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You can Pick em up at the thrift store for next to nothing... And, you are correct that a month or two of additional time in the refrig. make the flavors much much better. I was glad I forgot some in a bag for a while... Bud

I'm glad the m/w folks posted, I was almost hesitant to post this... I use a 1 gal. cheepo plastic baggie with little water in it and some salt. Then loosely twist the top of the bag and put it upside sown on a plate, and m/w . Then take the thing out and hold the top of the bag over the sink and cut off the corner of the bag so the water can drain.Open the bag and put a chunk of butter in and seal it up till serving... Bud

A great epistle(sp) on steak and s/v. Thanks to you ,and everyone who posted regarding my attempts...It will help my future attempts... Bud

← I think you are right ,,,,The steaks were just to thin to start with.. will try it again with some thicker stuff... Tnx agn Bud

Well here is a report on my first s/v/ steak. ehhhhhh... I waterbathed it at 130º for 2 hours and then seared it on a 700º grill for about20 sec. a side. Got great brown sear marks on it...It was tender but color wise just a tiny pink hue. Did not have a much flavor. Consistancy was strange. Just putting it on the grill w/o the s/v is much better. As Ruth mentioned about steaks and s/v above I think I will pass on s/v ..I dont usually grill tougher sirloin so probably won't do any of that... I will continue to "take the chill" off of steaks in the m/w before grilling however, especially the thicker ones... Anyway, it was a fun experiment. and thanks for the help... Bud

That is interesting. I have a m/w that has an extremely low setting. It took 5 minutes to get a 3/8" thick bonless pork chop to 105º(from 43º). It was evenly heated thru. I let it sit for another 5 min. and then seared it on the grill.(700º) It was really good.I didn't take the temp but it was not pink , but was very juicy, and tender. I am sure I could get these to 112º (62c) in 8 minutes or so and then let them sit at that temp for another 5min.or so(They are boneless). That would eliminate the waterbath routine. Any thoughts on this off the wall idea??? Bud

Ok today is the day for a s/v steak.! The steak is a Porterhouse/T bone with the tenderloin portion about as large as the strip part...But...it only about 1/2" or 5/8" thick. I am concerned that a pre sear will over do it. I also Have a rest. type gas grill that takes 15 or 20 minutes to get the grates to 750º for the sear, and I would like to only do that once. So, I am going to do it for 4hrs at 130º, and then sear. Based on the above comments, The 130º for at least 90 mins. otta keep me safe. My only s/v has been duck confit,which a different process than this . Any Comments would be appreciated, lest I screw it up... Bud

Don't forget to re label an empty jar of arrow root , after putting citric acid in it..Makes for some really nice shrimp with a clear sauce that tastes like lemonaid...yetch!! Bud

I start with the usual 1to 3 and then add a bit of straight red wine for added flavor...Have never measured...Add and taste.. A squeeze of onion and garlic juice helps as well... For vinegar I Usually use homemade red wine vinegar, or Sherry vinegar (la posada) A bit of lecitin also keeps it emulsified as well.. Bud

Not in lieu of, but a tad of nice red in the vinigarette helps the flavor. And ,you can take the leftover wine and make a very nice vinegar out of it Bud

I am about 1/2 way thru Brillat Savarin's "The Physiology Of Taste", Translated by M. F. K. Fisher. Very heavy reading, but interesting for a book that was first published in 1825. Bud

If its Greek oregano (is low growing and has fuzzy stalks below the leaves, is related to the mint family) let it grow for a few months. Then cut it all off (including the stalks)and put it on a piece of screen or a cloth sheet suspended over a couple of sticks..Let it dry outside for a week or two. Then seperate the dried leaves from the stalks and put em in sealed jars and use in place of the rotten stuff that is sold as "oregano" If it is not Greek oregano , Dig up the whole thing and put it in the mulch pit... Bud

It is for that , but the dry times to lose 40% are still pretty close to the times in there . My hog casings(1 1/4")take almost exactly 17 days at 70-75%rh and 60º. So a 5" would take the 43 days (Ithink it calls for) then you would have some highly hydrated meat sitting there for a lot longer... maybe Michael will check in and set us straight Bud

The link to the FDA sausage page is HERE I hope Its OK to post it ,its from Lens website, Which is the best on the web by far.. Bud

On the salt much more than 2.5% is to salty for my taste. I think other the difference is that a large diameter sausage takes much much longer to dry ,and the additional time in a high moisture state may (?) lend itself to spoilage. A low moisture content being one of the things that inhibits bactieral growth. I would be hesitant to hang a 5"dia sausage for 43 days without a culture vs 17 days for a 1 1/4" Bud

