With the possible exception of a whole dry-aged ham, to my mind salami is the highest form of the butcher’s art.
The careful crafting of raw meat, salt, spices and time create something very different from a fresh sausage. It is not crazy to call it alchemy. But making salami is no joke. It takes time, an attention to detail (and sanitation), plus a careful eye to troubleshoot problems. Doing this at home is not for beginners.
But when you do pluck up enough courage to make your own at home, this is the salami recipe you should start with. It is the classic, the “little black dress” of a salami, flavored only with salt, black pepper and a bit of garlic. The meat is the star here, not the spices.
Every salami-making culture makes a version of this sausage, and recipes are similar whether you look to Spain or France or Italy or Hungary or Germany — although these last two nations tend to smoke their salami, too.
If you’ve never made fresh sausages before, bookmark this recipe and come back when you’ve made a dozen or so batches. You need to be comfortable with the basic sausage-making process before you take the step of curing them. You also need some special equipment. Don’t try to shortcut salami making. You will pay for it eventually.
First, you need a good grinder. For small batches I use the KitchenAid grinder attachment, but with anything larger than 5 pounds, I use a Weston grinder. You need a sausage stuffer, too. My stuffer of choice is this one from The Sausage Maker. It’s no-frills and there may be better ones out there, but this model has not failed me in more than 10 years. Can you hand-cut the meat and fat? Yes, but it requires a sharp knife and an awful lot of patience.
To hang your sausages for the few days it takes to ferment them, I use a simple wooden clothes rack. I also buy “S” hooks from the local hardware store to hang the links. You’ll also need a humidifier both for the fermentation process and while your links are drying. I use this one , and it’s worked well for me for 3 years now.
Finally, you must have a curing chamber; The Sausage Maker has a good tutorial on making one here.
The salami-making process is this: You make sausage, only with added sodium nitrate (Instacure No. 2) and a starter culture, then ferment the sausages at room temperature for a few days to let the good bacteria in the starter beat back any bad bugs within the meat. Do you need these? Absolutely.
Yeah, I hear you: “But can’t salami be made without them?” Yes. But you can’t. The people who can work in places where they’ve made salami for decades or even centuries, and the ambient air has the good bacteria already; it’s like a sourdough. For you and me, nitrate and starter culture is an insurance policy against botulism and listeria.
The last stage is to hang the links to dry out slowly in the chamber or in a basement.
The key to successful drying is to let the sausages dry slowly, little by little. Why? This does two things: First, you prevent the dreaded “case hardening,” where the outside of the salami dries too fast and prevents the interior from drying properly. And second, the longer you cure your salami, the better it will taste.
Truly great salami has a distinct funk to it, like cheese. I’ve made a lot of decent salami, some mediocre and a few crappy ones. Only once in a while does everything work perfectly. The batch of wild boar salami in these photos was one such time. I cured these links for more than 2 months, with slowly decreasing humidity until they had that sweetish meat funk we all know and love.
Don’t know what I am talking about? That’s because 90 percent of all salami made in the United States is not cured long enough. It’s fine, but hasn’t had the time to develop. We Americans are always in a hurry.
Follow this recipe, get decent equipment, and you should be fine. But remember: Sausage making is a sprint, salami making is a marathon. You must be careful and clean at the start — remember we’re dealing with raw pork here — and you cannot forget about your salami while it cures or you may be very, very sad. Still, this ain’t rocket science.
You can make salami at home, and when you do, it is one of the most satisfying things you can make with your own two hands.
This is my master recipe for making salami. It works well with most meats, and over the years I’ve done it with pork, wild boar, venison, duck, goose, bear and lamb. The fat is always pork fat, with rare exceptions.
If you have something against pork, use the fat trimmed from lamb or beef steaks and roasts, not suet or kidney fat, which is too waxy.
There is no substituting the Instacure No. 2 in this recipe. Nitrate has been used in salami making for 2000 years, and I don’t intend to break that tradition. And for those of you freaked out by nitrates, know that a serving of spinach or celery will give you 100 times more nitrates than you will get by eating this salami.
As for the starter culture, I know it’s a lot. Technically you could cut the amount of culture a a few grams, but you’d need to make sure the meat is really well mixed to get it distributed right. The amount I use is essentially the “better safe than sorry” approach. If you want to use less, that’s on you.
Finally, I prefer using really wide hog casings instead of beef middles, as is customary in Italy. Why? They’re easier to cure, and are still plenty wide enough to get a nice slice.
I get my wide hog casings, starter culture and Instacure all online from The Sausage Maker. Links to the individual products are below.
