Whether you run a restaurant, a hotel kitchen, or something as avant-garde as an artisan organic meat market, if you want your clientèle to eat only the best charcuterie, you’re going to need to make it in-house. In today’s world there are endless companies willing to lace their meats with chemicals to reduce their bottom lines, but that’s not how you build customers for life. If you want real, authentic, and healthy sausage, salami, and salumi, there’s only one way to get them: through traditional salami processing. What’s hard is that there are fewer and fewer companies left interested in doing things traditionally; if you’re only focused on short term profits, you’re going to choose low-grade, borderline-quality, hormone-laced meats to keep your costs low. But if you’re interested in building your brand for the long term; the choice is easy: just invest in a quality meat curing cabinet, cure your meat in-house, and as word gets out, you’ll have a fan-base that only continues to grow.
This is the point where you buy a Stagionello. Under parent company Arredo Inox, the Italian brand has created a name for itself in creating durable, high-end curing cabinets unmatched by any other business so far. If you buy a Stagionello and master it, you can cure your meats and enjoy high quality results in under a month. This year, we’ve made a project of reviewing all of their models, and have thus far reviewed four of their largest cabinets, the STG200600, the STG100300, the STGTWIF0, and the Evo 150. However, if you’re a small business that either doesn’t need as much curing capacity as what you’ll find in the larger models or just can’t spend that much money on a curing cabinet, you’ll need to go deeper into their lineup. Today we’ll bridge that gap with the Stagionello 100 kg STG100TF0 with ClimaTouch and Fumotic. Our summarized thoughts are to buy the Evo 150 if you need to cure up to 330 pounds of meat a month and to buy the STG100TF0 if your charcuterie needs won’t exceed 220 pounds per month. Our full review is below, and you can buy the Stagionello STG100TF0 here on Amazon or buy the Stagionello Evo 150 here instead.
Which features does the STG100TF0 share with other Stagionello cabinets?
The Stagionello STG100TF0 is one of seven meat curing cabinets marketed by Stagionello, along with the STG200600, STG100300, STGTWIF0 and STG200TF0, Evo 150, and STGPNTF60. The company has built its reputation on the finest automatic meat curing cabinets in the industry, and they continue to be leaders in the production of authentic salami via microclimates. Each cabinet shares a number of basic features, including the core ability to cure dozens of varieties of meats in no more than 20 days on average. We’ll examine these features in detail below; what’s key to remember is that when you buy a Stagionello cabinet, you’ll be able to manage the three core elements of meat curing with a high degree of accuracy, safety, and automation: temperature regulation, humidity management, and airflow control.
Stagionello cabinets are designed to run continuously in almost any commercial environment, including in restaurants, hotels, meat markets, farms, research labs, and organic cooperatives. Through computer monitoring technology, ClimaTouch, your cabinet will continually and automatically monitor and adjust your airflow, pH, temperature, and humidity levels throughout the curing phases: salting, stewing, smoking / aromatization, and seasoning / drying. Food is kept insulated through non-toxic foam while the Fumotic system allows you to inject cold smoke and flavors aromatically.
When you buy a Stagionello, you’re buying a lifetime machine. They’re internally constructed from AISI 304 stainless steel, which is food-safe, non-porous, and easy to clean. Externally, they include locking glass panels to provide both visibility and security; you can use the cabinets as showcases for your meats throughout the curing process. The cabinets will work in ambient temperatures up to 89.6°F (32°C) while alarms and digital notifiers help you monitor temperature, pH, evaporation, condenser, and humidity levels and settings. You can program the computer in five languages (English, Spanish, Italian, French, and German) through a touch screen display, and while 30 preset recipes are included, you can add roughly 70 more, giving you the ability to choose between 100 recipes on the fly for your charcuterie. The cabinet is fully controllable externally and includes data logging systems for accountability.
Which meats can you cure with the Stagionello STG100TF0 salami cabinet?
