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Hi All,

I’m new here. Please take a look at my cured meats and tell me if I’ve got botulism going? I have a cellar that holds at 55 temp and 77 humidity. Decent airflow. Currently thinking I need to bin these meats and give the whole cellar a vinegar mopping, followed by a bactoferm bath. Thankful in advance for your feedback.
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Still learning the ropes of posting images. A quick click will show you the meat.

Hi, welcome.

Regrettably Botulism doesn't have a visible presence and so we can't answer your question.

The jury is out on mould. It looks as if it's just on the surface?

I'm no lover of other than white mould that isn't furry, but others take a different view citing commercial establishments where the salumi is covered in mould of all colours.

Black mould worries me though. Is that black mould, or black pepper I'm seeing?

Perhaps you'd post the method and tell us how far down the drying route this is, so that others have more to go on.

Phil

Botulism is not likely with a whole muscle cut. I would be surprised if what you have tasted like anything other than mold. It doesn't look as if it has finished drying. Can you describe what you did for the curing? Welcome to the forum.

NC Paul and Wheels thank you for the reply!

Regarding curing, I liberally applied sea salt and instacure #1. I then pressed the pork under 15lbs of weight in the fridge for 3 days, periodically flipping it and pouring off any liquid.

I then seasoned it with spices that did include fresh ground black pepper. After that I bound it tightly in butcher string, wrapped it in a dense quality cheesecloth, and again wrapped it in string. After that I hung it in the cellar. 55 degrees F and 77 humidity.

The meat had hung for a month when it began to develop the molds that appear in the photo. Very big and fluffy white, green, red and black mold. It was at that point that I filled a tub with white vinegar and unwrapped the meats and began to scrub off the mold. I simply was not able to clean off all the mold, so I cut into it to see if it was making it into the center. I did taste it and it was yummy, but ultimately I threw it all away due to the abundance of contamination.

Much thanks for the feedback,

Haerblaw

It looks to me as if that cut of meat would fit into a beef middle; you might try casing your next attempt to help make the drying rate uniform.

I've never had much success wrapping in cloth. I agree with NCPaul - maybe try a casing next time.

Phil

Thank you both!