Ammonia smell in the chamber
Ammonia smell in the chamber
My little chamber is pretty full and everything is really covered well in mold. Is a lite Ammonia smell normal when you open the door. Salami's have been in 17 days and are still real soft.I put the humidity down to 70% tonight. It's been about 83% since they went in.
Over active enzymatic ctivity caused by excessive mould growth. Turn down the temp to 8C for a few days, give it some fresh air and the smell will be gone. You could also take a brush and lightly remove some of the mould off the salami. A hint of ammonia is OK, but you don't want want too much for too long as it will affect the final flavour.
I would comment that the ammonia aroma is quite normal, and a lite ammonia smell shows that the mold is doing its job to reduce acidity. In your small chamber that is filled to capacity, any aroma will be concentrated so you will get a good whiff when the door is opened. It will subside with further drying. As redzed suggested try dropping the temp. If you drop the humidity level down to 70% at this stage of the game you are inviting case hardening/dry rim.
My2¢
My2¢
Boy guys this is the first real try with the chamber and trusting that it's going well when it doesn't appear to be getting anywhere is very difficult. I've only air dried salami and our humidity is so low here it drys real quick, which I understand isn't ideal. I'm going to bump the RH back up!
This is like watching your kids do something the first time, you want to jump in and take over.
After a couple days at 9C what's a good temp about 13?
This is like watching your kids do something the first time, you want to jump in and take over.
After a couple days at 9C what's a good temp about 13?