The Stagionello STG100TF0 can cure nearly any variety of charcuterie made around the globe. Your options include but can extend beyond Cacciatore (also known as Cacciatora or Cacciatorini), Chorizo, Ciauscolo, Fegatelli, Felino, Finocchiona, Genovese, German salami, Hard, Kulen, Lardo, Napoletano, Milanese, Pepperoni, Saucisson, Soppressata, Spegepolse, Vysocina, and Winter salami. Beyond salami, you can cure a range of salumi including Proscuitto, Coppa, Bresaola, Cotechino, Guanciale, Lardo, Mortadella, ‘Nduja, and Pancetta.
Pros, Cons, and Key Features of the Stagionello STG100TF0 Meat Curing Cabinet
Now you’re up to speed with what’s common to all Stagionello cabinets, here’s what’s exclusive to the STG100TF0. It’s the second-smallest Stagionello meat curing unit with 100 kg (220 pounds) of curing capacity. It is designed to work in environments with ambient temperatures at or below 89.6°F (32°C) and ambient relative humidity levels below 90%.
Its electrical requirements are more modest than those of larger Stagionello cabinets; it runs on 220 Volts AC, draws 2.6 kW, and has a peak amperage of 11 amps at load. It features a 3/4″ diameter water inlet and a 1/2″ diameter outlet. When programmed, the cabinet creates a microclimate simulating the ambient conditions in southern Italy. As a result, you can make salami of equivalent quality nearly anywhere else in the world without sacrificing flavor, texture, or longevity. To put it simply, the STG100TF0 allows you to use Mediterranean traditional curing methods without living in such climates. Dimensionally, the STG100TF0 is about as wide and deep but slightly taller than a full-sized residential fridge; it measures 28.8 inches wide, 83 inches tall, and 30.7 inches front to back. It weighs 308 pounds empty and features stainless steel adjustable legs to provide extra stability when floors are uneven; if you need more mobility, casters are optionally available.
The cabinet’s biggest drawback is its too-short warranty; at only a full year of parts and labor coverage, it’s paltry for an appliance you’re going to depend on to work nonstop for weeks at a time. However, we’re confident Stagionello’s customer support will be up to measure should anything go wrong, and when you reflect on the degree to which their reputation requests on machines that don’t break down for safe meat preparation, we’d expect their cabinets to easily last for a decade of constant use before needing meaningful repairs. That said, it’s important to note that Stagionello recommends bi-annual service of each cabinet to ensure optimal performance over time.
What’s the difference between the Stagionello STG100TF0 and the Evo 150?
Aside from the fact that you’ll spend more to bring the Evo 150 into your kitchen compared to the STG100TF0, the biggest differences you’ll notice between the two cabinets involve their capacities, their dimensions, and their electrical needs. The Evo 150 is the larger of the two; it can cure up to 150 kg (330 pounds) of meat at a time in an average of 20 days. The STG100TF0 is limited to 100 kg (220 pounds) in the same amount of time.
While both machines share the same depth and height, the Evo 150 obtains additional storage through a deeper cabinet; it is 35.6 wide instead of 28.8 inches. The Evo also weighs more at 440 pounds instead of 308. The electrical requirements are only slightly different; the Evo 15 draws 3.42 kW instead of 2.6 kW and 14 amps instead of 11 amps. It’s also worth noting that the Evo 150 is designed from the start to be fully compliant with the latest HACCP requirements in all countries where it’s sold.
Is the Evo 150 worth the additional money beyond that for the STG100TF0?
The simplest way to decide whether or not it’s worth spending a bit more to buy the Evo 150 over the STG100TF0 is to consider your business needs. If you expect to consistently sell between 200 and 300 pounds of salami every few months, the answer is simple: your business needs the Evo 150. However, if you’re running a smaller enterprise and don’t expect to exceed a capacity of between 100 and 200 pounds of salami each month, buy the STG100TF0 and keep the difference. The build quality is the same; both are high end curing machines, and you’re unlikely to go wrong with either.
You can buy the Stagionello Evo 150 kg cabinet here on Amazon. If the price is too dear or if you only need 2/3rds as much curing capacity, you can buy the Stagionello STG100TF0 100 kg cabinet here instead.
Canadians, unfortunately Stagionellos are not readily available. We would advise you to have them shipped to a US address and drive them across the border, following all applicable laws and customs regulations as needed.
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