I used to use encapsulated citric acid for that ‘tang’, but after discovering F-LC following a recipe for Lebanon Bologna, I no longer use ECA. A noticeable difference in end product flavor. You do need to have a good pH meter to know where the levels are though to ensure safety. I use the Apera like you. Good video explaining the process.
ECA makes certain sausages more approachable for many sausage makers but it doesn't create the same depth of flavor that a true ferment does. It's kind of like fermented pickles vs. pickling with vinegar. Once you've had a fermented pickle the vinegar ones are kind of one note!
I made the same mistake with my peppers the first time! I thought passing them through the larger 6.5mm grinding plate wouldn't make them too small. *WRONG.* Now I chop to the size I need (about half of your size) and flash freeze them by spreading them out on a baking sheet. When they're frozen solid (so they won't stick together), I split them up into 1/2 pound sandwich bags before vac packing and freezing all the 1/2 pound bags. I'll usually chop up about 3 or 4 pounds of peppers. It's a real pain, but they keep well with this system and I only need to pull a bag or two out when I make sausage. *_LIKE TODAY!_* Cheers.
Cooked it then fermented it? Wouldn't the cooking kill the bacteria? Looks great though. Breakfast sausage maybe sometime? I'm a Brit and we like a fresh sausage....sage mmmmm.
Cooking first would kill the bacteria. I fermented it first, smoked it second and dried it to 15% water loss to finish it. I used my oven to ferment with the light on and the heat off. The light provides just the right amount of heat to keep it 90-95f.
U should allow at least 24 hrs after u added the cure to work before u smoked the meat!! If u would have have used a cure accelerator,then u could have gone directly to the smoker,ask eric!! 😊
You are correct sir, cure needs time to work it's magic! I think you may have overlooked a part of the video though. I did not go directly to the smoker after stuffing. The 22 hour fermentation period should have been plenty of time for the nitrite to convert to nitric oxide and for the nitric oxide to react with the myoglobin. I've watched Eric's video about giving curing salts time to work and I trust the info I get from him! Eric's the man when it comes to sausage and charcuterie!
You could make this without the culture and fermentation process but it wouldn't have the sour tanginess that summer sausage is known for. Many people use encapsulated citric acid instead of fermenting to get the sour tangy flavor and that's a reasonable option. I prefer fermentation, it's the original way. If you just followed my recipe minus the fermentation and didn't use encapsulated citric acid you would still have a perfectly edible product but I don't think it would truly be a summer sausage.
Interesting, I'll leave it at that. Thanks for making the video though!
I'm curious what you found interesting? Fermenting meat?
I used to use encapsulated citric acid for that ‘tang’, but after discovering F-LC following a recipe for Lebanon Bologna, I no longer use ECA. A noticeable difference in end product flavor. You do need to have a good pH meter to know where the levels are though to ensure safety. I use the Apera like you. Good video explaining the process.
ECA makes certain sausages more approachable for many sausage makers but it doesn't create the same depth of flavor that a true ferment does. It's kind of like fermented pickles vs. pickling with vinegar. Once you've had a fermented pickle the vinegar ones are kind of one note!
I made the same mistake with my peppers the first time! I thought passing them through the larger 6.5mm grinding plate wouldn't make them too small. *WRONG.*
Now I chop to the size I need (about half of your size) and flash freeze them by spreading them out on a baking sheet.
When they're frozen solid (so they won't stick together), I split them up into 1/2 pound sandwich bags before vac packing and freezing all the 1/2 pound bags.
I'll usually chop up about 3 or 4 pounds of peppers. It's a real pain, but they keep well with this system and I only need to pull a bag or two out when I make sausage. *_LIKE TODAY!_*
Cheers.
Thanks for the tip! I just got a big bag peppers to make some bear sausage, I think I'll chop up what I don't use and freeze them.👍
What was the total weight of the meat prior to the grinding . Looks good Greg. Making me hungry. Lol
Good thing I keep notes from all my projects, starting weight was 4,000 grams.
@@gourmetwoodsman thanks
Cooked it then fermented it? Wouldn't the cooking kill the bacteria?
Looks great though.
Breakfast sausage maybe sometime? I'm a Brit and we like a fresh sausage....sage mmmmm.
Cooking first would kill the bacteria. I fermented it first, smoked it second and dried it to 15% water loss to finish it. I used my oven to ferment with the light on and the heat off. The light provides just the right amount of heat to keep it 90-95f.
U should allow at least 24 hrs after u added the cure to work before u smoked the meat!! If u would have have used a cure accelerator,then u could have gone directly to the smoker,ask eric!! 😊
You are correct sir, cure needs time to work it's magic! I think you may have overlooked a part of the video though. I did not go directly to the smoker after stuffing. The 22 hour fermentation period should have been plenty of time for the nitrite to convert to nitric oxide and for the nitric oxide to react with the myoglobin. I've watched Eric's video about giving curing salts time to work and I trust the info I get from him! Eric's the man when it comes to sausage and charcuterie!
Can you make it without the culture and fermentation process ? Thanks it looks good dude
You could make this without the culture and fermentation process but it wouldn't have the sour tanginess that summer sausage is known for. Many people use encapsulated citric acid instead of fermenting to get the sour tangy flavor and that's a reasonable option. I prefer fermentation, it's the original way.
If you just followed my recipe minus the fermentation and didn't use encapsulated citric acid you would still have a perfectly edible product but I don't think it would truly be a summer sausage.
@@gourmetwoodsman thanks for the info
Encap. Citric acid is for tang taste. Thats all,by lowering the ph!