(Part 2) Top products from r/Charcuterie

You are going to need a grinder as well. I wouldn't even chance making a dry cured sausage with store ground meat.

Also, find a restaurant supply store and get some heavy duty containers with lids, a large cutting board, and a commercial grade boning knife.

You might also want a vaccuum sealer. I only make sausage about 4 or 5 times a year, but I enjoy it on a weekly basis thanks to vacuum packing and freezing.

If you want to make snack sticks you will need to get one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Sausage-Stuffing-Stuffers/dp/B005U4AZ9M/ref=pd_sim_sg_13

I have that stuffer as well. I love it. It works as good as a commercial grade one (except for the high speed reverse gear that the commercial ones typically have).

Also, http://www.butcher-packer.com/ is a great resource for casings, spices, cultures/mold, and high temp cheese.

Have fun!

As far as I know, there aren't any mini-fridges specifically designed for curing meats. The closest I have found is a digitally controllable wine fridge. The downside is that it only goes up to 65ºF, but I ferment my salami at 70ºF. I've written a blog post about modifying my fridge for curing.

As for meat grinding, if you already have a kitchen-aid, the best thing to start with is the meat grinder attachment. Don't bother getting the stuffer attachment because it's terrible. It's really worth the money to buy a dedicated stuffer. I use this one, but I'm considering upgrading to the 15lb stuffer.

As for books, I like The Art of Making Fermented Sausages and Charcuterie. But note that The Art of Making Fermented Sausages uses T-SPX bacteria in it's recipes where Charcuterie uses F-RM-52. Curing with T-SPX takes around 30 days, where F-RM-52 is around 2 weeks (IIRC). I haven't tried curing with F-RM-52 yet. The Art of Making Fermented Sausages is very "food science" based, so it contains charts and graphs about pH levels and how they related to humidity and temp, etc. Charcuterie has more recipes than just Salami, and is more similar to a recipe book.

Good luck!

Since no one's commented in a day, I just wanted to say this book just came out a couple months ago, so likely not many have looked at it yet. But he's chef of a couple excellent restaurants, and looking through the recipes, he has a decidedly world-wide cuisine, taking inspiration from Europe, Southeast Asia, Mexico and many other places. He even has a recipe for New Jersey style pork roll (Taylor ham), beloved breakfast sandwich meat. So there's plenty in there to delight even an experienced cook.

The indispensable book remains Ruhlman's Charcuterie. If your friend already has that, I recommend Fatted Calf's In the Charcuterie.

I put together my own curing chamber after falling into the rabbit hole of this subreddit. In total it cost me about $175.
Materials:
Temp Controller
Humidity Controller This humidity controller is much cheaper than other options I saw, you will have to wire it yourself, but it works great!
Ultrasonic Humidifier, I got one for $35 on Amazon.
Humidity Monitor
I simply browsed Craigslist for a suitable full size fridge, and managed to get one for $40. This is the one I got
Let me know if you have any questions Id be happy to help!

Butchering I don't know much about, but is crucial for the final product. I'd hire someone to walk you through it the first time, regardless of how much you have read by then. To produce charcuterie, you'll need a curing chamber that can handle volume, and have it tuned in to handle the fluctuationsin humidity that will occur when adding so much product. You could freeze some and do it in batches, as processing a whole hog into charcuterie is a massive endeavor all at once.

I'd start looking for a butcher or abattoir that will give you a hand with the butchering and teach you, and start reading. And start building a curing chamber of appropriate size for your needs.

You could get the chamber built and start with making a smaller run out of a portion of one hog, sell the rest and scale up next slaughtering time.

Marianski is a reference for production of cured meats, I'd read it a few times before starting.

Charcuteria is also excellent, about Spanish style cured meats, but has a lot of valuable info.

​

edit - spelling

I bought one of these for 200 and it's a monster. I'm pretty sure it's a KWS 10 inch without the brand sticker. I actually e-mailed KWS for a copy of their manual, and it's identical to the one that came with mine. I'm pretty sure it's the same machine as sold by a couple of other big name brands, too

Case hardening can be a real problem, especially with a mixed-meat product like Salami / sausage / etc - can easily lead to rot.

Good that you have your humidity under control.

https://www.amazon.com/Dehumidifier-Control-Plug-120-V/dp/B001OLVNU0/

A controller like that with an ultrasonic humidifier will sort it out for you easily.

Add in a small & cheap computer fan and you're set

I've not tried dry-cured meats, but here's a stuffer for $40US. I just use my grinder to stuff the sausages I make (bratwurst, andouille, boudin) and it works just fine. The piston press stuffer really shines for emulsified sausages like bologna and franks.

