Finocchiona (fennel) Salami 2023

[indaswamp]

Well, October first has passed so we are on the backside of peak hurricane season. I waited this year to start my salumi projects just in case we got one and lost power. First salami up after the Breasola is one of my favorites- Finocchiona. I am using shoulder, loin, and filet for the lean and for the fat; cheek & back fat. The cheek fat will stay softer in the finished salami.

First up was a trip to my butcher to buy 5# back fat. Talked with him a bit while there. I'll be buying a front quarter from a hog in about 2 weeks for Spalla Cruda and a Coppa; along with 2-3 hams for this years Culatello. He said the hogs he has been getting from the farm in Iowa have about 1 1/2" fat on the hams. That's perfect!

Last night, did all the prep work. Trimmed the meat, cubed the fat, weighed, spice mix made, garlic in wine for extraction, 50-55mm beef middle casings measured to length, cut and tied to soak in vinegar water overnight.

Spice blend...

wine and garlic...

Here we go....all the meat trimmed to class 1 lean meat:

Shoulder

Loin & filet

Ready for the grinder.

I pulled the fat cubes out and mixed in about 20% of the lean. Ground that thru the 8mm plate.

Good cut...

The rest of the lean thru the 10mm plate..

I mixed the SM-194 starter along with the garlic infused wine into the meat first, then measured the pH to calculate the amount of sugars I needed. Added that to the spice blend, then mixed into the mince for protein extraction...

I am adding sodium I&G to this salami to play around with the flavor profile. Just to see what it brings to the salami...

All mixed up...

And stuffed. 10 salami 875-1025g. each.

Trussed, pricked, weighed, and hanging in the fermentation trash can for the first 12 hours for dripping phase. Should be done fermenting sometime tomorrow afternoon.

 

[indaswamp]

I am using SM-194 culture here along with 1.79grams/kg. sugars. This should be enough sugars along with the wine to drop the pH down below pH5.3.

 

[mr_whipple]

This is one of the salamis I want to make when I finally make the leap. Almost there.

 

[indaswamp]

It is a big leap. At least it was for me. I wanted to understand how it was done safely before jumping in with both feet. Once you wrap your head around the 4 safety hurdles and how they interact with each other synergistically then you will be confident in producing a safe product. Actually measuring the pH with a calibrated pH meter is HUGE peace of mind for me. It has also allowed me to dial in precisely how much sugar to add without hampering flavor forming bacteria yet still offer a good safety profile.

 

[indaswamp]

Checked the pH @18 hours. Looking good... pH is down to 5.36. Should finish up fermentation by tonight

 

[02ebz06]

It is a big leap. At least it was for me. I wanted to understand how it was done safely before jumping in with both feet.

When I wanted to start I bought a couple books and never even thought about safety.
One of the books I bought had a chapter or two in the beginning about safety.
The repeated mention of botulism stuck in my head, and I didn't take the leap for several years because of that.
A lot is common sense and cleanliness.

 

[SmokinEdge]

Fennel salami is one of my favorites. Nice work on the process. Be curious how that I&G is in the end. I went crazy about it at first but now I’m tasting a substitute sweetener with it now, it’s hard to describe but I don’t care for any sweetener that is not sugar based and I pick that foe sweetener taste up right away in anything. Well lately the I&G products I’ve made have that taste on the back side. Not so excited about it now. My wife doesn’t taste it but she uses the blue packet of sweetener In coffee.

 

[BGKYSmoker]

I wanna be a salumi master like inda.

Looks great as always.

 

[indaswamp]

Fennel salami is one of my favorites. Nice work on the process. Be curious how that I&G is in the end. I went crazy about it at first but now I’m tasting a substitute sweetener with it now, it’s hard to describe but I don’t care for any sweetener that is not sugar based and I pick that foe sweetener taste up right away in anything. Well lately the I&G products I’ve made have that taste on the back side. Not so excited about it now. My wife doesn’t taste it but she uses the blue packet of sweetener In coffee.

Fennel Salami is also one of my favorites. Can't believe it has been over a year since I made some! Very interesting on the taste of sodium I&G on the back end. I only used a very small amount; 0.075% per kilogram. I have noticed that it does not take a lot...very powerful umami enhancer.

 

[indaswamp]

I wanna be a salumi master like inda.