Basic Salami
Ingredients
- 4 pounds pork shoulder or wild boar meat
- 1 pound pork fatback
- 51 grams salt
- 6 grams Instacure No. 2
- 12 grams sugar or dextrose
- 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh garlic
- 1/3 cup red wine
- 1/4 cup distilled water
- 5 grams FRM-52 starter culture, or T-SPX culture
- Hog casings, preferably 38-42 mm wide casings
Instructions
- Start by setting out 1/2 to 2/3 pound of the pork and dicing it fine. I like doing this because it varies the grind within the sausage from very fine to chunky. To me, this is more interesting. You can run it all through the grinder if you prefer, or if you think someone will get all crazy if they see big pieces of fat in their salami. Cut the remaining fat and meat into chunks that will fit into your grinder. Trim as much sinew and silverskin as you can.
- Put both the diced and chunked fat into separate containers in the fridge. Mix the salt with the meat and put it in the fridge overnight. This helps develop myosin, which will give you a tighter bind when you stuff the links later.
- The next day, put the fat and your grinding equipment -- blade, coarse and fine die, etc -- in the freezer. Mix the Instacure, garlic and half the black pepper into the meat. Put that in the freezer, too. Let everything chill down until the meat hits about 28°F or so. It won't freeze solid because of the salt. Normally this takes about 90 minutes. While you're waiting, soak about 15 feet of hog casings in a bowl of warm water, and put the red wine in the fridge.
- When the meat and fat are cold, take them out and mix together, but keep the diced fat separate for now. Grind 1/2 to 2/3 of the mixture through the coarse die of the grinder. Grind the rest through the fine die. I do this to vary my grind, which makes for a better texture in my opinion. Sometimes I do 3/4 fine and 1/4 coarse, depending on my mood. The key is variability.
- Put the meat and fat back in the freezer while you clean up. Dissolve the starter culture in with the distilled water.
- When the meat mixture is back below 35°F, you can mix it. I put the mixture into a big plastic bin with the diced fat, the remaining black pepper, the red wine and the starter culture mixture and mix it by hand for about 2 to 3 minutes. If you do this, you'll know the mixture's cold enough if your hands ache from the chill. Or, you can put everything into a big stand mixer and mix on low for 90 seconds to 2 minutes. I prefer to mix by hand.
- Put the sausage in the fridge while you clean up. Run some clean water through your casings to flush them and to see if you have any leaks. Cut lengths of casing of about two feet to 30 inches and set all but one back in the water. Thread the one onto your sausage stuffer.
- Pack the sausage into your stuffer and get ready to make the salami. Leave 4 to 6 inches of casing hanging from the edge of the stuffer as a "tail;" you'll use this to tie off the salami in a bit. Start working the meat into the casing, using your fingers to flush any air out of the casing and to regulate the flow. I prefer straight links of about 10 inches to a foot. Remove the link from the stuffer and repeat with the remaining casings and sausage.
- Now gently compress the meat within each casing, watching for air bubbles. Heat a needle or a sausage pricker in the flames of your stove to sterilize it, and prick the links to let any trapped air out. Tie off both ends of the link in a double or triple knot (you don't need a specialized butterfly knot with hog casings) and then tie a loop of kitchen twine to one end, making sure the twine knot is underneath the casing knot you just made: This will prevent the twine from slipping off. Hang your sausages from "S" hooks or somesuch on a wooden rack.
- To ferment your links, you will need to keep them warm and moist. I do this by putting a humidifier under the hanging sausages and then tenting the whole shebang with big garbage bags that I've sliced open on one end. I also use a water sprayer to spritz my sausages a couple times a day. Doing this prevents the casings from hardening. Keep your sausages hanging at room temperature (65 to 80°F) for two to three days.
- Now you need to dry your sausages and turn them into salami. Hang them in a place that is about 50°F to 60°F with about 80 to 90 percent humidity. In most cases you will need to put a humidifier under your links. I also spritz them with water once a day for the first 2 weeks. After the first week of hanging, drop the humidity to 70 to 80 percent. On the third week drop it again to 65 to 70 percent and hold it there until a total of 5 to 10 weeks has elapsed since the salami went into the chamber.
- You now have salami. To store long-term, vacuum seal them individually and keep in the fridge. They will last indefinitely this way, and the vacuum sealing will keep them from becoming rock hard. You can also freeze them.
Hi, i have used your recipe to make some salami and am 2 weeks into curing. I dont seem to have any visable mold on any. Is this ok?
Thanks
Olly: I often get no mold when I am hanging salami. It’s fine.
I too used your recipe and I’m two weeks into the curing process also. I have some mold. I’m not sure if it’s the good kind. Some white & some greenish.
Steve: Wipe off the green mold with a damp cloth. The white mold is fine.
This is my first time making salami. If I wipe off the green mold would it be ok to brush on BACTOFERM MOLD-600 & have the penicillium coat the Salamis? Or just leave them be and wipe off the green mold when it shows up?
Steve: You could try to brush on the bactoferm, but I generally just let things take their course.
Hello I made 3.7 pounds of salami but I accidently put 9 grams of instacure #2 is that not edible should I throw it away
can you make guanciale the same time you are making salami ? ill have them in a mini fridge that i can control humidity and temp . thanks and love all the knowledge you share !
