Andouille Sausage

Fatback Joe

Fatback Joe

Babbling Farker
Joined
Jan 7, 2008
Messages
3,168
Reaction score
5,741
Points
0
Age
54
Location
Memphis, TN
For whatever reason andouille has been something I just bought and never bothered to make at home. Mostly due to lack of planning I guess, when I am making a dish that calls for andouille, it was just easier to run to the store. Decided it was time to change that, did a quick search on the forum and it looked like a few people had been happy with the recipe from Nola Cuisine. http://www.nolacuisine.com/2005/11/14/andouille-sausage-recipe/ Seemed to be as good as a starting point as any.

First order of business was converting the measurements to % of meat weight for ease of future duplication. Considering my math skills, I probably hosed something up, but went with

.2% Cayenne
.3% Paprika
1.2% Garlic
.6% BP
2% Sea Salt
.12% Thyme
.01% CRP
.25% cure #1
5% ice water
4% milk powder

Just did a 3 lb batch to test things out.

Cut a butt into strips for the grinder, but did 1 lb just rough chop for a little texture, left 1 lb a coarse grind, and did the rest as a fine grind, keeping 1 lb back for the recipe and froze the rest.

4ebWupM.jpg


KMCJcaL.jpg


gl1G6gP.jpg


Added the spices and mixed in the KA for minute or two until it "looked right". :mrgreen:

NQTRPcX.jpg


Stuffed into hog casings and put in the fridge overnight

2v6rKKV.jpg


The next day it was into the smoker with cherry for the smoke until 150 IT

4eRSlbL.jpg


KziLtw7.jpg


Ice bath to stop the cooking and back into the fridge.

RqV0B42.jpg


Sliced a little bit to try and also threw some in a skillet to see how it cooked up.

O5KbSAd.jpg



Pretty happy with the outcome. Excellent texture and taste, but seemed to lack a bit of something I can't quite put my finger on. Good sausage, but it wasn't quite the andouille flavor I was looking for. Excellent starting point on this journey though.

Open to suggestions if anyone has some ideas to share.
 
I’m going to need you to ship me 5-10lbs of that. At that point I’ll be able to provide some feedback/advice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
That sausage looks OUTSTANDING!:clap2: Try a bit of rubbed sage and increase the garlic just a little in your next test batch.The best tasting andouille I ever tasted was sorta garlicky,without it overpowering the sausage.
 
That really looks good. I use andouille sausage all the time, and I can see you got the texture right. I use it like a seasoning, I never season until after it has be cooking a while.
I really like it with red beans or a chicken and andouille sausage gumbo.

It always has a strong smoke taste, maybe smoke it a little longer?
 
Looks great Joe! As Robert mentioned, I use some file powder in my andouille. The NOLA Cuisine was the base for my recipe, too. There are some awesome recipes on that site!
 
Seeing your posts, I don't think you need suggestions, but since you asked.
I would add some mace and some allspice to the recipe. I would also go to a 3/8" die for grinding. Andouille should be ground really coarse, so you get almost a ham consistency.
 
You're heading down the right path.

The best Cajun andouilles (not to be confused with French andouille - totally different thing) come from Louisiana's "German Coast" - near La Place and Des Allemands (lit: "The Germans", but also known as "The Catfish Capital of the Universe").

There are three places that sell what I consider real andouille: Jacob's, Bailey's, and Wayne Jacob's smokehouses.

I see tons of different sausages called andouille, and, in my opinion, each is entitled to their own interpretation of what it is. However, here are the things that say "andouille" to me:

- Pork, 3/4" plate course grind - not too fatty.
- salt, black pepper, red pepper, garlic, and maybe thyme. That's it- no cumin, oregano, brown sugar, etc.
- 1 1/2" - 2" casings
- Heavily smoked over pecan and sugar cane (if available)

In La Place, andouille is sold in "sticks" that generally weigh ~2lbs.

The smoke and pepper should be fairly assertive.

I have tried making it myself with limited success. Here is my most recent attempt:

picture.php


Suggestions:

I would try a larger casing and a slower smoke. I don't know what CRP is? Can you tell me?

Also, my understanding is that milk powder is to retain moisture. Andouille is fairly dry. Is MP necessary?

Regards,

David
 
Swine Spectator said:
- Pork, 3/4" plate course grind - not too fatty.
- salt, black pepper, red pepper, garlic, and maybe thyme. That's it- no cumin, oregano, brown sugar, etc.
- 1 1/2" - 2" casings
- Heavily smoked over pecan and sugar cane (if available)

In La Place, andouille is sold in "sticks" that generally weigh ~2lbs.

The smoke and pepper should be fairly assertive.

Suggestions:

I would try a larger casing and a slower smoke. I don't know what CRP is? Can you tell me?

Also, my understanding is that milk powder is to retain moisture. Andouille is fairly dry. Is MP necessary?

Regards,

David
Click to expand...

Great feedback.

