Starter Cultures...

[indaswamp]

Looking around on the sausage maker this morning and they have broadened their selection of available starter cultures...

https://www.sausagemaker.com/dry-curing-starter-cultures-s/2019.htm

I also took a deep dive into the CHR Hansen starter culture booklet available online. Learned a lot. Seems that for each bacteria, they have many many strains that they work with. For Staphylococcus Carnosus, they have 40 or so they do research with.
The Lactobacillus Sakei and some strains of Staphylococcus Carnosus are highly antibiotic resistant and are selected for their ability to still perform in the presence of residual antibiotics in commercial hog meat.

I had no idea there were so many different strains of the same species; so even though it might say Staphylococcus Carnosis on two different starter culture packs, chances are the strains are different and perform differently.

....expanding knowledge base.....it's a big topic in fermenting meats.......

 

[indaswamp]

I have heard some good things about this culture from Bactoferm:
SM-194
https://www.sausagemaker.com/product-p/11-1317.htm

And it treats double what most packs treat...50g.....for $25 bucks. I'm gonna buy a pack and try it.

 

[indaswamp]

Cool research...new strain with bioprotective qualities....
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12706038/

 

[Cajun Smokes]

Are these starters mostly for salami?

 

[boykjo]

Thanks for the info IDS........ Good stuff there

 

[indaswamp]

Are these starters mostly for salami?

Yes.

 

[indaswamp]

More info down the rabbit hole...

Dry-cured ham flavour: enzymatic generation and process influence

Fidel Toldra' has a lot of articles on dry cured meats. He also has a book out that is on my want list. The book is about $200 bucks though. Man knows his stuff......

 

[indaswamp]

Great read:
https://www.scicell.org/wp-content/...red-meat-and-methods-of-analysis-a-review.pdf

 

[SmokinEdge]

Thanks for the forward of research. Technology marches forward, hard to keep up. Thanks Inda.

 

[indaswamp]

Thanks for the forward of research. Technology marches forward, hard to keep up. Thanks Inda.

I have learned a few things doing a deep dive into the curing parameters of Culatello. Massimo Spigaroli says that Culatello, "must undergo 2 season of fog and one summer of fermentation."

This has intrigued me...so I started the deep dive..... I looked up the avg. temp. of Polesine Zibello , Italy in the summer. It is 81*F. A cellar 8-10ft. below ground level will be about 15*F cooler than the avg. temp.; so that is 66*F. From my research, everyone says Culatello must be kept below 68*F throughout the entire drying/maturing stage...which the cellars can achieve.
Proteolysis from enzymatic activity speeds up with an increase in temperature. This is one of the keys to the depth of flavor in a Culatello. Then, once summer is over, the fog and cold temperatures return, and the mold growth increases again. The mold transforms some of the volatile components in the culatello..mellowing and sweetening the Culatello....expanding the depth of flavor.

 

[indaswamp]

 

[indaswamp]

I have heard some good things about this culture from Bactoferm:
SM-194
https://www.sausagemaker.com/product-p/11-1317.htm

And it treats double what most packs treat...50g.....for $25 bucks. I'm gonna buy a pack and try it.

Learning more...
I bought the book Salami Practical Science and Processing Technology by Gerhard Feiner

Here is a quote:
"Some strains of Debaryomyces are very tolerant against a low Aw and even grow at an Aw of 0.86. There is evidence that Debaryomyces Hansenii inhibits the growth of Staph. Aureus. Debaryomyces Hansenii helps the development of a stable and strong curing color as well as development of the typical salami flavor inside the salami and is added directly to the sausage mass. D. hansenii neutralizes lactic acid and contributes to a milder flavor. It also supports the breakdown of peptides and amino acids through proteolysis and the formation of free fatty acids through lipolysis, contributing to the formation of a good flavor."

 

[daveomak]

Inda, morning.. I seriously doubt there are more than a few folks that dive as deeply as you into this culinary art...

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[BurntWeenie]

Looking around on the sausage maker this morning and they have broadened their selection of available starter cultures...

https://www.sausagemaker.com/dry-curing-starter-cultures-s/2019.htm

I also took a deep dive into the CHR Hansen starter culture booklet available online. Learned a lot. Seems that for each bacteria, they have many many strains that they work with. For Staphylococcus Carnosus, they have 40 or so they do research with.
The Lactobacillus Sakei and some strains of Staphylococcus Carnosus are highly antibiotic resistant and are selected for their ability to still perform in the presence of residual antibiotics in commercial hog meat.

I had no idea there were so many different strains of the same species; so even though it might say Staphylococcus Carnosis on two different starter culture packs, chances are the strains are different and perform differently.

....expanding knowledge base.....it's a big topic in fermenting meats.......

"I had no idea there were so many different strains of the same species; so even though it might say Staphylococcus Carnosis on two different starter culture packs, chances are the strains are different and perform differently."
Nature finds a way

 

[BurntWeenie]

Staphylococcus carnosus: from starter culture to protein engineering platform - PMC

Since the 1950s, Staphylococcus carnosus is used as a starter culture for sausage fermentation where it contributes to food safety, flavor, and a controlled fermentation process. The long experience with S. carnosus has shown that it is a harmless ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[PolishDeli]

Very interesting stuff. Thanks for posting!

I've been going about this charcuterie thing all wrong. Taking my sausages to art museums and operas to add culture was not working. Now I know why

 

[indaswamp]

https://www.researchgate.net/public..._occurring_during_seasoning_of_dry-cured_meat

 

[indaswamp]

Good stuff...

Pediococcus is one of the main genera used in the fermentation of meats. The species commercially used are P. acidilactici and P. pentosaceus. The pH of salami products made with starter cultures containing no added manganese lagged behind that of products made with added manganese (5 μg g−1) by 0.2 pH units. A level of 1.2 μg g−1 of added manganese was sufficient to achieve optimal fermentation of the meat.

PEDIOCOCCUS
Manganese in Garlic:

Garlic, raw which contains 1.672 mg of Manganese per 100g.
garlic powder which in 100g contains 0.979 mg of Manganese.

One of the reasons garlic is used in making salami.....it supports fermentation.

 

[indaswamp]

VERY COOL!!! Probotic micro capsule addition to salami!

The growing demand for functional foods has driven the use of probiotics in food products, which represents a reality in the consumer market. Probiotics are microorganisms that when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host mainly by the improvement of intestinal transit and the relief of lactose intolerance. In this study, Italian salami with a probiotic profile was produced, which aimed to improve the health of consumers. The microparticles containing the microencapsulated probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis (BB-12) and the curing salt reduction did not affect the quality and the sensory characteristics of Italian salami. During 45 days of storage, probiotics remained viable; thus, we can state that the addition of BB-12 may be an alternative to obtain a product with the benefits of functional foods.

https://ifst.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jfpp.15841