Built structures · Cabinets and chamber conversions
Single chamber for sausage fermentation and drying
One converted fridge used in sequence for fermenting and then drying sausage, with its temperature and humidity settings changed between the two stages.
Overview
A single chamber used in sequence serves for both fermentation and drying. One guide describes a converted fridge that ferments sausage and then has its temperature and humidity changed once fermentation is done.
A single chamber is less flexible than two. A second chamber lets one batch dry while another ferments.
Changing stages
The change between stages is the risk point. Fermentation needs high humidity and warmth; drying needs lower humidity and cooler air with airflow. A cabinet with no means of reducing humidity is for fermentation only.
The fermentation stage must be confirmed complete before drying starts. The FSIS pH limit is the reference.
What is not established
No consulted source gives a tested single-chamber schedule, its timing or its cleaning routine between batches.
Sources for this section
Site
A build is made where it stands: moving it means building it again.
How it is built
Risks and precautions · High risk
A chamber serving two stages can keep fermentation humidity when drying begins, or the reverse.
Hazard sourceNo consulted source gives a validated single-chamber schedule.
Hazard sourceConfirm pH 5.3 or lower before drying.
Control sourceNot a validated process. A single chamber needs product-specific validation for each stage.
Materials
- 1 unit Converted fridge — Non-frost-free, with an external controller.
- 1 set Temperature and humidity controllers — Settings changed at the end of fermentation.
- 1 unit Ultrasonic humidifier — Humidity is high in fermentation and lower in drying.
- 1 unit Small fan — Airflow is kept gentle.
- Set the chamber to the warm fermentation target and high humidity. Hold the sausage through its fermentation stage.
- Confirm the fermentation stage is complete by pH before changing the settings.
- Change the temperature and humidity to the drying settings, and run the fan.
- Dry the sausage to its target weight loss and water activity.
- Clean the chamber before the next batch.
Places
Documented for international use, with no single place of origin assigned.
Community
No community contributions have been published for this entry yet.
Share what you made
Sign in to contribute. Published comments and photos are free to read.
Sources
Meats and SausagesMethod
Equipment for Making Fermented SausagesFast culture fermentation given at 30 to 45 C
A cabinet without a way to reduce humidity is for fermentation only
Cited in: Overview; Changing stages
MamaligaMethod
Adventures in Charcuterie - Fermentation and Curing ChamberInitial fermentation near 70 F (about 21 C) for 48 to 70 hours in a single chamber
Cited in: Overview
USDA Food Safety and Inspection ServiceSafety
FSIS Ready-to-Eat Fermented, Salt-Cured, and Dried Products GuidelineDry fermented sausage reaches pH 5.3 or lower by bacterial action, then dries 25 to 50 percent of its moisture
Moisture to protein ratio of 1.9 to 1.0 or less, with Genoa and Milano at 2.3 to 1.0
Degree-hour method supports control of S. aureus outgrowth during fermentation, not Salmonella lethality
A plant fermenting to a pH above the model basis needs a challenge study
Cited in: Changing stages; What is not established