CRP = Crushed Red Pepper

Milk powder probably isn't necessary.......don't really know. The original recipe called for it, so I did it. When I am trying a recipe for the first time I don't change anything unless something looks way wrong.

Definitely more smoke, I intended to smoke it lower temp for longer time to get some more smoke on it. Got it started, went in the house for a bit, came out to check on things and found them temp way higher than I planned. :icon_blush:
 
Fatback Joe said:
Pretty happy with the outcome. Excellent texture and taste, but seemed to lack a bit of something I can't quite put my finger on. Good sausage, but it wasn't quite the andouille flavor I was looking for. Excellent starting point on this journey though.

Open to suggestions if anyone has some ideas to share.
Click to expand...

Well, let's share!

Code: 
Pork butt	90.91%
Pork fat	9.09%
Minced Garlic	2.81%
Black Pepper	1.01%
Cayenne Pepper	0.60%
Dry Thyme	0.07%
Salt	1.21%
Cure #1	0.25%
Water	5.00%

This is from a John Folse recipe. I adjusted the Thyme down from 0.13%, because it seemed a bit strong. I may have dropped the salt too. I tested it with a coonass and he gave it thumbs up. Your grind/bind looks right on point. Good job on using a mix of coarse/fine grind. As you know, if you go all coarse, you'll get a loose sausage. Nobody likes a crumbly sausage that falls out of the casing. :shocked:

The comment about smoking with Pecan and sugar cane (if you've got it) is exactly right. Bare minimum, you've got to use Pecan, and you've got to smoke the tar out of it (in to it?), as HEAVY smoke is part of the flavor. Sausage should look almost black, we're talking 8 hour cold smoke.

Some of the things I see about the recipe you used:

  • Salt is too high. Upper limit of palatability is around 2%. Cure #1 will usually add another .2%, so you are at 2.2%, which I'd consider really salty.
  • Garlic and black pepper is too low. That's probably the missing "kick" you're looking for. Country sausage loooooooves black pepper.
  • I know the milk powder was part of the recipe, but I've never felt a need to use it. As long as you have some fine grind in your mix, it'll hold on to the water just fine. All coarse might be a bit challenging as there's not as much exposed myosin to get a good bind.
 
sleebus.jones said:
Well, let's share!

Code: 
Pork butt	90.91%
Pork fat	9.09%
Minced Garlic	2.81%
Black Pepper	1.01%
Cayenne Pepper	0.60%
Dry Thyme	0.07%
Salt	1.21%
Cure #1	0.25%
Water	5.00%

This is from a John Folse recipe. I adjusted the Thyme down from 0.13%, because it seemed a bit strong. I may have dropped the salt too. I tested it with a coonass and he gave it thumbs up. Your grind/bind looks right on point. Good job on using a mix of coarse/fine grind. As you know, if you go all coarse, you'll get a loose sausage. Nobody likes a crumbly sausage that falls out of the casing. :shocked:

The comment about smoking with Pecan and sugar cane (if you've got it) is exactly right. Bare minimum, you've got to use Pecan, and you've got to smoke the tar out of it (in to it?), as HEAVY smoke is part of the flavor. Sausage should look almost black, we're talking 8 hour cold smoke.

Some of the things I see about the recipe you used:

  • Salt is too high. Upper limit of palatability is around 2%. Cure #1 will usually add another .2%, so you are at 2.2%, which I'd consider really salty.
  • Garlic and black pepper is too low. That's probably the missing "kick" you're looking for. Country sausage loooooooves black pepper.
  • I know the milk powder was part of the recipe, but I've never felt a need to use it. As long as you have some fine grind in your mix, it'll hold on to the water just fine. All coarse might be a bit challenging as there's not as much exposed myosin to get a good bind.
Click to expand...


I am by no means an expert but I almost always use a coarse grind for my sausages and never experience a crumbly sausage. I think the bind has a lot to do with mixing it until it is good and sticky. I do understand that most andouille recipes call for a mix of fine and coarse but a good product can still be made with a straight course grind.

I am with you that the heavily smoked is the way to go!

Milk powder does a few things in my experience, it helps the bind and helps the product retain moisture. I use it often because I am often pushing the limits of how lean I can make sausage. In those cases, it helps a lot. Now out of habit I just use it in all my batches. It is especially helpful for when I give my sausages away to friends and family and they cook them to death. Gives a little moisture insurance haha
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

K
Neese’s Sausage, part 2
Replies
2
Views
782
1MoreFord
1MoreFord
ModelMaker
Brefas sausage FAILURE!!!!
Replies
4
Views
150
BGEChicago
BGEChicago
T
Homemade Sausage
2
Replies
20
Views
1K
toys4dlr
toys4dlr
TheHojo
Sausage Making - First Time
2
Replies
23
Views
869
Big George's BBQ
Big George's BBQ
TheHojo
Lockhart Sausage
2
Replies
33
Views
2K
TheHojo
TheHojo
Back
Top