air exchange is usually sufficient. There is a discussion here to get you going. http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.ph ... dc4984490a
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by IskraTS11 » Sun Feb 24, 2019 10:36

Thanks to all of you for the warm welcome!

I've already started buying some basic equipment to do simple recipes by myself (a meat mincer, for example; I have a couple friends who hunt, and have a couple chickens at home, so I have fresh, natural meat on hand!) and have read a lot of great things in here; apart from traditional Polish meat recipes, I'm partial to French and Belgian sausage recipes as well, which I've discovered thanks to one of my cousins who lives at the border between these countries.
(By the way, this region of France is Western Poland, every second person has a Polish surname!)
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by tcammall » Mon Feb 25, 2019 16:41

Hi everyone, great website. Looking forward to reading and the education! I live in Toronto, Canada and have been air drying/curing Italian sopressata and capicollo/prosciutini for the last 5 years in my cantina (cold cellar). From what I've read so far alot (or most) members are air drying their meats in a chamber of some sort where I just hang mine in my cantina and have to adjust the conditions inside based on the weather outside. What I've found over the last few winters to be very difficult is the wide swings in temperature outside, which therefore makes the temperature and humidity very hard to control inside my cantina. Take care, Tony.
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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by Winephile » Wed Feb 27, 2019 14:25

I am relatively new to sausage making. I’ve made an annual batch of sausage with a friend over the last three years. Tuscan, andouille (smoked, in my converted wine barrel, and unsmoked), & breakfast.

Enjoying the chamber I just built from internet instructions.

Just packed about 4 lbs of pork tenderloin saucisson as an experiment. In addition to rosemary, thyme, garlic, and pepper, I’m using Fermento and dextrose with 21 grams of Prague #2 and 45 grams salt as a compromise between Jacques Pépin and “The Spruce Eats” recipes online (which were the only two I could find in English before stumbling onto this site). Fermented the tenderloin 48 hours as 1/2” meat slabs, with rotation, and then ground and stuffed last night. Will let it hang at 55F and 65RH for a few weeks in 2 3/8 in fibrous skins.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

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Re: Hi New Guys - Introduce Yourself

Post by Bob K » Wed Feb 27, 2019 15:10

Whinephile, welcome to the forum! Your recipe has a few safety concerns. #1) cure #2 - The added amount should be 4.5 grams which would give you the recommended 156 PPM. You added 21 grams which results in 723 PPM well over the recommended safe limit for minced meats. Also femento is a flavoring and not a bacterial culture.

There are many reviewed recipes on this site and also check out the recipes on the Meats and Sausages site...more that you can ever make!!
https://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausage-recipes
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