Yeasty Salami

[WalterMacd]

I am fairly new to making sausages which I enjoy as a hobby. About three weeks ago I had a try at making salami using the kit from this site. The sauges have turned out looking good, with a slight white mould forming on them which I understand is a good thing. Last weekend I could not resist them any longer and cut a piece to try and though edible it has a fairly strong yeasty taste, almost like real ale! Althogh not too unpleasant this is not what I expected and am looking for advice from any more experienced hands as to what may have caused this. Is it possible I have included too much starter culture or perhaps I have not left them to mature long enough, or perhaps that is how home made salami is? Any advice greatly appreciated.

[tristar]

Hi WalterMacD,

What you can taste is probably Lactic Acid, it is what gives a genuine Salami it's slightly tangy taste. This acid is produced by the starter culture to protect the meat during the initial drying stages when there is still enough moisture to allow harmfull bacteria to grow.

If you used a starter it is highly unlikely that you used too much, the starter will I believe only grow until a certain acidity level is reached, so is in effect self controlling.

I would say that your sausages are possibly still a little immature at three weeks, but of course this depends on your particular drying conditions, but normal practice is to hang until 30% weight loss has occured, although I am not sure if eating earlier will cause the salami to taste more tangy or not, as I have never tried.

[WalterMacd]

Tristar,
Thanks for your reply. I tried the salami again last weekend and it seems like the yeasty tang is diminishing so perhaps I had tried it too early. It is edible at least and will not go to waste.