Ethan: Yes you can. They hang at more or less the same temperature and humidity.
G’day Hank, really enjoying your site and hope you are well. I’m trying a lamb salami. I’m using 1.6kg lamb mince and 400g pork fatback. Any suggestions on herbs and spices? I’m thinking a “traditional” with rosemary and garlic and a “middle eastern” with cumin, sumac, garlic and lemon zest. Any suggestions?
can you make salami without curing salt
Hugh
Hugh: In very controlled circumstances, yes. But I strongly urge you to use curing salt. It has been used for 1000 years to protect people’s health when making dry cured, never cooked, sausages.
Also, i dont have access to a sausage stuffer right now. My grinder has a ‘stuffing’ function where the auger runs but theres no blade. Do you think this would overprocess the mix, or would it be ok?
Murphy: Yes, that overmixes the sausage and damages the bind. You really need a stuffer.
I really want to try to make a batch of salami. Do you use a fridge to control temperature at all? I was thinking about getting a dedicated mini fridge for this? And how do you measure the humidity? Thanks!
Murphy: Yes,, I use one. I bought this regulator to control temperature and humidity, which helps a lot. https://www.amazon.com/Humidity-Controller-Inkbird-Humidistat-Pre-wired/dp/B01J1E5LWM/
Hey hank it seems like your recipes are abit on heavy side for t-Spx. Is it not 0.12 grams per 1000 grams of meat? Does this change taste of product using more? Can’t wait to try a couple of these recipes by the way great write ups by the way cheers
Marc: It’s heavy because it is better to be safe than sorry. In small batches, the prescribed amount can be very hard to mix thoroughly throughout the meat, which can lead to parts of the batch spoiling. This is a protocol advicated by a lot of professional meat curers when making less than 20+ pound batches. It does not change the flavor at all.
Appreciate all you do to educate and support openly, chef!
If I have mold culture (like what you recommend in some of your whole muscle recipes) could this be used to ensure I get nice surface mold? I like to use ‘insurance’ to give me the best possible product with minimal issues and if this helps me not deal with bad mold I’d like to take advantage of it.
JB: Absolutely. That is always a good idea.
I was just advised after bringing back a couple wild hogs from a Texas hunt that they should not be used in any uncooked charcuterie due to the risk of trichinosis, which is apparently not killed by these curing methods. Any advice? I was bummed, because I had planned to use some of my pork for dry-cured salami or other sausages.
Rick: It is not killed outright, but the 2.5% salt content in dry cured, uncooked charcuterie, renders any present parasites safe. It’s been done for centuries, you’re fine. Just make sure you have 2.5% salt by weight of the item.
Hi hank I have some white mold on parts of my salami, should I wipe it off or leave it? It is day 2 in the drying chamber after 2 days of fermentation what do you suggest?
Thanks again
Mario: If it’s tight white mold I leave it, if it’s fluffy white mold I generally wipe it off.
Have used this recipe and process twice and have had excellent results.
I have fitted out an old 350litre freezer with temperature contoller activating fridge and 12v lamp to maintain temp & humidity control that activates a humidifier and dehumidifier as needed, as well as a small pump to send air through a hospital grade to exchange air twice each day & an internal fan that operates for 5 mins every hours to avoid stagnantion.
Hi, I wanted to try this recipe because it looks really good and simple enough this is my first try on this, so I got some pork shoulder and fat back from a local butcher when home I followed the recipe to a T, I grinded the meat on the same day, mixed with salt, put it in the fridge like you said. The next day I added the instacure and everything else, put that in the freezer when I took it out the meat got really grey in color, should I be concerned? So At this point I proceeded to make them anyway I placed them in a temperature controlled mini fridge thats about 70-75° with 80-85%rh I plan on leaving in there for 36h then moving it to another mini fridge I have setup For lower temp and humidity, any thoughts?
Mario: Sounds about right for now. The gray color is oxidization, which can happen if the meat was uncovered.
Hi Hank,
I finally have the courage to try to make your prized salami! You seemed to denote negative consequences for not using enough FRM-52 starter culture, or T-SPX culture. Which I understand completely. I’m trying to get my head around why anyone wouldn’t use the suggested amount in full. Does this change the flavour of the salami as a finish product?
Your thoughts? Thanks
Clinton: It does not. People want to use less because it is expensive, and, if you are very good at mixing your meat mixture, you can indeed use less. I go with the better safe than sorry theory.
Hi. I made the above recipe but realised I forgot to add the sugar. Is that a problem? Do I need to ditch it and start again?
Mon: You should be OK, although it’s not ideal. The sugar is there to feed the good bacteria in that starter. But, people have made salami for ages without it, so you should be good. You’ll notice if the salami is bad.
