Summer sausage and pepperoni questions?

[cgaengineer]

I found a couple articles of great interest, the first one goes into great detail on the fermentation process, water content and the Ph.

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/fermented-sausages.htm

The other is a rather simple process and lists the fermentation process temperature at 90* F....about 15* more than the article above.

http://schmidling.com/summer.htm

My question is can I use my Excalibur dehydrator to ferment my summer sausage and pepperoni? The lowest temp for the Excalibur is 85*F and the temperature is controlled via a thermostat inside the unit and is pretty accurate from what I read.

Being that fermenting the meat is basically a controlled spoilage...how will you know if it is safe to eat when complete.

Both links are about making summer sausage, pepperoni and salami but each has much different information and times. A little more information from an expert on this subject would be thankful.

[OU812]

I'm no expert by anymeans when fermenting sausage the little I do know is you need a relative humidity of 85 to 95 % and the dehydrator will take it all away.

[NePaSmoKer]

I'm no expert by anymeans when fermenting sausage the little I do know is you need a relative humidity of 85 to 95 % and the dehydrator will take it all away.

Your right

You need the right R/H for fermenting

[cgaengineer]

Could place a large pan of water in the dehydrator to provide the humidity?

[carnie1]

Could place a large pan of water in the dehydrator to provide the humidity?

If you have something that will read humidity, like this http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2049773
Put a pan of water in with the dehydrator empty and give it a try, I might try that myself with the Cabalas 80L and see what happens

[OU812]

carnie, do you think with a curing temp of 80 deg the dehydrator will get the water to evaporate enough to get a RH high enough for fermenting?

[cgaengineer]

I have a temp/humidity gauge at home and I am going to try this tonight. I will post results. My guess is I will have to place water pan in bottom and humidity gauge on top rack for accurate reading.

[carnie1]

carnie, do you think with a curing temp of 80 deg the dehydrator will get the water to evaporate enough to get a RH high enough for fermenting?

Don't know, someone with a little more knowledge than me will chime in soon, anxious to see your test results

[KevinG]

Water pretty much evaporates at any temperature, the hotter the faster though. Also if the humidity is high, it is harder to evaporate.

[cgaengineer]

When rising bread Excalibur suggests adding a bowl of water to the unit to keep dough from drying out. Right now I am actually rising some bread so when it finishes I will do my test.

[OU812]

Let us know how the test goes.

I'm just gettin started on how to make fermented sausage.

[Habanero Smoker]

Are you looking to make fully dry cured sausage or semi-dry sausage? You can make summer sausage and pepperoni both ways. If you are speaking about dry cure sausage (using cure #2), you need a 30% - 35% reduction in green weight, and then it is best to check the ph levels. Semi-dry (using cure #1), you want to fully cook, then dry for a shorter period of time, until there is a 30% reduction of the green weight.

The fermentation process is only one step in dry cured sausage. Yes! Dropping the ph by fermenting the sausage does provide protection (and flavor) by not allowing food spoiling bacteria to grow, but you also need to reduce available water, which is done over an extended drying period.

I haven't read the second article, but it is likely that the two articles could be using different cultures. When fermenting, it is best to know what culture you are using. Cultures have different optimal fermenting temperatures, RH, and length of time for fermenting. That information should be included with the culture you purchase.

[cgaengineer]

In my limited testing I have found that the humidity is around 25-30% with a bowl of water in the bottom of the unit and my humidity gauge sitting above it on the middle rack...I'm thing this will not work well for some summer sausage unless I can get the humidity up. I will play around with it more tonight and post back my findings.

Thanks Habs for the great reply.

[KevinG]

There's a couple of things that may help. One is to get one of those electric coffee heaters to heat the water which will help it to evaporate quicker. Also, if you can find it, put a pan of soduim acetate solotion. It will maintain a relative humidity level of 75% at room temperature according to Rytek.

[Habanero Smoker]

cgaengineer;

Do a search on dry curing cabinets. In my research I've came across a few sites that people have built a fermenting cabinet just ferment the sausage, out of relatively few supplies. I'll keep searching to see if I can locate those sites again.

I have used my Bradley in the past to ferment my sausage, but it will peel most of your seasoning off. I used a hot plate, and a pan of water to ferment my sausage for 8 - 10 hours. You need to be careful and rotate the sausage frequently or the bottom rack will tend to cook, even though I kept my cabinet temperature at around 85°F - 95°F; and tape foil over your heating element to protect it from moisture.