Online Workshop: Project B2 (October 2013)

el Ducko · Post by **el Ducko** » Tue Jun 03, 2014 17:50

Thank you for your clear and concise explanation, Rev.Chuckwagon. We will now circulate offering plates among you, offering slices of chorizo. Feel free to contribute according to your abilities and needs. ...or somethin' lack that thar.

Then, get busy and make us some fermented chorizo. Your friends and neighbors (not to mention the girls at the bottom of the page) are depending on you, yes, YOU, to show us the way.
Duk

Chuckwagon · Post by **Chuckwagon** » Tue Jun 03, 2014 20:53

Your friends and neighbors (not to mention the girls at the bottom of the page) are depending on you, yes, YOU, to show us the way.

MMMmmmmm..... grrrrr...... Danged rabid Duk!

Post by **redzed** » Wed Jun 04, 2014 17:19

Ducko thanks for the Christorra recipe. The spice combo looks really good and the name makes it irresistible

. Instead of a semi dry chorizo, I decided to make a dry cured Spanish product, based on Marianski's recipe but with the addition of Spanish smoked paprika and Mexican ancho chillies. Since I already started curing the meat with #1 when I decided to change the project, I used LHP instead of T-SPX. But since I like a bit of tang in a spicy salami, it should be OK. And I used 38-40 hog casings, so it should be ready in three weeks. Today I'm taking it out of the fermentation chamber and will give it several ours of cold cherry smoke.

Igor Duńczyk · Post by **Igor Duńczyk** » Wed Jun 04, 2014 18:06

Hi Red!
Did you do a pH reading of the spicy chorizo as you took it out (sounds like a winner!)

Post by **redzed** » Wed Jun 04, 2014 19:09

Hi Igor,
pH after 60 hours was 4.7. I fermented it at a lower temp than I normally do LHP because I was fermenting some Salame di Cervo with T-SPX at the same time. The first 24 hours at 28° and then don to 21°. After 24hrs the chorizo dropped to 5.10. The salame dropped to 5.12 after 24 hours and to 5.05 after 60 hours.

Igor Duńczyk · Post by **Igor Duńczyk** » Wed Jun 04, 2014 20:16

Thanks Red! I just wondered if you at some previous instance has tried to keep pH around 5.0 or even higher?
If so I´m curious to know if you noticed if color development was more prolonged as well as giving a improvement in taste?

Post by **redzed** » Thu Jun 05, 2014 07:18

I always try to keep the pH from dropping below 5 when using T-SPX. With LHP I've had drops to 4.6 in only 24 hours. But now since you mentioned this, I will pay more attention to the colour. Up to now I have been concentrating on the firmness, binding, texture and of course, taste.

el Ducko · Post by **el Ducko** » Sat Jun 07, 2014 20:03

While you`re waiting for your mail order supplies to arrive so you can move on to the fermented, semi-dry chorizo, here`s a recipe that will whet your appetite.

Stan Marianski`s recipe http://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausage ... rgentinian for Argentinian chorizo, grilled (over charcoal is best), split in two (butterflied, "mariposa"), on a bun is great. Slap a little butter or mayonnaise on the bun, or chimichurri (recipe at all sorts of places, such as http://www.food.com/recipe/chimichurri-21151 ) and you have a great lunch. The sandwich is called "chori-pan," short for "chorizo" - "pan" (bread), so what could be simpler?

Subtle ol` Stan has outdone himself. The beef/pork combination is good, seasoned simply. The wine "kicks it up" flavorfuly. This is completely unlike the Mexican and Spanish varieties of chorizo that we usually discuss here- - salt, pepper, garlic, sweet paprika, and red wine. It`s a fresh sausage, quick and easy to make, very tasty.

We first encountered chori-pan years ago at a little French bakery/bistro in Mooresville, North Carolina, La Patisserie- - - run by a Colombian family, of course. They import their chorizo from home. It`s a wonderful sandwich, very filling with a side salad. (Something, I don`t know what, forced me to sneak back to the counter for a French pastry when nobody was looking.)