As for recipes, I have this book and this one and they are fairly comprehensive. Read the Ruhlman first for the broad strokes, then the Marianski for some more in-depth theory and practice, along with what seems like a thousand recipes.

Is this the one? http://www.amazon.com/Charcuterie-Fatted-Making-Sausage-Confits/dp/1607743434/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1464038066&sr=1-1-fkmr1&keywords=father+calf+in+the+charcuterie ? I was searching initially for Father Calf as the author thinking he's some monk that does nothing but make carcuterie in his monestary. I'll definitely give that a read, thanks!

Well, your questions are all valid and I can only provide you with what I did in Northern New York, near Lake Placid (Winter Olympics 1932 & 1980).

​

Firstly, review this website, which has numerous recipes, and I have have tried three of them. http://lpoli.50webs.com/Sausage%20recipes.htm#DRY

Then to answer your questions:

1. The temperatures where I live range from -30F - 95F. So, I do my sausages, dried and/or smoked during the cooler months. You can optionally use a refrigerator that should be set at 45-48F degrees, for the curing process. Or find a dark, cool place like a basement.
   
2. Use Cure #2, which is recommended for long curing sausages and meats
   
3. My first attempt to make dried sausage was this recipe:
   
4. SAUCISSON SEC RECIPE
   
   📷
   
   PREP: 30 MINS. COOK: 30 MINS. YIELD: 7 SAUSAGES (70 SERVINGS)
   
   This classic French sausage is a great entry point for the novice to charcuterie. The technique is straightforward, the seasonings simple, and the curing can be done in a relatively forgiving environment, like a basement or garage, not requiring specialized equipment.
   
   As with all cured meats, though, some specialized ingredients are involved, like dextrose, curing salt (also known as Insta Cure or Prague powder), and casings. Curing salt contains sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate, which stave off the development of the bacteria that cause botulism, and is therefore essential to the safety of this recipe.
   
   A stand mixer with a meat grinding attachment will work fine for this recipe. Remember to keep everything very cold at all times. The meat should always be cold enough that it hurts your hands to handle too long. If it begins to warm, get everything in the coldest part of the refrigerator or even the freezer for a few minutes, repeating as necessary.
   
   As the sausage hangs, the meat ferments. White mold will form on the outside of the casing. This is normal, and desirable. After about three weeks, you'll have a firm salami-like sausage with balanced flavor and a sour tang from fermentation. Simply slice and enjoy with some crisp French bread and cornichon pickles. The French also enjoy it with very sharp Dijon mustard.
   
   

   What You'll Need
   

   
   

• 4 1/2 pounds/2 kg pork meat
  
• 1/2 pounds/225 g fatback
  
• 2.7 Table Spoons/1 1/2 ounces/40 g kosher salt
  
• 1 Table Spoon/1/4 to 1/2 ounces/10 g black pepper (coarsely ground)
  
• 1 Table Spoon/ ounces/15 g ​dextrose
  
• .4 Table Spoon/1/4 ounces/6 g curing salt no. 2
  
• 1.2 Table Spoon/2/3 ounces/18 g garlic (minced to a paste)
  
• 1/4 cup/59 ml white wine (dry)
  
• 8 feet hog casing (or sheep casing, soaked in tepid water for 2 hours before use)
  
  
  

  How to Make It
  

  
  

1. Set up the meat grinder, all metal parts from the freezer. Grind the pork meat and fatback on a large (¾” [1.9 cm]) plate into a bowl sitting on ice. Use a paddle to mix in all other ingredients.
   
2. Keep the casing wet while you work with it. Slide the casing onto the funnel but don’t make a knot. Put the mixture in the stuffer and pack it down. Begin extruding. As the mixture comes out, pull the casing back over the nozzle and tie a knot.
   
3. Extrude one full coil, about 48 inches (1.3 m) long, and tie it off. Crimp with fingers to separate sausages into 12-inch (30-cm) lengths. Twist the casing once one way, then the other between each sausage link. Repeat along the entire coil. Once the sausage is cased, use a sterile needle to prick any air pockets. Prick each sausage 4 or 5 times. Repeat the casing process to use remaining sausage.
   
4. Hang the sausages to cure 18 to 20 days at 60°F–75°F (18°C–21°C). These can be refrigerated, wrapped, for up to 6 months.

My first pick always is the Marinski Books....


