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Sausage making originally developed as a means to preserve and transport meat. Primitive societies learned that dried berries and spices could be added to dried meat. By 600-500 BC there is mention of sausages from China, Rome and Greece. Sausages come in two main types: fresh and cured. Cured sausages may be either cooked or dried. Most cured sausages are smoked, but this is not mandatory. The curing process itself changes the meat and imparts its own flavors. An example is the difference in taste between a pork roast and a ham. All smoked sausages are cured. The reason is the threat of botulism. The bacterium responsible, ''Clostridium botulinum'', is ubiquitous in the environment, grows in the anaerobic conditions created in the interior of the sausage, and thrives in the to temperature range common in the smoke house and subsequent ambient storage. Thus, for safety reasons, sausages are cured before smoking. ==Cures: sodium and potassium nitrite and nitrate== Making dry sausages involves curing salts, which incorporate sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate. Nitrites are used for all types of sausages and are the most common. Nitrates are used only in the preparation of the cured dry style of sausages. Over a period of time the nitrates are converted into nitrites by endogenous or added bacteria. The human digestive system manufactures nitrites, which is thought to be what prevents botulism, which would thrive in the anaerobic conditions and temperature range of the digestive system (gut). Cured meat products typically contain less than 40 ppm ''w''/''w'' nitrites. Potassium nitrite and potassium nitrate additions allow the production of sausages with lower levels of sodium. When using the potassium form, it is necessary to include other ingredients to mask the bitter flavours it imparts. Old recipes use saltpetre which is not recommended. The primary reason is that often these old recipes contain many times more curing ingredients than are appropriate. Modern techniques are readily available and do a much better job. In the sausage industry the nitrites and nitrates are pre-formulated into products called Prague powder#1 and Prague powder#2. Prague powder #1 contains 6.25% sodium nitrite and 93.75% sodium chloride and is used for the preparation of all cured meats and sausages other than the dry type. Prague powder #2 contains 1 ounce of sodium nitrite (6.25%) and 0.64 ounces sodium nitrate (4.0%) per pound of finished product (the remaining 14.36 ounces is sodium chloride) and is used for the preparation of cured dry sausages. Prague powder #2 should never be used on any product that will be fried at high temperature (e.g. bacon) because of the resulting formation of nitrosamines. When using cure, it is very important to never exceed the recommended amount of 2.5 grams of Prague powder #1 in 1 kilogram of meat (4 ounces/100 pounds). Equivalently this is 10 mL for 4.5 kg (2 teaspoons for 10 pounds). Note that the maximum allowable amount of sodium nitrite and potassium nitrite is governed by regulations and is limited to 7 grams per 45 kg (0.25 ounces per 100 pounds) of chopped meat. Since Prague powder #1 is a 1:15 dilution (in 0.45 kg of Prague powder #1 30 grams is sodium nitrite and 425 grams are common table salt), we get the proper amount at a rate of 114 grams added to of meat. Sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate are limited to 1.7 gram per kilogram (2.75 ounces per 100 pounds). Sodium and potassium nitrite are quite toxic to humans with the lethal dose being about 4 grams. As little as 22 mg/kg of body weight can cause death. This is about 2.2 grams for a body mass of 100 kg. Thus, there is enough sodium nitrite in 2 ounces of Prague powder #1 to kill a person. Morton's Tenderquick is the brand name of another formulation of sodium nitrite, with salt and sugars added. It is not the same concentration as either "Prague powder #1 or #2". Since certainty about the amount of nitrite present in a recipe is essential for safety, one cannot take a recipe designed for Prague powder and simply substitute like amounts of such products as Morton's Tenderquick. To do so would invite the risk of botulism poisoning. Similarly, one cannot just substitute Prague powder #1 in place of Morton's Tenderquick. For any such substitutions, one must calculate the exact amount of nitrite required and make the proper adjustments. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「sausage making」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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