Charcuterie question

[newtwoq]

My first chamber was a little dorm fridge. I couldn't do a proscuitto, but most everything else was fair game.

Perfect answer!

 

[MisterChrister]

Doing this just keeps getting harder to resist!

 

[Shagdog]

Doing this just keeps getting harder to resist!

 

[newtwoq]

Over the weekend I picked up a 35 bottle wine cooler off CL. Will be putting in some humidity control and then get going on trying my hand at curing some meat!

 

[Fatback Joe]

just butchered up a small hog, and was hoping to do something a little different, and venture a little deeper into charcuterie.

was looking at the big charcuterie thread, and hoping to do something along these lines:
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showpost.php?p=3174209&postcount=56

thread: http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=205412&highlight=prosciutto&page=2

hoping Fatback Joe will weigh in with a little more detail on the process...

any other advice (along with recipes/guides) is more than welcome!

Thanks everyone :thumb:

Alright......surprisingly I find my notes on that one from 2014. Sorry for the delay.

It was apparently before I switched over to EQ curing. Anyhow, it started out as a 19.1 oz tenderloin, cured with 1/4 tsp Cure #2, .8 ounces K. Salt, .5 oz black pepper, 2 bay leaves, 5 juniper berries.

It doesn't appear that I noted how long it was in the cure, but I am sure it was only a couple of days for this small piece. It had lost 40% of its weight when I broke into it.

Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if I can assist at all.

 

[sleebus.jones]

I've got a sorta big dorm fridge that I can use for this. What is everyone using for a humidity and temp controller? Appears that I will need one controller for humidity and once for temp.

Adding humidity is easy and cheap with one of those ultrasonic "fog" modules that they use for water fountains. I've also read that this unit works very well for reducing humidity in the chamber:
[ame]https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H0ZDD2/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=V9FVTCF457WY&coliid=I2J9OJ3F95OYLB&psc=1[/ame]

I know I can get a high-temp fridge controller from Auber instruments, so I guess I've got that part down. Only missing link is the humidity controller (or humidistat). Suggestions appreciated! I know that Auber sells one, but $130 seems a bit pricy.

Upon further searching on Amazon I found this: [ame]https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Combination-Humidity-Controller-Temperature/dp/B01LL4SNIE/ref=sr_1_3?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1484148175&sr=1-3&keywords=humidity+controller[/ame]

 

[Fatback Joe]

this thread describes things as well as I have seen it done.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=188117&highlight=richard

Many ways to accomplish what you need, but this seems to be the most common from what I have seen for setting up a fridge.

 

[sleebus.jones]

Cool. Good thread to read. Thanks!

 

[Shagdog]

In a regular fridge I know you can use the fridge itself as the dehumidifier, but I'm not sure how that applies with a dorm fridge. You may need that little unit.. I imagine your humidity will be pretty high, especially at first when the sausage is wet, in such a small space. I would let anything you are going to put in there air dry for a few hours at least before you even put it in the chamber.

Those temp units are fine I'm sure. The ones we used in Richard were El cheapo. They work fine mostly. The temp unit finally burned out a couple months ago and I replaced it with the same one again..

 

[Fatback Joe]

Yeah, your humidity will be high in the dorm fridge, especially when you put in some new meat.

I removed about a 2 inch section of the door gasket and things settled in pretty close to where I wanted them. I also opened the door a time or two throughout the day and that helped. Things were still running a bit high, but nothing I could not live with.

 

[sleebus.jones]

Problem is with living down here in Texas that we're always fighting high ambient humidity. Opening the door will probably make it go up, haha! My chamber will end up in a shed on the backside of my property, so it needs to be able to take care of itself.

Good ideas here, really appreciate it.

 

[newtwoq]

I'm in the same boat in Virginia, I kind of laugh at the idea of cutting intake holes in the side to lower the humidity. I think I will be putting in a dehumidifier.

 

[Fatback Joe]

Same story for Memphis, super humid most of the time. The probablem I ran into with the mini fridge is by the time you get all the equipment in there you don't have room for meat. :mrgreen:

 

[sleebus.jones]

Yeah, that's kinda what I'm worried about. Well, at least the equipment will be easily movable to a bigger fridge. My folks have a tall dorm fridge, mebbe I can convince them they don't need that anymore.

 

[sleebus.jones]

Ok, pulled the trigger on the stuff needed to run a fridge as a curing chamber:

Humidity/Temp controllers:
[ame]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LL4SNIE/[/ame]

Gizmo to make it more humid:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/371513571295

Gizmo to make it less humid:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/111765505184

I've got some computer fans and power supplies for air circulation that will be rigged to turn on when the controller calls for more humidity.

All together I'm looking at ~$100 or so. Not bad to get started, and all of it will transfer to any size fridge if I decide to Go Large. Not only that but my meat grinder and sausage stuffer arrive this Friday, so I'll be able to get all sausagey while I'm waiting for this stuff to come in. Really appreciate the help and insight everyone shared.

 

[Shagdog]

Next will be an incubation chamber if you plan on making salamis. :becky:

Just like any hobby, there's always that "next thing"

 

[sleebus.jones]

Next will be an incubation chamber if you plan on making salamis. :becky:

Neat thing about the controller is that it will also handle heating if I want...but yea, probably will need a separate chamber. :doh:

 

[Fatback Joe]

Neat thing about the controller is that it will also handle heating if I want...but yea, probably will need a separate chamber. :doh:

Eventually, but short term, in the oven with the light on and a pan of water will get most jobs done.

Looking forward to hearing how this works out for you.

 

[smoke ninja]

I have a spare fridge and want to make a chamber.

Does anyone know if side by side style refrigerators are ideal not?

 

[Shagdog]

I have a spare fridge and want to make a chamber.

Does anyone know if side by side style refrigerators are ideal not?

I don't see why it wouldn't work. I can ask in a couple salami/sausage groups I belong to.