Charcutier. Salumiere. Wurstmeister - Francois Paul-Armand Vecchio
http://www.amazon.com/Charcut.../dp/0615720846/ref=sr_1_1...

The Marinski Books : http://www.amazon.com/.../e/B001JRXURI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

In the Charcuterie from The Fatted Calf: http://www.amazon.com/.../dp/B00C0AO18U/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1

Pig Perfect - Peter Kaminski: http://www.amazon.com/Pig.../dp/1401300367/ref=sr_1_1...

Charcuterie and French Pork Cookery - Jane Grigson : http://www.amazon.com/Charcut.../dp/B004SHJJ44/ref=sr_1_6...

The Art of Charcuterie - John Kowalski: http://www.amazon.com/Art.../dp/0470197412/ref=sr_1_sc_1...

Professional Charcuterie: Sausage Making, Curing, Terrines, and Pates - John Kinsella & David T. Harvey: http://www.amazon.com/Profess.../dp/B0032UXZ4S/ref=sr_1_1...

Great Sausage Recipes and Meat Curing - Rytek Kutas : http://www.amazon.com/Great.../dp/0025668609/ref=sr_1_1...

Bruce Aidells's Complete Sausage Book: http://www.amazon.com/Bruce.../dp/B007WKE2J6/ref=sr_1_1...
Patés & Terrines: http://www.amazon.com/Pat%C3.../dp/0688038964/ref=sr_1_2...

Hank Shaws Page: http://www.amazon.com/Hank.../e/B004OBEILI/ref=sr_tc_2_0...

I had an extra fridge in my garage that I have converted to a curing chamber. Here's what you need:

An external temperature controller/thermostat

An external humidity controller

A cool-mist/ultrasonic humidifier

A thermo-hygrometer (weather station)

A fan

You can find these all very easily on Amazon.
Here's what I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Refrigerator-Freezer-Thermostat-Temperature-Controller/dp/B000EXROSE/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

http://www.amazon.com/C-A-P-HUM1-Humidity-Controller/dp/B004CMOFBC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359246682&sr=8-1&keywords=humidity+controller

The humidifier, thermo-hygrometer, and fan I bought at Walmart for under $100.

this is the mister but they're a real POS, i'm currently on my third one in a year, but the latest one is holding out pretty well

I was where you were about 2 years ago.

​

1. I found a free refrigerator and spent around $90 to buy all of the stuff to build my own Frankencurebox. I suggest buying a Mist Maker Fogger instead of a humidifier (less money and less space) and I use a tiny ceramic heater instead of a dehumidifier which kicks on the refrigerator to cool and dehumidifier. I eventually plan on building my own dehumidifier. Only time I've had a problem was when I loaded my box and the meat was giving off more humidity that my dehumidification could handle.
   
2. I would start with dry cured sausages. Most people here trust the Ruhlman recipes/books when starting. They are faster to finish and less money if you mess up. Go to a butcher and ask for pork or beef grind. It's the scraps they eventually turn into ground. A whole muscle cure like loma is going to take you 50+ days to finish. A dry cured sausage like pepperoni is only going to take 15-20. Much faster cycles to practice and test.
   
3. Nitrites/Nitrates are necessary and not dangerous if used properly. The big Nitrates scare of the 1980s was caused by a bacon shortage. Bacon producers over nitrated to speed up bacon production. Nitrates cooked at high temperatures release carcinogens. So because bacon producers were using too much nitrate to cure, there was some left over when the bacon was cooked which released carcinogens.

Thanks! I was able to find it on amazon. I think they sell it at Target as well. https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Enrichment-MistAire-Travel-Ultrasonic/dp/B07HCTYFLV

I use an inkbird hygrostat and a small dehumidifier in my curing chambers. I know you are using a mini fridge, but that dehumidifier is really small and holds the humidity level at 75% pretty consistently.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004HI7950?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

That is the one I have. I don't have it pointed on the meat, and it is on low 24/7 and my chamber has been great since. So I'd say your fan would probably not be overkill (from my experience)

I also use the Grizzly 5 lb. stuffer. It's my second stuffer. My first one was the 3 lb "elbow" stuffer from The Sausage Maker, similar to this one:
http://www.amazon.ca/Sportsman-MHSS5-Pound-Sausage-Stuffer/dp/B000GTH45E/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1405981183&sr=8-16&keywords=sausage+stuffer

Avoid the elbow-style stuffer like the plague! The vertical stuffer is infinitely superior.