I have done several with no cluture, but as I said above they were 1 1/4" hog casings. and according to the blurb from FDA that I found on Polis site, it needs 17 days or so. When you go up in diameter you get up to 50 days. I saw some of your recipies there, so I think you have probably looked at it. Both tastes have their place, its just what rings your bell... The tyrolian that I was trying to duplicate I was sure there were no cultures , so I made a batch and split it . One half with and one half without. The one without was just what I was looking for, and caused no problems.I think the salt levels and the nitrates/nitrites take care of most everything..(I hope!) Bud

Take it ot of the mixer, divide it into suitable sized balls, lightly oil it ,and place in a plastic bag. Then to the fridge for three or four days... Then flatten it out inside the plastic bag so its as thin as possible. Freeze. When you take it out, since its so thin it will thaw more rapidly .let it sit till it starts to rise. ..Don't reform into a ball , just cut the bag off and form into a suitable shape/thickness. Depending on your M/W, you can nuke it on the very lowest setting to thaw it even faster.Just don't get it over about 80º. Mine takes about 7minutes for a 400gram portion. Bud

ZEP (brand)Orange hand cleaner, from the autoparts store... Bud

I buy mine from the local brewing /wine making store...They call it corn sugar to make beer...Works well and very inexpensive.. .As for if the sausage is good . Since I have not made any bad, I would only suggest you depend on your usual senses. smell ok? green and slimy? green mold on it??? There are some things upthread that would also help indicate...Make sure all of your equip is sanitized etc.etc...Good luck Bud

hmmmm....in chapter 5 the sausages that don't call for starter culture are the coppa (stuffed into beef middles), the saucisson sec and the landjager (calls for Fermento which is flavoring only). Why do some call for it and some don't? The coppa I could maybe understand since it isn't ground but why not the other two? Could you safely make dry cured sausage without starter culture? i.e. cure #2 and the fresh tuscan air only (okay, okay Minneapolis air - but our air is pretty good ) ← I have done several different "old time", non LB sausages with no problems..That was the way it was done before the advent of the lacto bacillus addition..Some saved some meat from a batch to inoculate the next, like sourdough bread......Its (the LB) a sure thing so it makes a commericial operation much more efficient...I have never been accused of that! One thing that may come into play is ,All the ones I have done were done in hog casings (smaller diameter). The larger diameters, and thus longer age time may necessitate the LB mode...The amount of dextrose also makes a difference in how sour it is.. Bud

Thanks for this reply Jason. I have a packet of F-LC that I ordered at the same time. I used the RM-52 in this recipe because that is what the authors recommend. I will do my next batch with the F-LC and report back. I suppose I have wondered whether the Bactoferm cultures are the only ones on the market. Seems like that can't be so and yet I have not really found a lot of others. If there are other sources it would seem like some experimentation might turn up one that was a little more delicate for use in sausages like this. ← I was trying to duplicate some Luganighe, that was like stuff my grandfather made 50 years ago. I used the "old fashioned" method where you mix the meat with the curing salt (#2) and let it cure for 24 hrs in the reefer. Then stuff it.I then cold smoked it for about two or three hours, and then hung it at 60º and 70% rh. After 17 days it was really good and was just like the old time stuff...It was in hog casings. and lost 40% weight. Several of the "thin" (hog casings) sausages in the book do not call for a lactic culture, by the way. Bud Edit to add; Several of the recipes in the book for thin(hog casings) do not use a lactic acid culture.

Bud

I have been a fan of brown butter for more years than I care to count... Its great on pasta with pecorino and freshly grilled brats... The only other thing I have noticed is that butter ,these days ,does not brown as well as it did 15 or 20 ye,ars ago. I have tried adding "milk solids" in the form of buttermilk or cream to it but still dont get the killer rich taste that one used to get...Any one else have that problem??? Bud

Botulism (clostridum botulinum) are killed by roasting. The spores come from the soil the garlic is grown in.They thrive in an anaerobic non acidic environment. As sealed in oil. You might be able to kill em with pink salt cure. I am not sure.There are some folks on the charcuterie thread that would probably have an answer..l Bud

Cilantro is like soap here. I think I read something where that is one of the things that for some folks thats how it tastes... coriander seed tastes good however. Must be something in the leaves. The marrow out of a fried steak is great, It was a prize to be savored when I grew up with my Tyrolean grandfather, a "chiquette" (sp?) Bud