My home-made chorizo is, of course, better. I must have been under the influence of the pastry, at the bakery. If you have a little leftover ground pork from another recipe, swing by the local grocery and get a small amount of ground beef and some bacon. Make some Argentinian Chorizo, and see.
Duk

Post by **redzed** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 05:04

Here is a pic of my Spanish Chorizo Rustico, that I made a little over 3wks ago. Lots of tang, enough heat, something for the el campesino to gnaw on while having a beer in the garage. Initially this was supposed to be a semi dry chorizo, but I changed the flight plan mid-way and cured it. A couple of them have already gone AWOL

.

Chuckwagon · Post by **Chuckwagon** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 09:16

Red,
You sir, are the prime example of proof in the puddin'! My ol' pappy used to say, "The man who doesn't TRY... doesn't do anything!".
You sir Red, have shown your colors over and over. You try! Sometimes things don't go right, but you "back up and hit it again". And again... you TRY. Then... Lo And Behold - you've got it! Your efforts pay off. You have learned the secrets by trial and error. You OWN those secrets after your hard work has earned them. Now, what you do with them is your own business. However, you are the sort of guy who likes to share them with your fellow man, and that sir Red, is the reason you will always succeed at projects like this.

Congratulations Red, on yet another success. Your chorizo looks absolutely incredible. I'm sure the taste is most... uhhh...errr... different and curious eh? It was meant to be. Fermented spicy sausage is always "interesting". You've done it again ol' pal. Nice going and it is certainly an inspiration to others to "get grindin' and stuffin'!"

Folks, that is what our hobby is all about. But... you just can't succeed unless you TRY! Chris has just proven that!

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon

sambal badjak · Post by **sambal badjak** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:50

Great looking sausages!

I made some chorizo, but just the fresh type. Ate a couple of them and the others are resting in the freezer

Post by **redzed** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 18:00

Aw, geez CW, that's a bit of an overkill, but thanks

And you are right, I have successes and failures. Before I made that perfect turkey sausage a few days ago, three weeks earlier I destroyed 20lbs of venison/pork sausage. I made the mistake of not drying it properly and then with the use of wet sawdust, the sausage just did not take on colour. So I just kept smoking it but and it ended up black, spotty, dry and ugly looking. I was embarrassed and should have known better. I tried to hurry the process because of an evening engagement and failed miserably. Lesson: Make sure your sausage is se and dry before you place it into the smoker. And make sure the smoker has been preheated well and is dry!

Anyway, I spend a lot of time and sheckels on this hobby, it's getting as bad as golf!

Chuckwagon · Post by **Chuckwagon** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 19:06

Rytek used to say he threw out far more sausage than he ever kept.

cogboy · Post by **cogboy** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 23:22

That chorizo looks like the perfect partner for a beer ! Nice work .

two_MN_kids · Post by **two_MN_kids** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 15:49

I know this is a step or two behind everyone else, but it's where I'm at and trying to catch up.

Last Sunday afternoon I mixed salt and cure #1 with 9# of diced beef and 1# pork back fat. On Wednesday afternoon, I ground, mixed, added F-LC culture, stuffed into 2 ½" fibrous casings, and started fermenting at 90°F and RH of 90%. After 36 hours of fermenting, the pH was 5.2. There was already a weight loss of just over 3% from its green weight .

It's in the smoker now and has been drying for almost four hours. I just started to smoke with whiskey oak barrel pellets. As this is my first time with a semi-dried sausage I thought I would lay out the rest of my plan for critique.

They will smoke for three to four hours. Gradually raising smoker temperatures to 170°F, and looking for an IMT of 145°F. Once that temperature has been reached, cool sausages to about 100°F to halt the cooking process. Hang again to continue drying process; about 65°F and RH of 70% until a total of 30% weight loss has been obtained.

Have I got the process correct? Did I miss any steps? I'm looking for opinions and observations, please.
Thanks in advance!
Jim

Online Workshop: Project B2 (October 2013)

Saddle Bum's Smoky Beef Stick