pH paper safety for fermented sausage

[jbo_c]

I would like to “dip my toes” into fermenting sausage. I would likely do only a few small batches a year even if this catches on for me.

Is it really necessary for me to have a digital pH meter to do this safely? Or is there a way to ensure a margin of safety for the decreased accuracy of pH test strips?

Seems inequitable to spend a couple hundred bucks on testing equipment to decide it really isn’t a hobby I want to maintain. I realize the $200 vs certain death via botulinum toxin argument, but surely there is a safe middle ground. ?

Jbo

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Nothing wrong or bad about using pHYdrion strips, just make sure you get both ranges.
4.9-6.9 and 3.9-5.7

Dont be scared, just be clean.

Or get some UMAi bags and skip all the ph and r/h stuff.

 

[indaswamp]

Not necessary to produce a safe product, but recommended so you can dial in the acidity where you like it. The safe zone for acid is below pH5.2 and to achieve that you need at least 3.0grams of dextrose per kilo of meat paste....that will push it down to around pH 5.0 with most bacterial starter cultures available today.

If you watch some of the instructional youtubes made by 2Guys and a Cooler; you will learn the signs to look for that determine a successful fermentation; Reddish color change in the meat, the salami will have firmed up and is a solid mass now, and the sweet smell of the fermentation.

If you are wanting to make Italian style salami with no noticeable tang then a pH meter will help you dial in the exact amount of sugars precisely to hit your pH target without over feeding your culture and producing a tangy product.

 

[dr k]

I bought 2 ph meters a couple years ago and many buffering testing powders to dissolve in distilled water for 4, 6 and 9 ph calibrating. It's wondering how long it stays calibrated and wondering if it is when you need it and to keep the bulb wet and to only use the buffer calibrating powders and not a standard like white distilled vinegar of 5% acedic acid which equals 2.4 ph. The 3 buffering powders and dipping, cleaning, rinsing in distilled water for the next buffering solution is a pita and I was wanting to know how often calibrating is needed because two identical meters are the same after calibrating but aren't in a short period of time. It seems more conflicting between the two than building confidence in them. I wanted to check hydrooponic water for growing indoor vegetables.

 

[SmokinEdge]

Not necessary to produce a safe product, but recommended so you can dial in the acidity where you like it. The safe zone for acid is below pH5.2 and to achieve that you need at least 3.0grams of dextrose per kilo of meat paste....that will push it down to around pH 5.0 with most bacterial starter cultures available today.

If you watch some of the instructional youtubes made by 2Guys and a Cooler; you will learn the signs to look for that determine a successful fermentation; Reddish color change in the meat, the salami will have firmed up and is a solid mass now, and the sweet smell of the fermentation.

If you are wanting to make Italian style salami with no noticeable tang then a pH meter will help you dial in the exact amount of sugars precisely to hit your pH target without over feeding your culture and producing a tangy product.

I bought some and put it in my last batch of sausage which happened to be andouille. There's no way to know what it did or didn't do, but I just added it in with all the other seasonings. It did wind up being one of the best sausages I've made, for sure my best andouille.

I saw this 2 guys and a cooler video that got me more interested in it where he warns not to taste the sausage until the cure has had a chance to take effect. He suggests this as a way around the problem:


My normal smoked sausage process is to cube the meat and fat, and weigh out the seasonings, season the meat and let it sit overnight. The next day I'll grind and stuff, and if I am smoking the sausage I'll do that the next day. I often add cure to sausages I'm going to smoke at barbecue temps (225 to 275 rather than the 150 to 180 warm smoke) just for the flavor and color enhancement.

If you needed to rush the process, the sodium erythorbate allows you to not do the overnight cure. My understanding is that curing is going to happen pretty quickly in ground meat anyway.

This is the science. 3g per Kg of dextrose then ferment at correct temperature and humidity. There is more to this process but this will get you in the ballpark for fermentation.