More Chorizo - New Recipe
When I started making my latest batch of ASDA clone chorizo on the 17th October it was my intention to photograph everything and create a sort of mini-tutorial. Needless to say when I got involved with making them I forgot to take most of the photos!
I started off with a big chunk of pork collar, also known as spare rib, and cut it into strips. If you have a small mincer you will have to cut it smaller. I prefer strips to chunks as the screw in the mincer pulls them through with very little need to use the pusher.
The meat with plenty of fat attached was cooled right down and then minced through an 8mm mincer plate.
The rest of the ingredients were weighed out and the culture activated in a little blood heat non-chlorified water for about an hour.
Ingredients as a percentage of the meat's weight:
0.133% ls-25 Starter culture
0.4% Dextrose
1% Fresh Garlic
2.533% Salt
0.4% Black Pepper
0.8% Smoked Hot Paprika
1.2% Smoked Sweet Paprika
0.133% Cayenne Pepper
0.2% Oregano
0.267% Cure 2
To aid calculation you can use this cure calculator:
The sausage was stuffed into extra large hogs (pigs) casings and tied into lengths. They were then hung at 21 - 24°C with a humidity of 85% - 90% for two days to allow the culture to do it's work reducing the PH of the sausage to give safety against bacterial attack by making it more acid. Ideally there should be an airflow during this period - I have yet to mount a fan in my makeshift fermenting box to achieve this.
They were then put to dry at 12 - 15°C with a relative humidity of around 75%. A small computer fan provides airflow when the fridge motor is running. For some stupid reason I brushed them with an olive oil/pepper mix; all it's done is make them sticky!
On Tuesday my new trickle smoker arrived and I couldn't resist, so I cold 'trickle' smoked them for 10 hours - the photo is a split image showing the chorizo and the new smoke generator - 'the best thing since sliced bread' as far as I am concerned. I'll no-doubt write about it elsewhere.
I would normally smoke the sausage before drying, not half way through! They're now back in the drying fridge where they'll stay until they've lost about 35% of their original weight. Today the average weight loss is 28% with individual sausages in a 25% to 30% range, so they should be ready in less than a week from now.
There are thirteen comments
Hi
I am trying to make chorizo, but can sorce any starter culture can you help me or point me in the dirrection of a supplier?
Kind regards,
Peter Brettell
Hi,
I have just made my first batch of chorizo, although a bit spicy all good, The only problem I am having so far is, that after 2 days of hanging at 20 degrees with good humidity is that there is a white fury like mould growing on most of the chorizos. Is this normal or should I wash them with vinegar?
If one decides to use only beef and lamb mixture for chorizo, would the recipe change a lot. Can I just substitute pork with beef and lamb?
Yup, Those little smoke generators are the dog’s. Mine lives in an old steel file box connected by ducting to a Bradley smoker on a table above it. Works like a charm. It has smoked salmon, trout, ham, sausage, venison ham, venison salami… No end to it’s talent 
Hi, Dextrose is it’s name in foodstuffs. It’s also known as powdered glucose. I buy it from my local independent chemists. The stuff I get’s like this:
http://www.discount-supplements.co.uk/sp..
I hope this helps.
Hi Phil, Love your blog, it’s so informative and easy to get around. I’m having a go at your Cherizo recipe as my first attempt at cured sausage, but not sure if it can be enjoyed uncooked?
Also as I live in a tropical climate I will need to cure in my fridge and on it’s warmest setting it holds at 14c, do you think that will work.
C J
The dried chorizo is for eating raw, but it can also be cooked. Your fridge will be a perfect temperature for air drying – just watch that the humidity doesn’t get too low, otherwise the outsides will harden before the middle is dry.
Please be aware that this recipe is not ‘authentic’, it’s a ‘clone’ of a UK supermarket chorizo.
That said, they’re very nice; i hope you enjoy them.
They are great Phil
Once again good on you for your fantastic site. I got hold of a small porker yesterday and when I had finished curing the loins and trimming every thing else, with a little bit of pork I had in the freezer I had 10kg of good quality pork mince I used half on the Not Lincolnshire and I used the other half on these Chorizo. I made them yesterday Arvo and used everything except the Lactic Culture and then hot smoked them. They are simply the dogs nuts hot out of the smokehouse. Yesterday evening when cold and sliced they are the greatest sausage with a couple of cold beers
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