Mold on Coppa

MasterAce · Post by **MasterAce** » Thu Jul 02, 2015 16:45

Hi,
I am a new at making dry meats and I have a question regarding mold on my coppa. I made it according to this website //menuinprogress.com/2011/11/homemade-coppa-capicola.htm
but added a few more spices. I guess I should have cased it in a bung but I didn't. It has been hanging in my cave for about 2 weeks at 55F with 80% humidity. I have been starting to get white and some green mold on it. I have been wiping it off with vineger. My question is: Can I or is it too late to spray on M-EK-4 mold culture. Would this help? Can I put it on without having cased the meat. How long should it hang?

Post by **redzed** » Thu Jul 02, 2015 17:39

Welcome to our forum MasterAce! The conditions you describe in your cave are quite perfect for drying meats. Most white and green moulds are OK, you have avoid the black and especially the red ones. You can use the surface starter culture on your coppa any time, although it's best to do it at the beginning. Also a good idea to spray some of the mould starter around your curing chamber, that way the penicillium nalgiovense will keep the toxigenic moulds in check.

Let your coppa dry until it loses 30-40% of it's weight. Since you did not case it you will probably have some rim hardening. A good way to fix that and also to improve the flavour is to vac pac it and throw it into your fridge for a few weeks after the drying period. I do that now with most of my dry cured whole muscle meats and salami.

Let us know how the coppa turns out.

redzed

MasterAce · Post by **MasterAce** » Sun Jul 05, 2015 19:24

Thanks for the help redzed. I put on some mold-600 and I see what happens. Will let you know how it turns out. I going to make salami tomorrow. I have some pepperoni in my cave for about a month now and I tried it the other day. Seemed very bland and kind of rubbery. Cook some and it tasted great. I am going to leave it to age a few more weeks and try again.

Navarro · Post by **Navarro** » Sun Jul 26, 2015 16:39

redzed, I read your comment about the green mold in curing processes. This is a doubt that I always carry with me. My curing environment always generates some kind of green mold and try to remove the green afraid to some kind of evil contamination. The green mold is harmful to the curing process ? Thanks

Post by **redzed** » Sun Jul 26, 2015 17:57

Hello Navarro and a warm welcome to the forum!

That is a very good question but one that is still difficult to answer with absolute certainty. However, it seems green mould is becoming more and more acceptable by hobbyists and there is more science that it is not toxygenic. Most professionals will also tell you not to worry about it. Having said that, we really can't be sure unless we use a microscope and identify the strain, but the same goes for white moulds. Just because it's white does not mean it's penicillium nalgiovense. There are wild white mould strains that may be harmful also. That is why it's a good idea to use a surface starter containing p. nalgiovense on your products. It's also a good idea to start with a sanitized curing chamber and also spray the inside of it with the starter. That way the "good" white mould will eliminate the nasty ones. After a few weeks and if a number of items are hanging in your chamber, you may not not even need to inoculate additional product since the good spores will be sufficiently dominant.

If you have a bit of time today, read the article and the thread from another forum below. And if you can, please post some pics of your moulds.

http://microbialfoods.org/science-diges ... ed-salami/

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/125619- ... -sausages/

Navarro · Post by **Navarro** » Tue Jul 28, 2015 14:14

Hello redzed ! Thanks for your quickly response. I read the article you suggest. It's very interesting !!!
I'll take some pictures of my green moulds and send to you as soon as possible. Thanks again !!!

Navarro · Post by **Navarro** » Wed Jul 29, 2015 14:06

Hello redzed, how can I attach or send a image ?

MasterAce · Post by **MasterAce** » Mon Aug 17, 2015 17:07

I cut open the Coppa today after a 2 month hang. Looked real nice but tasted raw and rubbery. Hung at 55 degrees with 80% humidity. Put it in fridge and will taste it again in a couple of weeks. Right now it is cat food. I have a salami hanging and if that doesn't turn out I think I'll just stick to sausages and cheese.

Post by **redzed** » Tue Aug 18, 2015 01:33

MasterAce don't give up! Give us a bit more info as to the % of weight loss and how you cured it. Give another shot with another coppa or porkloin, this time using the equilibrium cure method and a few simple aromatics and I can't see how you can fail. And coppa is not as smooth and silky in texture like prosciutto. It can be a bit chewy if you don't slice it paper thin. If it has not yet lost 35-40% I would put it back in your cave. If it has lost that much weight, vac pac it, throw it in the fridge and forget about for at least a month.

And if you failed, so what? Happens to all of us. I recently made a batch of Polish sausage that for some reason did not bind, even though I believe I did everything right and have done it dozens of times before. But just because I made a crummy crumbly sausage I'm not giving up on making more!

Navarro · Post by **Navarro** » Mon Aug 24, 2015 13:43

Hello ! This is the green mold on my coppa...Should I remove it ?

Post by **redzed** » Tue Aug 25, 2015 03:21

Navarro that coppa looks great! And while I'm not a scientist, those greenish yellowish lumps look like yeast and not mould. Scrape off a bit and if those growths feel and resemble a soft wax, then it's yeast and nothing to be concerned about. And if it is yeast, it's more than likely Debaryomyces hanseii, a naturally occurring yeast on sausages and whole muscle cuts. While I have read studies that they are not desirable, most of the literature concludes that yeast contributes to the aromatic flavour of the product. In fact a number of starter cultures on the market contain a variant of D. hanseii.

Green moulds that normally grow on dry cured meats tend to be more fuzzy/hairy in appearance, and I don't see that on your coppa. And I don't see any other nasties, that is black moulds, that you would need to eliminate.

BTW, the coppa looks like it's almost ready! Make sure to post a pic when you take your knife to it!

Navarro · Post by **Navarro** » Tue Aug 25, 2015 03:56

Thank You !!! I'll send You a photo of this coppa sliced very soon.
Best Regards