Homemade Sausage Making

Some thoughts on starter cultures.
Most often I use starter cultures when making salami. Never on whole cuts intended for smoking/drying.
However I am planning on making a salami with very coarsely hand cut meat only.
So my thoughts are divided on the use of a starter and I would like to get some pro and cons on the subject.

Tia

I would recommend a starter if you want to assure fermentation and a proper product. Last year I had a batch of salami where I forgot to add the culture and I had to toss it.

Well chosen words redzed. "assure fermentation". I agree with that. I think my struggle is with the fact that we usually don't use starters with whole cuts.
So if I cut a large whole cut in two would I use a starter? If I pressed them together would they ferment?
What about four pieces? 8? In my hand cut salami there might be 64 pieces.
Just wondering.

I'd be inclined to add the culture. At worst, it will do nothing, so no harm, no foul. At best, it will prevent your product from going off, so why not use it?

What exactly are you making?

I guess it’s a dried sausage.
Living in Denmark I have been through most of the available starter cultures from Chr. Hansen and also many of the German cultures with and without the use of Gdl.
I appreciate the margin of safety they provide, however the results seem to be rather stereotyped. Meaning that the end products seem to be dominated by the added cultures. Not at all like the best Italian and Spanish salamis we get while travelling those countries.
Therefore I am experimenting with salami that is not warm fermented and without starter cultures. After stuffing the sausage is hung in a wooden shed -even though I do have a quite well functioning drying chamber. Temperature typically around 5° C and humidity around 80 % this time of year.
Meat is 50/50 beef and pork. Salt at 2,5 %. Including nitrite at 120 ppm. White pepper 0,2 %, very hot Hungarian paprika 0,3 % and 3 % sweet red wine. I believe that should provide enough sugars for Lab, if they decide to kick in - ever so slowly. Will probably take it to approx. 35 % weight loss.
The meat is cut in quite large chunks and stuffed in 46 mm beef casings for relatively quick drying.
Just over thinking things I got to wondering when whole cuts become so small that starter cultures come into play.
Actually I’m more interested in the processes than in the actual outcome of this salami and would like to hear from others that forego starter cultures and the warm fermentation step to maybe create better products.

jens49 wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 02, 2023 21:15

Just over thinking things I got to wondering when whole cuts become so small that starter cultures come into play.

IMO - size isn't that important, can be fist size as well as whole ham. Most important is process of preparing and cutting. Whole pieces without inside cuts are mostly almost sterile inside muscles. Any other products like grind salamis, even roughly cut bigger pieces connected together contain millions of bacteria, yeasts, etc inside product where just salt and nitrites not always prevent them to grow. Starter cultures are helpers to overgrow unwanted microbes.

jens49 wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 02, 2023 21:15

Therefore I am experimenting with salami that is not warm fermented and without starter cultures. After stuffing the sausage is hung in a wooden shed -even though I do have a quite well functioning drying chamber. Temperature typically around 5° C and humidity around 80 % this time of year.

that way you are trying to copied Russian old process for salamis/kielbasa. (check Marianski's recipes for Russian staff - as example-
https://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausag ... chnaya-dry) you can omit cold smoking process. I did try it and it is giving nice results. But if you are beginning your dry meat adventure - better use small amount any starter culture contains L. curvatus. ( it starting to work just above 0*C). Reason - your home microflora can be too poor in wanted LAB.

Thanks for your replies. I have started the project but will not be calling it a Russian salami...

Hopefully OP will not mind me stepping on his thread.

I want to make some Spanish Chorizo & Salchichόn.

I am having trouble finding info on what the best starter cultures would be to use. I have T-SPX and F-RM-52. I have learned that some are slower acting, and that different times, temperatures and RH are used. I just cant seem to determine which for what?

My studies speaks of Northern European and US type Salami, and obviously other flavor characteristics. I was hoping folks might mention the ones they used that the outcome was what thy wanted.

Slow cultures would be TSPX and SM-194. Basically any culture that does not contain pediococcus bacteria- especially acidilactici which is a super fast fermenting culture.

jens49 wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 02, 2023 21:15

Meat is 50/50 beef and pork. Salt at 2,5 %. Including nitrite at 120 ppm. White pepper 0,2 %, very hot Hungarian paprika 0,3 % and 3 % sweet red wine. I believe that should provide enough sugars for Lab, if they decide to kick in - ever so slowly.

I have successfully fermented calabian salami with just the addition of calabrian pepper powder and 15ml red wine/kg. Down to pH 5.1 @67*F after 44 hours fermentation. So yes, you can use the simple sugars in the pepper powders to support fermentation.

So, I went ahead and did it.
Meat, salt, cracked black pepper and a touch of garlic.
No starter etc.
Just hung in a shaded shed at ambient temp and humidity. 0 - 8 c and 95 - 70 % RH.
Some unwanted mold started so I smoked them 8 hrs.
I will definitely do this again, Sorry I can not post pictures.
Tks for your help.