Mold on genoa salami

[pantry3cow]

Hi there I attempted to make genoa salami with moose and pork 50/50 I followed the instructions and put in a touch more than cure #1 then asked for. The recipie I used was from the book "Home sausage makeing edition 3 and was on page 132.
I did not add the ascorbic acid however.
I stuffed the salami into muslin and set in a fridge 3 weeks ago the temp of the salami never got above 45. I would say that the fridge is fairly humid inside. Today when checking progress I notice a thin layer of what I would describe as a light grey fuzz has formed uniformly on the salami. It is about an eighth of an inch thick all around the salami. Question is this normal or is this now trash? I've seen some posts which comment like this is acceptable and part of the process. Can or should it be wiped? I thought I had read somewhere the addition of the acid was not critical?
What did I do wrong with the Genoa? Being a beginner I need some advise can someone please help.

[NCPaul]

Welcome to the forum. It is not sounding promising. I have several concerns; usually salamis are done in casings (either natural or synthetic), yours is in muslin fabric? In fabric, the salami is likely to dry too fast. This gives a outer layer of very dry meat and a moist interior where bacteria can flourish. This is called case hardening. What has your humidity been? You do not mention having used a starter culture, so I assume you did not. Starter cultures are used to increase the acidity of the sausage by fermentation of sugar to make the sausage inhospitable to harmful bacteria. White mold is OK and can be applied from a culture, wild molds may be OK or may be not.

[pantry3cow]

Thanks for the response. No I did not add a starter culture. The recipie did not ask for one so I did not add one. Nor did I know what one was or is. My assumption was casings did not matter, guess not. So I have a little more to learn, that won't stop me. Why do I need to add a starter does not the use of cure and proper temp. not prevent mould. I also made summer sausage and it turned out great but I smoked it. I did not add a starter to it. Should I have?
I am very interested in making salami but I see I have much to learn. Are there posts on the site anyone can recommend that will educate me more.

[Dingo]

NCPaul is correct..i would bin that batch and and chalk it up to experience.

An excellent resource for salami's etc is

http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Making-Fermented-Sausages/dp/0982426712

The book goes into great detail regarding the chemistry etc. I cant stress how important it is that you understand the "science" behind making fermented products. There is much at risk...life & death is not an understatement. Dont be put off...if can be done safely once you know what you are doing.

Also, with a solid understanding, you can verify the validity of internet recipes. There are some recipes that are very risky/unsafe.

[bwalt822]

If it were me I would trash it. Based on what you have told us I'm guessing that nobody on this board will be able to tell you its ok. It might be ok but we just cant confirm that. Can you post pictures? salami mold should pretty much be snow white.

An unmodified fridge is unlikely to give the proper curing conditions, and until you know your temp and humidity you'll just be guessing.

If I were you the next thing I purchased would be one of these to monitor temp and humidity:
[url]
http://www.amazon.com/Quality-Importers ... hygrometer[/url]

This website is a good resource for making salami at home:
http://lpoli.50webs.com/page0002.htm

If you can describe your fridge (and how it actually cools the air) or post pictures of it we can help you figure out the best way to cure in it.

[reee]

my 2 cents: You definately need to know what your humidity and temerature are. But if I were you I'd take a step back and read The Art of Making Fermented Sausages and maybe Charcuterie and Salumi (both Ruhlman). Once you've been severely confused by The Art of Making Fermented Sausages, the Ruhlman books will seem a breeze. Then, go back and read the Art of... again. It is a confusing book rooted in science, but critical so you dont harm yourself or anyone elese and, at a minimum, waste a lot of time and money.

To the extent you haven't, you might want to start with some easier stuff like pancetta or breseola (Things that dont need fermentation).