Meat Club Charcuterie

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Tuscan Excellence

Well, the three tuscans are done -- see photo series below. 

I pulled them out of the chamber on Thanksgiving morning, after about a month in the chamber (recall that we made them on October 24).  After the fermentation stage, I kept conditions in the chamber at around 54-58 degrees and humidity around 70-80%.  The mold bloomed pretty nicely and weight loss was around 35%.

After I pulled them from the chamber, I scrubbed off the mold with some salt water solution, then dried them off, and wrapped them in wax paper in the fridge.  You'll see the pre and post scrubbing images below.  You'll also see the spread of sliced salami that my daughter and I quickly gobbled up.  It tasted very good and was much less sour (in a good way) than the first batch that Tim and I made a couple months ago. 

So, who wants some salami?  I was just the custodian for these and I know that several of you wanted salami but did not have sufficient curing conditions.  So, I could probably cut two of the tuscans in half and give to those who want some -- Andy? Robin? Yolanda and Frank?  Others who helped make these?

       
Click here to download:
Tuscan_Excellence_tag_Jamie_tu.zip (1526 KB)

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Posted by Jamie 

Comments (6)

Nov 28, 2009
robin said...
I would love some! I could come pick it up whenever. I can't wait to taste it :)

Robin Donovan
Writer & Editor
San Francisco
robin@robindonovan.com
www.robindonovan.com



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Nov 28, 2009
Erika said...
Just a quick note: Would you save one for yo & frank? They can't answer for themselves because, they were havin' a baby yesterday!! A little boy baby! Hooray!
Nov 29, 2009
Tim said...
Jamie, nice pics. Let's compare our versions. I'll weigh and place in fridge today. 

Thx,
Tim

Nov 29, 2009
David Tulkin said...
Jamie..what was the ratio for your salt solution. My pork shoulder has reached a level of mold that I think should be cleared up. Should I use a salt solution, vinegar? What is your recommendation?
Nov 29, 2009
Tim said...
I usually use vinegar, if only because it's simpler to pour from a bottle than mix from two sources. 


Nov 30, 2009
Jamie said...
David, in response to your question re. using white vinegar or salt brine for wiping mold, I agree with Tim that using vinegar is easier. I used a salt brine at the end of the process to scrub down the entire salami because I didn't want to impart a vinegar flavor (which I'm less concerned about only part way into curing or if I'm just doing spot mold removal). As for concentration of brine, I forget the recommended ratio, but I think that you can only get up to around a 25% salt solution. I think I diluted about an 1/8 or 1/4 cup of salt in one or two cups of water.

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