Hey there – So we’ve made salami successfully in the past but this year we butchered a Kune Kune and this fella was reallllly fatty, so when my husband did 3 salamis this time, we’re at the 11 week point and it’s nowhere close to being done. It’s got a very very small amount of mold on it but nothing to write home about, and is a bit firm but not salami-firm. We’ve actually been better this time than in the past at maintaining the appropriate temp/humidity, but I’m really thinking there was just too much fat in the grind. If I’m right…is there any way to rescue these salamis? Just let them hang even longer, or are we SOL?
Your thoughts are appreciated, as we are out of pork having already made boatloads of bacon, sausage, guanciale (your recipe – YUM), a prosciutto in process, and of course about a thousand quarts of rendered lard. Thanks!
Well, you always want a fat percentage no higher than about 35%, so if you are in that ballpark you should just keep hanging it. If it’s higher, They’re just going to be soft, and keep them in the fridge and enjoy the fatty goodness!
When using bear meat to make this recipe, is there any concern of trichinosis?
Bryan: No, because the high salt level of the salami renders any possible larva inert.
Is it okay to use meat that has been stored in the freezer (eg, 1 week) for salami? I know fresh is ideal, but time for manufacturing isn’t always available after the deer has arrived. Thanks
Peta: Yes, you can use pre-frozen meat.
I made a salami curing device out of an RV refrigerator box. I bought some control boards that control humidity and temperatures together. I then integrated them into the heating/humidity/venting system The meat will be elk, and the fat will be pork jowls. I have never started a fermentation before, what would you recommend to use to get the fermentation started. I have been reading about slowly matching the temp to humidity number close and slowly decrease them together. I’m in Nevada where outside humidity will never be an issue. It will always be inside a temperature controlled wildlife butcher shop that I built. I’ve also heard about making a special link of salami to use for testing for contamination Do you have any suggestions, or pointers on any of this? Am i heading in the right direction? Who would you suggest that I get the fermentation starters from, as well as larger pork casings? I have a bunch of 25-32 mm in stock for regular sausage. Would that work for my first go around? I’m all ears! Thanks!
I was just wondering if you can use a small percentage of beef with the pork to make salami?
Kezza: yes, you can do that.
Sorry – confused. You say to dice 1/2-2/3 lb of “pork”, and then mention people freaking out about big chunks of pork *fat*. Which is it – pork, fat, or both? Thanks! (I’m in the middle of this right now…. 🙂
Andrew: It’s all of that.
Is there a risk of getting Trichinosis when curing uncooked wild boar? How would one negate that risk?
Matt: No. The salt levels in this salami render the parasites inert.
Are there any drawbacks using the umai dry “system”?
EL: Yes, UMAI doesn’t cure meat. It’s a fraud. Read the Amazon reviews and you’ll see a full third of reviews hate the thing. And NO real meat curer uses them.
Really nice… I would love to make this! But I think I speak for every one out there when I say,…. we need some, if not all steps with pictures…!!! Please!!! Seems hard to follow… plastic bag tents and crap what da?!
Can you use tender quick instead of Instacure No. 2?
Roy: No. You cannot sub Tenderquick for No. 2.
I found a used wine cooler that works great as a curing chamber. Temps and humidity are pretty steady at the recommended dry curing ranges. Plus the metal rack on the very top is perfect for hanging the salamis off of. Bottoms ones removed. Your recipe above is very similar to the Lithuanian skilandis I’ve been making.
Hank,
Great site.
Is it possible to dry just in my everyday use kitchen fridge. I live in a city and don’t really have space for a second fridge for meat.
Is there a trick to making it wor?.
Thanks!
Josh. No. A fridge is too cold and too dry. You’re out of luck, sorry.
At what point does the sugar in the ingredients get added?
Alan: With the salt.
Is it mandatory that I used 10 grams FRM-52 starter culture, or T-SPX culture?
I prefer not to, staying with the all natural.
I know its a must to use •
51 grams salt
6 grams Instacure No. 2
Joe: Your call. Adding starter culture is not “unnatural.” It is an insurance policy that ensures the proper bacteria populate your sausages. If you leave it out, they can rot or worse, you can poison yourself. That said, if everything goes right, the correct bacteria will spontaneously populate your salami. It can work, but you’re playing double-or-nothing.
The bactoferm dosing guide says a 25 gram packet is suitable for up to 220 lbs of meat. Is it really necessary to use 10 grams in a 5 lb recipe? I wouldn’t mind using that much except the stuff is like $30 for 25 grams!
John: Yes, it is necessary. You don’t have commercial mixing gear like the companies do. This is a better safe than sorry measure virtually every salami maker catering to the home market does, me included. I don’t want to see someone get sick because of to little starter culture.
Question: I have been doing my own wildlife butchering for decades. I have been wanting to make my own salami’s for years, but here in Northern Nevada we have virtually no humidity, and my butcher shop that I built into a garage expansion, sits around 39 degrees this time of the year. Are there any ways to fudge with those temperature and humidity levels?
John: You’re temp will be OK, it’ll just take things longer to cure. Humidity? You need to run a humidifier there non-stop. That’s what I need to do.
