Lockhart Sauge, question on curing salt.

[Luis Franco]

Im gonna make my first attempt at making sausage at home, i like the recipe i found in this old thread https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/attempt-to-make-lockhart-tx-style-beef-sausage.155707/

The question is regarding the use of cure #1, i dont have easy access to Sodium Nitrite in Mexico, at least in small quantities (smallest i found was a 25kg bag/55lb), would using Potassium nitrate be a suitible substitute and could i use the same amount?

Thanks for the replies and salutations from central Mexico :D

 

[crazymoon]

LF, Maybe the sausage experts will chime in here, IMHO I wouldn't do it. Can you do Amazon , they sell small quanities of cure #1 ?

 

[Luis Franco]

they dont send it over to Mexico, they do ship a lot of other suttf, but chemicals have a tough time make it thru customs

LF, Maybe the sausage experts will chime in here, IMHO I would do it. Can you do Amazon , they sell small quanities of cure #1 ?

 

[BGKYSmoker]

May i suggest that you try to order some cure 1 AKA Insta Cure 1.

Using Potassium nitrate (AKA Saltpeter) is 100% Potassium Nitrate (KNO3) 30g can be FATAL. 22mg per kg of body weight will kill you.

DO NOT USE POTASSIUM NITRATE UNLESS YOUR ARE 1000% SURE OF YOUR USAGE AMOUNTS.

 

[pc farmer]

May i suggest that you try to order some cure 1 AKA Insta Cure 1.

Using Potassium nitrate (AKA Saltpeter) is 100% Potassium Nitrate (KNO3) 30g can be FATAL. 22mg per kg of body weight will kill you.

DO NOT USE POTASSIUM NITRATE UNLESS YOUR ARE 1000% SURE OF YOUR USAGE AMOUNTS.

I have cured ALOT and wont touch that stuff

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Go to a butcher and ask to buy the pink salt 1 from them. You start trying to kitbash your own thing together and you probably might end up making your own last meal..

 

[crazymoon]

LF, I reread my post and edited it as I didn't mean for you to try the potassium nitrate, as Nepas said the usage amounts are different from sodium nitrite. Sorry!

 

[Luis Franco]

crazymoon TomKnollRFV pc farmer BGKYSmoker

thanks for the input, illl see how to source sodium nitrite and avoid using saltpeter altogether, thanks

 

[Luis Franco]

Well i thougt i found the right salt today, but now am weary of using it, an old teacher of mine is a chemist, so i sent her a message and she told me "yes you need pink salt, and i have some" i head over there and buy a pack from her (sounds more shady than it is, she has a company that sells food grade chemicals), so she tells me this is salt, nitrite and nitrates it will help your sausages last longer, and this did not sound wrong to me till i was on my way home. from what ive read, i want nitrites exclusively, not nitrates since i wont be curing these sausages for a long time, i get home and i send her a message and she tells me that they are in deed interchangable , so i ask her for the tech sheet for the chemical, im still waiting for her to send it to me, but there is just so much disinformation here, and everyone names these salts the way they like in latinamerica that i dont plan to play russian rulette with my help, i know a lot of people do sausages/charcutery here, but none can give me a straight anwser on what the salt the put into them contains

 

[pc farmer]

Sounds like Tender Quick.

 

[Luis Franco]

So for all those that find my last post too long, heres a question, could i just some my sausages till cooked?

Same temp as lets say a brisket? 225-250? or should i just give up :(

 

[Luis Franco]

Sounds like Tender Quick.

yeah hopefully she send me the tech sheet and i can see if i can use this salt or not

 

[pc farmer]

I use some Tender Quick so I can compare your sheet with the bag, maybe

 

[crazymoon]

So for all those that find my last post too long, heres a question, could i just some my sausages till cooked?

Same temp as lets say a brisket? 225-250? or should i just give up :(

LF, you need the cure to prevent possible food poisoning. If you smoked at the temps you stated your sausage will be dry/crumbly as all the fat will run out of the meat. Always try to stay below 170 degrees, let C Farmer compare ingredients when you get them from your friend. Don't give up yet !

 

[tallbm]

So for all those that find my last post too long, heres a question, could i just some my sausages till cooked?

Same temp as lets say a brisket? 225-250? or should i just give up :(

Hi there and welcome!

You can smoke/cook a sausage at 225-250F without cure #1 (nitrite salt) with no issue as long as it cooks up within 4 hours or so. That would simply be cooking what is called a "Fresh Sausage". Fresh Sausage has no cure #1 and you can cook it like any meat that does not have cure #1.

NOW, do NOT cook a Fresh Sausage the same way you cook a Cured Sausage which has cure#1 in it.

If you can find a meat market or a butcher that sells smoked and cured sausage that they make, I bet you can buy some of the salt off of them. Just ask to see the container with the label on it to make sure you are getting cure#1 (nitrite).

In Mexico I go would go about getting cure #1 this way. Once that works out then you can always go to that place and buy more or have them order some for you :)

Best of luck!

 

[Luis Franco]

LF, you need the cure to prevent possible food poisoning. If you smoked at the temps you stated your sausage will be dry/crumbly as all the fat will run out of the meat. Always try to stay below 170 degrees, let C Farmer compare ingredients when you get them from your friend. Don't give up yet !

LF, you need the cure to prevent possible food poisoning. If you smoked at the temps you stated your sausage will be dry/crumbly as all the fat will run out of the meat. Always try to stay below 170 degrees, let C Farmer compare ingredients when you get them from your friend. Don't give up yet !

Finally found the stuff, it has been an oddisey, since everyone calls it something different but no one could tell me exactly what their salt had in it

 

[pc farmer]

It don't say what percentage of cure thou that's mixed with the salt

 

[Luis Franco]

It don't say what percentage of cure thou that's mixed with the salt

Seller said it was 94% salt, 6% nitrite

 

[pc farmer]

Ok. The stuff we get here cure#1 is 6.25% nitrite

 

[crazymoon]

LF, Sounds like you have the proper cure now .