Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

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Bulkey
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Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bulkey » Tue Mar 02, 2021 15:48

I've been smoking meats for 40 years, but have never tried dry aging.  Read a bunch about making them and was in the process of setting up a dry curing chamber when I read about the Umai bags.   I had gotten LEM's seasoning packets for Christmas in the following flavors Pepperoni, Salami, and Andouille.   Decided I would get a batch going first with the Umai bags to get my feet wet.

I first tried different pork to beef ratios and found 80% pork to 20% beef was a good fit for me.  I made sample paddies and adjusted the seasoning to my taste (LEM seems a little heavy on the salt).  I got all three salami patties tasting the way I wanted and then proceeded to make 20 lbs of salami (50mm UMAI kit with no seasonings).

I followed the instructions and everything went well.  I used a spare refrigerator to keep the salami in and checked them periodically.  When they reached 30% weight loss (about 5 weeks)  I tried a stick of each.

They were very bland tasting ... almost like I had skimped on the seasonings.  I expected it to be more spicy then when the meat went in the tubes.

Here is the thing ... I gently pan fried some salami pieces to make a breakfast sandwich (like 1 minute on each side) and they had all of the spice/salt I was looking for.
Dry cured and sliced it was bland but lightly heated and all the flavors were there.

I don't understand this.  If I bump up the seasonings it makes sense the dry cured salami would have more flavor, but if put on a pizza or heated in any way, they will become super spicy.

I do have my freezer drying chamber all set now and will be using traditional methods from now on.  Regular casings and seasonings found on this forum.

Just don't know what happened with my first batch.   Any ideas?
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Bob K
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bob K » Tue Mar 02, 2021 16:23

Bulkey wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 15:48
I made sample paddies and adjusted the seasoning to my taste
Welcome to the Forum!
Tell us what recipe you actually used and your procedure
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redzed
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by redzed » Wed Mar 03, 2021 18:55

Nothing really happened other than the spice premix was not to your personal liking. Another person might have liked it, as did those who formulated it. That's why it's always best to prepare your own seasonings. Even then you will need to adjust the amounts to get a product to taste just how you like it. Start with a credible recipe, use 25g/kg salts (curing salt factored in), an appropriate starter culture, 3-4g/kg dextrose and the amounts of other spices you deem appropriate. Also note that salami made in the Umai tubes can be quite decent, but it is not the same as you would make in curing chamber. Umai salami does not develop the funky aroma and flavours of a traditional salami, since is almost entirely dependent on what you season it and gets very little benefit from enzymatic activity by the Staphyllococcus bacteria and surface moulds.
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bulkey » Thu Mar 04, 2021 14:35

This is how I made the Salami, but remember from my first post, my actual question was why did the cured version turn out bland but if heated the taste of the spices are very acceptable .... almost twice the flavor.

The meat: I cut up 2 Boston butts for the pork and added enough chuck roast to make a 80% - 20% mixture (pork to chuck roast).
I course ground the meat and set 10 lbs aside for Pepperoni and 5 lbs each for Salami and Andouille.
As mentioned before I got 3 packages of LEM seasonings.
Here are the specifics:
Pepperoni - LEM called for 1 tbl plus 3/4 tsp per pound
- I used 12 tbl for 10 lbs meat plus I added 2 tbl crushed red pepper flakes
and 2 tbl smoked paprika.
When I pan fried a paddy it tasted fine.
1 tsp Bactoferm T-SPX starter culture for 10 lbs in 1/4 cup distilled water
2 tsp Instacure #2 for 10 lbs
4 tsp Powdered Dextrose for 10 lbs

Andouille - LEM calls for 3 tbl per pound
- I used 12 tbl for 5 lbs meat
When I pan fried a paddy it tasted fine.
1/2 tsp Bactoferm T-SPX starter culture for 5 lbs in 1/4 cup distilled water
1 tsp Instacure #2 for 5 lbs
2 tsp Powdered Dextrose for 5 lbs

Salami - LEM calls for 2 tbl plus 2 tsp per pound
- I used 12 tbl for 5 lbs meat
When I pan fried a paddy it tasted fine.
1/2 tsp Bactoferm T-SPX starter culture for 5 lbs in 1/4 cup distilled water
1 tsp Instacure #2 for 5 lbs
2 tsp Powdered Dextrose for 5 lbs

After adding everything and mixing well, I ran through a stuffer into the UMAI 50 mm casings. I made them as tight as possible and saw no air gaps. I tied each end with butchers twine and added a card showing meat type, date, and starting weight.

I placed all salami on racks in my oven for 3 days with an average temperature of 70 deg F

I then placed all salami on wire racks in a spare fridge. The temp was 38 deg F and had around 50% humidity.

When the salami lost 30% of its starting weight, I pulled some sample sticks.
No off odors or sign of any mold. The UMAI casings had shrunk away from the salami.
When slicing, the salami had a firm texture but not a hard outer rind.
Everything looked to me like it was supposed to.
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Bob K
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bob K » Thu Mar 04, 2021 16:28

Bulkey wrote:
Thu Mar 04, 2021 14:35
my actual question was why did the cured version turn out bland but if heated the taste of the spices are very acceptable .... almost twice the flavor.
Its a process called tempering..
Hot fat has the ability to extract and retain the essence, aroma and flavor of spices and herbs and then carry this essence with it ...

As you stated when heating the dry cured product it also intensified the taste....like pepperoni or sopressatta on Pizza

As Chris mentiond just adjust your spice amounts for the dry cured product to suite your taste.
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bulkey » Fri Mar 05, 2021 16:04

Great Bob ... thanks! I never heard of tempering before but it's exactly what happened. I now have my full curing chamber set up with humidifier, dehumidifier, heating, and cooling. Using Inkbird combination humidity and temperature controllers.
I will give this another shot using traditional recipes and techniques. Kind of a fun hobby. Can't wait to see the difference between the two methods.
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Bob K
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Re: Dry Cured Salami came out tasteless

Post by Bob K » Fri Mar 05, 2021 16:29

Bulkey wrote:
Fri Mar 05, 2021 16:04
Can't wait to see the difference between the two methods.
IMHO it is not even close.The dry bag process is just too rushed and never develops the taste and aromas of a more traditional method.
Its a great hobby. Enjoy!!
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