I have a lot of fat (not skin) from the belly. Could this be used instead of the fat back?
Josh: Yep. It can.
I’m making the salami for first time were do ifind instacure no2 and starter culture
Matthew: Online. I give you links for them in the article.
Hi Hank, I love your website. I’ve just made your basic salami which is my first long cure product. Have made your kabonosi and ham with great success. With the number 2 cure it says not to cook the product. Does this also apply after the long cure time as the nitrite should have broken down into nitrate by then. I would like to be able to put the salami on pizza.
Andrew: You’ll be fine. Once it’s cured, most of the nitrate is gone.
Hello, love your website! Have you ever used the 2.5″ collagen casings for salami? I’ve had great success with the hog casings but want to move up to a larger diameter casing without having to order a whole hank of beef middles.
Steve: I have used them and I don’t like them. I use beef casings.
Good day, Hank, I am from Thabazimbi , Limpopo, South Africa. Please could you tell me our equivalent of T- SPX culture and FRM Starter culture.
Thank you,
Regards, Colin Hallowell.
Colin: No idea. But look for a starter culture that is meant for Italian or French dry cured sausages, if you can. Barring that, get any starter culture you can find for salami.
hi mate, im looking to do another batch of cured salami but want to have chunks of meat rather than minced meat. Do you know anything about this? Ive bought salami like that in europe lots but can’t find out anything about how to make it.
Is it really as simple as dice it fine instead of mincing it?
Many thanks
Charlie
Charlie: Yep, that simple. Do it a little at a time and keep the rest in the freezer/refrigerator so you can keep everything cold.
Hi, do you put any sugar /dextrose in the recipe to get the starter culture going? See this mentioned in several recipes on line but they don’t have it in the ingredients.
Amdrew: Good call. I added some to the recipe. You don’t strictly need it, but adding a little sugar for the starter to eat is a good idea. I don’t add much.
Thanks ! Appreciate your post. Vard
Package of farm 52 you reference manufacturer says 25g to make 220lbs . You suggest 20 gram for 5 lbs? Is this a mistake? Thanks.
Vard: Please read the recipe. The relevant sentence: “As for the starter culture, I know it’s a lot. Technically you could cut the amount of culture a a few grams, but you’d need to make sure the meat is really well mixed to get it distributed right. The amount I use is essentially the “better safe than sorry” approach. If you want to use less, that’s on you.”
My husband’s been wanting to try his hand at making sausage at home.
He wasn’t thinking about salami, but he will be now.
What cost have you found in opperating a curing chamber? I set mine up 2 months ago and found a 3,000 kWh increase in consumption, more than double what otherwise demanded me to run my household…. Any thoughts?
Greta: I’ve never noticed.
I have some clear, fibrous casings. Can I use them for this salami? Thanks again, Hank.
Rocky
Rocky: I wouldn’t. No one I know makes salami with artificial casings. Get hog casings.
Here in South Africa it is hot and we do not have basements or “chambers”
Bought me a beverage fridge to achieve your 50deg Fahrenheit, but now I am concerned on how to navigate the humidity – things get dry in there…
Your guidance, please.
Lelani
Lelani: Put a pan of salty water in the fridge, which should keep things humid.
Mr. SHAW
Please allow me to call you Professor SHAW , for the passion ,and the way you explain the process involved , Thank you for everything .
sincere regards
Carmine
Hey Hank, I’ve been reading a lot of your posts on salami, and recently tried a batch of chorizo. I have a basement that is fairly close to ideal humidity, around 80-85 percent inside my drying chamber (homemade plywood smoker). There is a little airflow as well, it’s an above ground basement with ventilation, on the beach in southeast Alaska. Everything seems to be going well about 5 weeks in, we used bacotferm frm-52 and bactoferm mold 600. The temp is a little low, a steady 40 and I can’t get the humidity to drop much below 80. There are no bad molds and they seem to be drying fine, although slowly. Is there any worry with these conditions, or will it just take longer to finish? We leave for a few weeks about 2 months into the project and I’m wondering what to do if they haven’t lost enough weight by then.
Thanks a bunch, and great site!
Jed
Jed: You should be fine.
when using bear and wild pig do you freeze your meat for any amount of time prior. Thx
Mike: Yes. At least a few weeks. But I don’t make bear salami.
Hank how do you determine the humidity level ?
I accidentally cured a venison sausage when I left for too long in the upper part of my prep table. Unfortunately, the refrigerator part no longer cools well , but the fan works and I was thinking about using it as a curing chamber. Thoughts?
I have used your procedure and have mold growing now but I have a question on the mold. I have two types. A round white mold growing in a circular pattern and close to the surface and a white and grey mold growing in long “hairs” perpendicular to the surface. The first one I have seen on other makers salamis but not the second one. Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in Advance, John
John: I’d wipe it off with a damp paper towel and keep an eye on it. Increase the air circulation in your chamber if possible.
