Making Dry-Cured (Air-Dried) Sausage

[Chuckwagon]

Air Dried and Dry-Cured "Fermented" Sausages - See The "Microbiology Of Meats" Forum.

Click on this link: http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewforum.php?f=6

*Please Note:
In order to avoid overcrowding of posts for this type of sausage (Dry-Cured "Fermented"), please see the "Microbiology Of Meats" forum where the study of bacteria and fermentation may also be discussed along with other types of microorganisms and safety hurdles in this particular type of sausage. Dry-cured sausage is a raw, uncooked, product and therefore requires advanced preparation techniques and increased knowledge.

Information To Help You Make Dry-Cured (Air-Dried) Sausages

In June 2011, nine WD members each decided to make a ten pound batch of dry-cured salami... together... although they were in different cities everywhere you can imagine. Other than myself, only two members had previous experience. The others were beginners to dry-curing sausage making. We named the plan "Project "A" for salami di Allysandra - (also known as Genoa Salami).

This 3-month, dry-cured salami project proved to be a most valuable learning experience as members not only worked together while keeping accurate notes for comparison, but they actually helped each other study the necessary basic information essential for making dry-cured sausage.

Recording their results for the future reference of those desiring to try their hand at making fermented type sausages in the future, the group unselfishly posted their day-by-day progress for others to see. To my knowledge, this project is the first of its kind. Project "A" began on June 15th 2011 and ended on September 15th 2011. Participants were required to "sign up" and invest in a certain amount of basic equipment, but fully intended to show our fellow members that quality salami could be crafted without spending a fortune on specialized gear. Members were asked to build their own fermentation chambers and curing cabinets. In the middle pages of the project, there is quite a bit of valuable information regarding the subject. Members were also asked to purchase a hygrometer and thermometer, cellulose casings, and Bactoferm™ T-SPX starter culture.

Because this type of air-dried sausage requires special knowledge, members were also asked to read and study a minimal amount of information provided on the homepage by Stan Marianski. I also provided material to be read by those participating. To be fair to participating members, it was requested that the general public refrain from writing in "Project A" after June 15th.

Again, because this type of air-dried sausage requires special knowledge (in order to be safe), the project was not intended for beginners in our hobby. Crafting dry-cured, fermented, salami requires prior experience in grinding, mixing, stuffing, and other skills honed by good old-fashioned trial and error in making basic sausages such as fresh cased links, cured-smoked-cooked links, and others.

Some of the member`s projects succeeded, others did not. One person`s project totally failed and was thrown out. Another produced ten pounds of some of the finest sausage I`ve ever seen. Comparisons were made and conclusions were drawn. We all learned. No member failed; only his sausage failed. Indeed, every member succeeded in providing much information to those who will attempt to make dry-cured sausages in the future. All participants should be congratulated for some very fine work and great ingenuity. All unselfishly provided unique and much sought-after information that will ultimately be of great value to those just starting out.

Project A is a very valuable learning resource to those trying their hand at dry-curing for the first time. As a beginner reads through the information, he may simply avoid the mistakes, oversights, and errors made by these pioneers. There is much technical information recorded, along with photos and remarks that will help others for a long time to come. Here is a quick link to "Project A": http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.php?t=5099&start=0

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon