Summer Sausage Issue

[Dewayne5565]

Hello, need some help on an issue. I made some Summer Sausage...it tastes great ( I did add ECA). Smoked until 160, Ice bath till 100 and hung in 35 degree garage overnight. Sausage flavor is real good but texture is a bit soft and mushy...I have read to hand it longer, even in a basement that is 60 degrees. Will this help dry it more and fix the texture issue, and is it safe to do it in a basement? It is currently still in garage hanging (Day 2) as I know it is cold enough out there. Thanks!

 

[Steve H]

What recipe did you use? Add water? Sure about the temp? Meat/fat ratio? Pics?

 

[crazymoon]

DW5565, Your SS shouldn't require any more hanging. Maybe a meat mixing issue,temp issue,ECA added too early etc. More info on your process would help folks narrow down the culprit .

 

[poacherjoe]

More info needed please don't spare the details of the entire process. I am thinking the meat to fat ratio was off??

 

[indaswamp]

^^^^ what these guys said.

How cold was the meat when you ran it through the grinder?

 

[JckDanls 07]

did you use cure #1 also ??

 

[Dave in AZ]

Hello, need some help on an issue. I made some Summer Sausage...it tastes great ( I did add ECA). Smoked until 160, Ice bath till 100 and hung in 35 degree garage overnight. Sausage flavor is real good but texture is a bit soft and mushy...I have read to hand it longer, even in a basement that is 60 degrees. Will this help dry it more and fix the texture issue, and is it safe to do it in a basement? It is currently still in garage hanging (Day 2) as I know it is cold enough out there. Thanks!

Just noticed this thread with no answer, thought I'd answer it while searching for pH titration or meter tests comparing effectiveness of citric acid, lactic acid, and gdl at lowering pH.

Short answer:
Your problem is ECA sitting overnight. By leaving the ECA to dissolve in the meat overnight, you turned it mushy.

More details if desired:
Any acid added directly to meet for a large immediate pH drop degrades the meat proteins and bonds turning the texture soft, crumbly, or mushy. This is the entire reason why encapsulated citric acid exists, the oil encapsulation allows the citric acid to stay separate from the meat until it dissolves around 135 or so. By this temperature the meat proteins have already bonded together during the cooking process and are not destroyed by the citric acid. If you use ECA you must immediately cook it, or the coating will dissolve as it sits and hydrates in the meat. No matter what a small portion is immediately dissolved as soon as you add it and mix it gently to the meat, which is what allows the citric acid to actually come in contact with cure1 sodium nitrite and act as a cure accelerator, despite the fact that the citric acid is encapsulated. The coating is just palm oil, it's not very strong or robust and immediately starts slowly dissolving when wetted in the meat... but it mostly lasts long enough to immediately cook and get temps up above 135 or so.

 

[BGKYSmoker]

ECA is added after mixing and right before stuffing/smoking. Too much eca can make meat mushy.