Thanks again for a great recipe. After a rough start, my second batch came out great! 5 pounds gone in one week!(Big Family) I have fifteen pounds curing now. what a great way to deal with a lot of meat.
This November I may go whole hog! (minus the BBQ ribs, of course)
Hi hank
Lonzino turned out great and I have your bresaola drying. After listening your podcast on salami it’s time to dive in. Can you over ferment a salami? Any thing I read ranges from 1/2 -2 days. I’m using sheep and hog casings.
Ps
People up here in northern Alberta love your stuff. Keep up the awesomeness!
Hi Hank
I have just tasted my first batch of this salami and am very happy with the results.
Rather than using hog casings, I used UAMi sausage casings. I did this because I don’t have the required curing chamber and with these casings all you do is put them in the fridge after the ferment and wait about 3 weeks.
Have you tried these casings before?
Cheers Chris
I just made my first batch 10# of boar salami. I used bactiferm 007 and cure #2. Is hanging at 70f for 24hrs enough or should it go longer befor I bring it down to 58f? I see some go for one day others for three what’s the best/safest way to go on fermentation time?
That brings me to my second question is there a way to test your salami for botulism or listeria?is there a home test kit or some other way to test other then using right ammoutofcure 2 and salt then just cross fingers and eat it?
CC: I’d let it go another day. As for testing, I am not sure, honestly.
Dear Hank,
After reading all over the www about Salami making (I am an experienced sausage maker), I saw that your recipe seemed like the best.
I then made 24kg’s Salami, using 9kg pork/fat, and 14kg beef. The only starter culture I could get in South Africa, was Bitec (imported from Germany). The rest was readily available. For casings I used edible synthetic salami casings, and cow casings that I cleaned myself (we slaughter our own free range bio-cows).
It is now day 2 of drying after 3 days of fermenting. To control humidity and temperature is easy, because we have a fully adjustable cold room.
So now I am waiting the days to pass, and the salami already has the slight vinegar salami smell to it. Hope all works out.
Thank you and regards
Pieter Oberholzer
No problem Hank, thanks for the response. The fridge would be set with temperature and humidity controllers so that won’t be a problem. More wondering about the moisture created in the fridge if it isn’t a frost free one, will keep searching the internet. Cheers!
Hi, I am about to start making cured meats but I have some questions… if using a fridge as a curing cupboard, does it have to be a frost free fridge?
Also, as I live in China, bactoferm tspx is not easily available, is there much difference between tspx and SM194?
Is it possible to use any starter culture and still have a safe product? Thanks, Nathan
Nathan: Sorry, I am not sure on either count. But you don’t want to keep meats for drying colder than about 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Adrian: If you see some darkening around the edges of the salami, that’s normal case hardening. If the interior of the salami is rotten or totally wet, you have a bad case of it. Hard to salvage if that’s the case.
Thanks! If I cut it cross wise, what am I looking for to determine what to do?
Hi Hank,
Its been 2.5 months since I made my Salami. Some have shrunk down and some have not. I think I may have had the fan on too long and now some salamis have case hardening. Is there any reversible cure for this that you are aware of?
Adrian: If it is very serious case hardening, you’re done for. But with mild cases, vacuum seal the salami and keep in the fridge. That should help a lot. To find out, slice the links in half to see a cross section.
Hi, is there a method/secret to make the sausage harder and dryer at the end of curing rather than soft?
Joe: Uh… well it is alway soft(ish) at the end of curing, but that’s why you put the salami in a drying chamber for weeks and weeks and weeks. That method is in this recipe, at the end.
Thank you for your recipe and notes. I made up a 16lb batch of half diver duck from this season, half berkshire pork on Sunday. It’s fermenting now. I mixed 1 part ground meat to 2 parts distilled water, measured at 5.2 pH. Is the main idea here is to see that enough lactic acid is produced during fermentation for flavor and an acidic enough environment that bad bugs can’t grow? Am I looking for pH of 3 or so?
Once this ferments out, I’ll make your landjaeger recipe from Duck Duck Goose. In tribute, it’ll be made of divers, puddlers, and Canadian geese.
On Sunday, also made up a batch of your salmon cure/smoke recipe for a bunch of the season’s Chinook and coho. Tastes wonderful.
Thanks again for all of your guidance.
Jesse: To be honest I have never once measured ph in a salami. But yes, that’s why you add the starter, to give the good bugs a leg up on the bad ones. Good luck with the salami!
OK Hank,
I made another batch with the instacure and starter culture.
smells great, I will keep you posted. We take two hogs a year. We always end up with 80+ pounds of ground shoulder meat. Thanks for your advise and recipe!
Thank you for your quick response. better safe than sorry.
we have plenty more meat to work with.
Mark: Try cooking some up. It should be OK at that temperature for such a short time. Or better yet, smoke it to an internal temperature of 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
in a cool 60 degree pantry
I did the ‘river cottage’ Steve Lamb, recipe from youtube.
still dangerous? I will heed your advice anyways.