I bought this for $199.99 this and am happy with it: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M35W9AR

It looks like it's not available on Amazon anymore though unfortunately.

http://www.amazon.com/AGPtek®-WH8040-Digital-Humidity-Controller/dp/B009VXXBCQ

Here is good temp controller:
http://www.amazon.com/Digital-All-purpose-Temperature-Controller-STC-1000/dp/B00862G3TQ

Inkbird Pre-wired Plug Digital Humidity Controller,
[Inkbird Pre-Wired Dual Stage Digital Temperature Controller]
(http://www.amazon.com/dp/B015E2UFGM)
try one out, I think they're good.

What fan is it? I have this one set up right now. Would this be overkill to run 24/7?

It's a little $15 Amazon fan: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004HI7950/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The humidifier I stole from my son's room. I live in Southern California so it is not very humid at all... ever...

I'd also recommend [this book] (http://www.amazon.com/The-River-Cottage-Meat-Book/dp/1580088430), plus any of [these casings] (http://www.butcher-packer.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=85_94) (they'll last forever too, if you pack them in salt.

It’s also called Prague Powder. Here’s a link to amazon.

Hoosier Hill Farm Prague Powder No.1 Pink Curing Salt, 2.5 Pound https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C2PIC92/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_eShDDbB9H2T94

Bacon that is not smoked, is a very common way to do it, I've heard it's the british thing to do. Might want to check up on the River Cottage Meat Book, by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. That's where I first learned to make it, without nitrates/nitrites or smoking.

That looks like gold cake pad, http://amzn.to/2rFZGfx - lots of different sizes, not completely sure :) but if OP doesn't answer this might help.

This is a link to cure #1
http://www.amazon.com/Curing-Salt-Instacure-Prague-Powder/dp/B00BBIOJ1G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1453237592&sr=8-3&keywords=salt+cure

Cure #2 http://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hill-Farm-Prague-Powder/dp/B00PIPUZ1Q/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1453237592&sr=8-7&keywords=salt+cure

As far as I know only those two exist.

Wait? Isn't instacure a pink salt?

Do you have a jug of pure sodium nitrite that you make your mix with?

http://www.amazon.com/DAYTON-1UHG2-Dehumidifier-Control-Plug/dp/B001OLVNU0

I use this and this

link

Very small footprint, uses a normal pop/water bottle as the reservoir. I put a 1L water bottle on it. The little output "nozzle" wouldn't stay up for me (kept falling down) so I stuck a piece of adhesive-back velcro onto it under the outlet hole, which stops it from falling down

I looked at buying an ultrasonic mist-maker element and building the humidifier myself, but this costs basically the same but without the time to build and debug a DIY version

Right in the back above the hanging rods is this fan:

AC Infinity AXIAL 1225, Quiet... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009OWVUJ0?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I used the 3M removable tape hooks to hold it up.

It’s connected with a dimmer switch to put it in the lowest possible setting. A very light breeze if even that. The 1 1/4inch hole where I drilled into the refrigerator I haven’t filled with a permanent foam just yet. Wanted to see if I had any problems with the electronics before I did that. However I might leave it.

It’s currently plugged with pillowcase filler. So air can come and go but it’s slightly filtered through the mesh.

I’ll get around to filling it very soon as I’m checking on the meat daily so that’s provides more than enough air exchange.

I don't really want to get in a fight about it, but IMO that's an awful book for recipes. It's incredibly inconsistent, and some are wildly off. Cool pictures. Cool text. Awful recipes.

Here are a few suggestions of mine. Pictures and prose aren't so exciting, but the recipes and techniques are rock solid.

https://www.amazon.com/Home-Production-Quality-Meats-Sausages/dp/0982426739?ie=UTF8&qid=1468252524&ref_=la_B001JRXURI_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Making-Fermented-Sausages/dp/0982426712/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1468252549&sr=1-1&keywords=art+of+fermented+sausage

https://www.amazon.com/Charcutier-Salumiere-Wurstmeister-Francois-Paul-Armand/dp/0615720846

My batch size was just over three pounds and I emulsified in two batches. Even three pounds would have been too much for my processor - especially when the meat is so cold. I also put all my processor parts in the freezer before I start, but I don't think that makes much difference.

As for sheep casings, I had the same problem the first time I used them. I have an LEM stuffer and bought [this] (https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Sausage-Stuffing-Stuffers/dp/B005U4AZ9M/ref=pd_sim_200_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=31LY2tGSTEL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=6H9ENQN9JM2JC1CA8CH9). Now it's a breeze. If you're rehydrating sheep cases, I usually rehydrate over night. They seem to take more time than hog.