Salame Strolghino

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redzed
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Salame Strolghino

Post by redzed » Sat Sep 19, 2020 07:12

This is my first attempt at creating this simple but interesting salame. Strolghino originates in Zibello, the home of Culatello and is made with trimmings from the preparation of that particular specialty. It is a narrow gauge sausage and is eaten when still young and soft, usually within three to four weeks of drying. It was considered as the first test of the taste and quality of the Culatello which usually ripened for a year or a bit longer. In fact, the name comes from the root word "strolga", (fortune-teller), because it would reveal the taste of the salumi of the future. Other than salt, pepper and honey, no other spices were used. For safety reasons, I added potassium nitrate and substituted raw honey with granulated honey. The Strolghino was made with lean meat with no connective tissue from the leg and quality back fat. I fermented at a temperature of 20C for 72 hours. Because no starter culture was used, it took longer to activate the indigenous lactic bacteria in the meat. After 24 hours the pH only dropped from 5.73 to 5.65, after 48 hours it was 5.35 and when I transferred it to the curing chamber after 72 hours the pH measured 5.15. I pulled the salame after 33 days, and probably should have done so a week earlier. Everything worked out well, the texture, sliceability and only a hint of dry rim. Taste is very good, clean slightly peppery, and mould flavoured.

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Salame Strolghino

800g lean pork from leg, no fat or connective tissue
200g hard back fat
(Original made from pork leg trimmings with varied amounts of fat)

Ingredients per 1000g (1 kg) of meat
Fine sea salt, 25 g
KNO3 (potassium nitrate), 0.5g
Granulated honey, 4g
White pepper, 3g

Instructions
1. Cube the lean meat and back fat, keeping separate.
2. Partially freeze the lean meat and freeze the fat completely.
3. Combine the lean meat and back fat, add the KNO3 into the salt, mix and grind using the 6mm plate.
4. Add the honey and pepper to the ground meat and mix well. Make sure that the batter stays very cold, and don't over mix to avoid fat smearing.
5. Stuff firmly into 36-42mm hog casings. Lacing with string or netting the sausage will prevent it from tearing and falling after hanging.
6. Ferment at 20-21C, 90% RH, until pH drops to 5.3 or slightly less.
7. Inoculate with a mould starter.
8. Dry for 3-4 weeks at 12-15° C (54-59° F), 75-80% humidity.

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jens49
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by jens49 » Sat Sep 19, 2020 07:28

Looks great! Very simple recipe. Right now I have a pure beef salami in my chamber.
Just salt (& nitrite) Some times we just have to try...
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by Indaswamp » Tue Sep 22, 2020 04:49

Very nice. But why potassium nitrate instead of sodium nitrate/nitrite?
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by redzed » Tue Sep 22, 2020 06:17

Good question. There is a long held belief by many who make traditional charcuterie that products made with potassium nitrate (saltpetre), taste better than those made with nitrite. It's apparently attributed to the nitrate reductase enzymes. I'm not quite sure whether that is actually true, and normally use Cure #2 which is superior as far as safety goes. But, I bought some KNO3 and I use it now and then. I've received many complements on this salami, so maybe there is something to it. :D
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by Indaswamp » Tue Sep 22, 2020 10:13

The potassium nitrate you use- is it at a cut rate like the sodium nitrate? 6.25%/93.75%?? Or some other ratio?
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by redzed » Tue Sep 22, 2020 16:32

I use KNO3 in its pure form, so it's 100%. North American Cure #2 formulations all contain 6.25% sodium nitrite and anywhere from 1% to 6% sodium nitrate. Most people add 2.5g of Cure #2 to their products. That means that if you are using the product from the Sausagemaker, that is only 25ppm, if from the Craft Butcher's pantry it's 150ppm. I think that buying the Sausagemaker formulation and thinking that you are getting any benefit is a waste of time. I added .5g/kg which is 500ppm and the limit in the EU. In the US the limit is a whopping 2187, an amount that you certainly don't need or want in your salami.
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by Indaswamp » Wed Sep 23, 2020 04:36

Interesting... Now I have to go check my cure #2. I thought all cure #2 was a standard ratio of nitrate, nitrite and salt. Stand by....

I ordered cure #2 from Anthonysgoods.com
This cure #2 says it is 6% Sodium nitrite and 4% sodium nitrate. I have been using 3g/kg.
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Re: Salame Strolghino

Post by redzed » Wed Sep 23, 2020 17:22

Yeah, it looks like the amount of nitrite can also differ in looking at what you are using. I also noticed that another Cure #2 sold on Amazon (Hoosiers)contains 5.67% sodium nitrite and 3.63% sodium nitrate. So you have read the ingredients and know what you are buying.
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