Mark: I have never, ever heard of someone putting out a salami recipe with no curing salt and no starter. It’s flat out irresponsible. Can it be done? Yes, by people who have been making salami in the same place for generations — it’s like San Francisco sourdough, where the good bacteria are in the air. No curing salt is super dangerous though. Some sort of nitrite has been used in salami making for 2000 years — for a reason.
BUT… since you are only 2 days’ in, your salami may still be edible as a fresh sausage. How have you been storing it for these past 48 hours?
Hi, I just made a five pound batch of wild boar salami. My first time trying this. I did not use instacure or starter mix. I did use 3.5% salt to weight and a lot of red wine, smells great. Two days later. Should I be worried about bad bacteria? How would I test the salami before consumption?
Mark: You just violated every safety rule in making salami. I can’t help you. I’d throw the whole batch out.
Hank I made this recipe using the T-SPX culture and did not use any sugar as I didnt see it on the ingredient list. After reading the comments it sounds like I should have. Is my batch ruined? I made it last nite and it is my first go at salami.
I’ve used cultured starter a few times but never had good luck. I’ve had much better results using the old time curing of salt and time with cure #2. Any comments?
Hank,
Thanks for the recipe and info. I haven’t done cured meat in many years, this recipe will give me the incentive to get back in the game.
One question, why do you mix Metric and Standard measures in the same recipe? I’ve recently been converting all of my recipes to metric each time I make one again. It’s a lot easier to multiply 1.3gm of ground black pepper by 6 (1.3gm x 6= 7.8gm) rather than 1 & 1/3tsp x 6 = 1.3tsp x 6= 7.8tsp =~ 2Tbls + 2tsp. Kinda a PITA to scale. Just a thought.
But once again, thanks for all the info!
Can curing salt be used instead of instacure?
Daryl: No. Curing salt is sodium nitrite. You need sodium nitrate.
Question: 5,1% of salt is not too salty?
Marianski’s book says about 3%…
Thank you.
Rodrigo: Your math is wrong. This is 2.4 % salt.
Many thanks for your informative posts Hank.
Just entering Spring here in Melbourne Australia where it sits between 3 and 15 deg c. Just finished the fermentation time on a batch of salami using Kangaroo meat (very lean) and around 25% pork fat for the first time. I use instacure #2 but no starter culture. All previous salami have moulded up just fine. I will let you know how it turns out.
Hank,
First, excellent articles and books, I have developed a new perspective of culinary enjoyment. I have created several batches of various fresh sausages and am very experienced with the art of fermentation, and now I wish to combine the two. After reading several sources on the subject of fermented sausages I only have one safety concern. What is your opinion on E. coli 0157? I read only one source concerning this potential risk but the author discourages this practice to the extent that fermented sausage was not even discussed in detail. Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you.
Sean: I am not concerned with it. This sort of E. coli almost never shows up in game meats, which is what I use.
Thanks mate, fingers crossed. Im working away on and off at the moment which is a pain, but the girl has a good eye on em for me.
Pretty sure they’ll be deerlicious.
Cheers
Hi hank,a question. Im doing this recipe and have followed it precisely. With the exception of a few fennel seeds added and… up until the point you put the product in the temp/humidity controlled unit.
Im going old school on it and am aware of the potential perils.. no time for a fridge project right now unfortunately.
So basically the links are hanging in a cool dark garage in a fly meshed box suspended from the rafters. We are at 1000m here and just coming into spring. Evenings are still chilly with daytime temps averaging about 10(celsius) at the moment. Humidity is sitting safely it seems, between 70 and 85.
My question is: how will the lower evening temps affect the salamis? This morning it was 3 degrees in there.. so basically a fridge.. as far as I can figure its just going to take longer for the entire process to unfold. But am unsure and not finding a lot of reference to it from uncle google.
Thanks
Pottsy: I think you are right. So long as it does not freeze or get too warm or too dry, you should be fine.
Hank,
First I have to really thank you for the info and the recipe. I made this recipe almost to a t about 2 months ago and everything seems to have come out correct.
My only question is about the smell. What should it smell like if it is done properly?
My salami smells. I don’t know how to describe it other than it smells, and I don’t know if that is normal or not since this is my first batch. Can you give me an idea of what it should smell like?
Thanks!
Kevin: It should smell meaty and a little funky.
Can you add alcohol to basic salami recipe?
Shane: Yes. I often add wine.
Thanks for the answers Hank. I have 2 more small questions. And I’m making this recipe today so we’lol see how it comes out.
1. Any reason you don’t use dextrose? I see that frequently in other recipes.
2. I bought bactoferm f-lc by mistake. Do you think that will work the same in your recipe? Everything I have read points to yes with the possibility of a slight flavor difference.
Thanks again for helping out with this recipe and by answering questions!
Kevin: You don’t necessarily need dextrose to make salami, but if you want, add 10 grams. Yes, you can use F-LC. Definitely add the 10 grams of dextrose in that case.