Looks great as always.

Well just for you Rick, I'll post the recipe I used....

 

[indaswamp]

The pH @ 36 hours of fermentation is 5.26.... it actually flipped down 0.01 point just after I took the pic. and stabilized...

Now to hang at room temp with a very small fan to dry the surface from the dripping phase for a couple hours, then transfer to my accelerated drying chamber..

 

[Nodak21]

Guessing you are either single or have a very very understanding wife… sausage looks great so far!!

 

[indaswamp]

Guessing you are either single or have a very very understanding wife… sausage looks great so far!!

Yep, single....and I won't get married unless she is a very understanding wife!

 

[Fueling Around]

Your sausage projects are always great reads.

Yep, single....and I won't get married unless she is a very understanding wife!

We prefer farm fresh eggs.
A couple weeks ago my wife cracked open an egg that had about a 12 day embryo.
She simply slid it into the trash and grabbed another egg to finish making her breakfast.
She also puts up with me.
I think I did well.

 

[indaswamp]

Not sure I get your reference about the eggs, but glad you found a keeper.

 

[indaswamp]

So for Finocchiona salami in Italy, the pH never drops below 5.2. This is to keep the flavor forming bacteria going strong and to prevent acid induced soluble protein gelification, which makes the salami very firm. This one will remain pillowy soft.

Took me a lot of trial and error, but I finally dialed in on how to drop the pH just enough to hit the 5.3-5.2 zone. The pH may drop just a little more, but all the sugars are pretty much consumed as of now.....

 

[KBFlyer]

I made this back in 2014 using the UMAi casings. Took mine to around 36% weight lose. They turned out pretty good but never made them again for some reason.

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Man that looks like it is going to be good. The extent of my sausage making is making breakfast sausage. Maybe some day.

 

[indaswamp]

Man that looks like it is going to be good. The extent of my sausage making is making breakfast sausage. Maybe some day.

For me, it was a steep learning curve. Buy the yellow book by Stanley and Adam Marianski.....The Art of Making Fermented Sausages. Buy it today and start reading. I must have read it 4-5 times and picked up more stuff with each read. The more you understand, the more you gain with each read.....

 

[Schwarzwald Metzger]

Well, October first has passed so we are on the backside of peak hurricane season. I waited this year to start my salumi projects just in case we got one and lost power. First salami up after the Breasola is one of my favorites- Finocchiona. I am using shoulder, loin, and filet for the lean and for the fat; cheek & back fat. The cheek fat will stay softer in the finished salami.

First up was a trip to my butcher to buy 5# back fat. Talked with him a bit while there. I'll be buying a front quarter from a hog in about 2 weeks for Spalla Cruda and a Coppa; along with 2-3 hams for this years Culatello. He said the hogs he has been getting from the farm in Iowa have about 1 1/2" fat on the hams. That's perfect!

Last night, did all the prep work. Trimmed the meat, cubed the fat, weighed, spice mix made, garlic in wine for extraction, 50-55mm beef middle casings measured to length, cut and tied to soak in vinegar water overnight.

Spice blend...
View attachment 677726
View attachment 677727

wine and garlic...
View attachment 677728

Here we go....all the meat trimmed to class 1 lean meat:

Shoulder
View attachment 677725

Loin & filet
View attachment 677724

Ready for the grinder.
View attachment 677723

I pulled the fat cubes out and mixed in about 20% of the lean. Ground that thru the 8mm plate.
View attachment 677729
View attachment 677730

Good cut...
View attachment 677731

The rest of the lean thru the 10mm plate..
View attachment 677732

I mixed the SM-194 starter along with the garlic infused wine into the meat first, then measured the pH to calculate the amount of sugars I needed. Added that to the spice blend, then mixed into the mince for protein extraction...
View attachment 677733

I am adding sodium I&G to this salami to play around with the flavor profile. Just to see what it brings to the salami...
View attachment 677734

All mixed up...
View attachment 677737
View attachment 677735

And stuffed. 10 salami 875-1025g. each.
View attachment 677738

Trussed, pricked, weighed, and hanging in the fermentation trash can for the first 12 hours for dripping phase. Should be done fermenting sometime tomorrow afternoon.
View attachment 677739

I bow to your superior skill. Very impressive man. What I love the most about salume is the science. Great job brother.