Good day 
Botulism which is what is used in botox grows in meat which is why Salami Season is done in winter and at this time of year when day temps don't exceed 14 degrees Celsius and nights are around 4 degrees Celsius similar to a fridge.
Now that our meat has marinated overnight you can take some and fry it up to taste it. I also taste the meat while mixing both the day before and today to ensure there are enough flavours. Yes, I eat the meat raw. We're told to never eat raw pork and I wouldn't recommend it. But oh it is damn tasty. Tends to go right through you though. I taste it raw to ensure there is enough salt.
Now keep in mind we used 3% salt in our meat mixture which is alot so the above will taste awesome but they will be a little salty. The salt is one of the most important ingredients as is the capsicum. High acidity + high salt = Bacteria don't like it. But doesn't mean you're safe. Now you can get curing mixtures but keep in mind they are chemicals and literal carcinogenics. Its what is used in all processed meats today from the shop which is why they are bad.
If you're wanting to make this mixture just to fry or for sausages feel free to lower the salt ratio to 1 - 2% and they are delicious. But if you're making Salami you're making a big batch (I do keep some fresh in the freezer for pasta, nachos, pizza and just for the BBQ.
Now that our pork intestines are cleaned and soaked in freshly squeezed lemon juice it's time to fill them with the good stuff. I'm using my hang filler because I find it is better and you can do it slower and get a better fill without busting the intestines. I oil the tip of the sausage filler, inflate the intestines and place them onto the filler. You need a pin because you need to get rid of that air by popping the air bubbles. You don't want cavities where bacteria might grow and you don't want to be cutting open your salami to find gaping holes. Also if you don't have enough salt and acid you might even find some worms. Not the best and your meat goes into the bin.
See that air bubble, we're going to pop it and all the other air bubbles that pop up. Air = bad. Don't worry if you don't get it 100% just get as much as you can. You also don't want to compromise the intestines with too many holes or bacteria can get in. These babies are pretty resistant and your first line of defence against bugs.
I honestly don't know what I would have done without little miss as due to lockdown we weren't allowed to have anyone over and I wasn't going to make them this year but little miss insisted on it. She enjoys making them.
As you can see we begin to fill the intestines with meat, we're making cacciatore so the skins are a little bigger to ensure a larger salami. The salami will lost I think about 50%+ of its size. So small intestines leaves you with a thin hard salami. Lil Miss filled the skins while I held it and popped the air bubbles as they emerged.
I thought I'd break from the story to show you the first time my partner saw us making Salami. She knew we used to make it at my grandmothers home but never saw us. She freaked out at us just making it on the table in the garage. This photo was taken about 15 years ago.
She also helped out this year but was pretty scared at eating them once she saw how we made them. Ah we've been doing it every year ever since 🤣 we used to make alot more back then. 120+ kilograms of pork. I only made 20kgs as its just us.
It took a couple of hours but we got through the meat together which was really awesome. Another thing I do is I make them long enough to section off 3 to 4 salami per length. I just use cooking string to tie them. You need to be careful here and some you won't be able to tie to tight without busting the skins. So go easy. This is more of a marker so you don't eat an entire one in one sitting.
I also have string at each end to help tie them to the rope I will hang them on. I used paper clips this year to hook onto the rope but you can go to a hardware store and get some hooks.
And now to hang them in the garage! I've got them up high away from any platforms so no mice, cats or anything else can get to them. There are some other things to keep in mind but not too important but are at the same time. The salt will draw moisture out which takes about 4 - 6 weeks curing. You need I believe 70% humidity but I don't always check this. You can buy a humidifier and a tester. You can also spray water around every few days to increase humidity but again I don't do this. If you get it right they will be awesome. Sometimes what can occur is that the outside dries out faster than inside and they can go hard. But there is another way to fix this which will be in a follow up post around harvesting.
maintenance
Vinegar, this stuffs great at killing off bugs and cooling down the meat. You don't want to use water because it will be absorbed and bacteria loves water so Vinegar being acidic will kill bacteria and stop your meat smelling off. Every second day I give them a wipe over with a damp cloth to wash off any bacteria, mold growing and to cool them down. Doing this at night or late evening ensures that the Vinegar won't dry up to fast and draft will blow through cooling the meat.
If it's warmer weather I'll do it most days, you'll know if you need to because lets face it it's meat and it starts to smell bad. Using the Vinegar stops it smelling. Not sure if it kills the bacteria that's growing on the outside too making it smell.
Just a light wipe over with a damply soaked Vinegar cloth. Not too hard because the skins can tear and you don't want any tears because if it opens up you're going to have rotten meat. The intestines protect the meat from nasties. I think you can get fake skins these days that you peel off before eating. But it might be made of plastic, not sure.
I've also got a kids hair spray bottle which I cleaned and filled with Vinegar to lightly mist the meat if I think it's too hot in the garage. Like water it helps keep the meat temp down. Airflow is also good and during the day I have the garage door open slightly to let cool air in. I also at times open the back garage door (if you have one) to have fresh air in and stale air out. Air is also an anti bacterial. Air ventilation and circulation is important.
I know people that have created purpose built salami cages that are made of fine mesh to prevent flies and pests from getting in and they keep their salami curing out doors in the shade of a car port or something. It's important to not have direct sunlight on them. Causes bacteria growth and destroy the meat.
These bad boys will hang for 4 - 6 weeks depending on the weather until then, I'll keep you updated on how they go.
I hope you enjoyed this post and I can't wait to try one with you perhaps one day.