Is there anywhere besides a refrigerator where you are able to get the temperatures down to 50-60 degrees F? I have an old commercial refrigerator that doesn’t work. Rather than try and spend $1300 to get it fixed, I was hoping there was some other way to cool it – maybe with some small air conditioner? Thoughts? What do you use?
Chris: I use a cheap, $75 fridge I bought from Craiglist. Do you have a basement? That would be traditional…
Hi! I have been getting more and more in to charcuterie making over the past few months and am ready to make the jump to salami making. one question, this recipe calls for 20g of the bactoferm, I have seen other recipes that call for a lot less and the package from SausageMaker.com says that one 25g packet makes 220 pounds. Why do you use 20g for only 5 lbs of Salami? Is it just for safety? If so I am totally game to use that much, just wanted to see what your thoughts are.
Kevin: It’s in the “better safe than sorry” camp. Yeah, I’ve used less starter, but I want to be double dog sure it’s well distributed through the meat.
I’m super interested in your blog. Just getting into this delectable hobby. My wife has epilepsy as well as a somewhat weak immune system which is why we (and many other people) stay away from nitrites and nitrates. I think that by saying a person gets just as much if not more nitrates from spinach or celery is only a half truth. Your body reacts differently to natural vs. synthetic nitrates and people need to know these things. Sadly, folks these days will often believe something just because they “read it somewhere” and won’t do their own research. Thank you for all the information you offer us, I’m looking forward to learning much from you!
Eli: Can you show me evidence of your statement that the body reacts differently to celery-based nitrite vs. Instacure?
Thanks so much Hank, I really do appreciate your response. I decided to let half of them sit out for 2-3 days and put the other half right into the curing chamber just in case. Also did one with the Umai plastic wrap. I’ve used that a few times with success, I think. Any thoughts on the Umai? Thanks again
Thanks for the article. I’ve just made my first batch of Salami last night and as I was cleaning up I looked at the bactoferm package and saw that it needs to be frozen. I had not frozen mine, and it was our for about 6 weeks at room temperature. Did I blow the whole project? Or can this be salvaged? Thanks so much, Andrew
Andrew: It should be OK. At room temperature the starter culture will last at least 4 months. The spec sheet says at temperatures above 1°F you get 6 months.
Hank, I’m ready to make salami. I built a cold smokehouse that will double as a good area to ferment the salami. Do you have any recommendation for smoking salami? smoke for a day after fermenting or do you believe it should be skipped? favorite Wood flavor? What kind of red wine do you recommend?
Aaron: Smoke after fermentation but before the long hang time. Wood flavor depends on the salami, but I am partial to cherry.
Lookin forward to making a batch of salami with great anticipation. Been cooking and scratch making recipes for a good while, so this recipe is a good start into charcuterie for me and the wife! I am a disabled vet who stays home and does all of the cooking, and this should really expand some of my menu options for weekend snacks and dinners.
Wheelchair Bob
Can this be done without using Garlic? My son is alergic to the stuff.
Nicholas: Of course!
Myself and kids luv salami.i have mad jerky b4 and I want to take salami on.i think I need to watch and learn cause I’m not much of a reader.
Awesome site! Just a question, no dextrose in your salami? I’ve always heard to use dextrose, but that’s with a 90 degree ferment under smoke. This, I suppose is a more authentic recipe than what I’ve used.
Charlie: Nope, not in this recipe. If you want, you can add up to 20 grams of it. It shouldn’t change too much.
Hi there, me again ! Sorry for another newbie question, but is it necessary to add some dextrose to feed the starter culture ? I’ve just noticed that quite a few salami recipes call for some dextrose. Many thanks for your help in advance !
Alex: Yes. But you can use regular sugar, too. Use a little more than I call for with dextrose.
Where can I get pork back fat? I’m in calif can I order it from somewhere or is there something else?
Any big supermarket can get you pork fat. Just ask. But a better option is a butcher shop. They will all have it.
Hank, I have read your blog with enthusiasm and high hopes for some time. So first, thank you for providing inspiration for making delicious food with personally obtained meat.
I was hoping you could provide a resource for how to dress/butcher wild boar as I may soon have an opportunity to hunt for these in North Carolina.
Again, thanks for writing!
Great post ! I’d love to make this myself one day (I’ve done a few beef salumi projects before) but I live in an area where trichinosis in pork is still a risk; is there anything that I can do to deal with this ?
Sure. Freeze the pork for a month first. My wild boar has that same risk. The other option is to increase the salt in the salami to 3 1/2 percent by weight, which will kill the parasites. That makes a pretty salty salami, though, so I prefer to freeze instead.
New subscriber, first time commenter, here. I just wanted to take a moment to tell you how much I love your posts. Even when I might not be interested in making a particular product, or don’t see how I could with my time and materials, nevertheless, I am always so impressed by your clear and complete directions! Thanks.