Help with sausage making

[Bencroft4]

A hot smoke means that you'll cook the meat while you smoke it. (Higher than 130 degrees, usually 225-350)
A cold smoke means that you won't cook the meat while it smokes. (Under 120 degrees, some even say under 100)

Pitbull's temps are right... I run mine at 275, but thats just a matter of preference.

Cold smoking is a completely different animal.... think along the lines of smoked cheeses or smoked salmon. Some sausages and meats are cold smoked, but that's an entirely different project. Google "charcuterie".... Awesome topic, but thats an entirely different conversation

 

[BaronVonOttomatic]

If you're really interested in sausage making then invest in Rytek Kutas' book - Great Sausage Recipes and Meat Curing. It has hundreds of recipes and tons of good info.

Cure is necessary for slow smoking sausage, below 160°, to stop bacteria growth. If you're cooking at 225-250° (like the bbq joints mentioned above) it's not required. Curing does change the flavor of meat - i.e. the taste of the fresh ham when you roast a pig vs. a cured ham. It also gives the finished product a pink color.

Cooking at high temperature and overcooking (above 152° internal) sausage causes the fat in the meat to turn to liquid. Like how you end up with grease running down to your elbows when eating those links they sell in Lockhart and everywhere else in the Texas Hill Country.

If you cure and cook at 160°, pull when it reaches 152° internal temp, then immediately cool with water the links will come out nice and plump vs. shriveled.

The sausage attachment on a grinder doesn't work nearly as well as a stand-alone stuffer. The five pound ones are reasonable and the end product comes out much better.

Cooking a small patty of the sausage before stuffing to check the seasonings is a great suggestion. As with all recipes, you can always put more salt in but you can't take too much out. Five tablespoons of salt to ten pounds of beef is usually about right. Two cups of ice water or chilled stock/broth will make mixing easier.

And don't be afraid to use plenty of water when stuffing the sausage. It makes sliding the casings on the stuffer easier and keeps everything sliding smoothly as you stuff.

Tons of fun, good luck.

 

[AussieMatt]

This is as close to an authentic Australian Sausage recipe that I could get. When we say sausages back home, these are what we are talking about.

I posted this recipe on my food blog a couple of years ago.

Ingredients:
1 tsp White Pepper (Ground)
½ tsp Ginger (Ground)
½ tsp Sage (Ground)
½ tsp Mace (Ground)
2 tbs Salt
125g Bread Crumb or Rusk
5lbs ground beef (80/20), finely ground
250 ml Water

SKINS
Prepared Natural Hog Casings

First, you need to soak the casings in warm water for 30-40 minutes.

Once they've soaked, rinse them under cold running water, then put one end over the end of the tap (faucet) and run water through the insides.

METHOD

Blend all ingredients thoroughly together with water. Make sure that your meat is very cold (but not frozen) when you do this.

Once you've blended the ingredients together, put the mixture back into the fridge or freezer to keep it chilled.

Next, thread one length of casing onto your sausages stuffer.

Start putting your meat mixture into the stuffer and get it to the point where it's just about to come out of the tube. At this point, tie a knot in the end of the casing and start stuffing the casing. Keep a slow steady pace and they almost filled themselves. Twist into desired lengths. To twist into links, pinch the sausage between your thumb and forefinger to squeeze out a space and twist either clockwise or anti-clockwise, then do the next link and twist it in the opposite direction. Keep alternating the twist until you're at the end of your link and tie a knot in the end.

Allow to set overnight in refrigerator, covered, to set up. They will be a bit soft before you do this.

Cook or freeze for later use.

 

[Pitbull]

Here is a website for you look over. There are other good recipe sites out ther too, but this is the only one I had bookmarked on my iPad. One thing I've found though is there are virtually no recipes out there for an all beef Texas style sausage.

http://web.archive.org/web/20010214020112/http:/home.att.net/~g.m.fowler/frame/Sausage1.htm

Edit: just remembered a couple of others..

http://thespicysausage.com/sausagemakingrecipes.htm

http://www.meatprocessingproducts.com/sausage-recipes.html

http://www.lets-make-sausage.com/

 

[smokerpa]

If you're really interested in sausage making then invest in Rytek Kutas' book - Great Sausage Recipes and Meat Curing. It has hundreds of recipes and tons of good info.

Cure is necessary for slow smoking sausage, below 160°, to stop bacteria growth. If you're cooking at 225-250° (like the bbq joints mentioned above) it's not required. Curing does change the flavor of meat - i.e. the taste of the fresh ham when you roast a pig vs. a cured ham. It also gives the finished product a pink color.

Cooking at high temperature and overcooking (above 152° internal) sausage causes the fat in the meat to turn to liquid. Like how you end up with grease running down to your elbows when eating those links they sell in Lockhart and everywhere else in the Texas Hill Country.

If you cure and cook at 160°, pull when it reaches 152° internal temp, then immediately cool with water the links will come out nice and plump vs. shriveled.

The sausage attachment on a grinder doesn't work nearly as well as a stand-alone stuffer. The five pound ones are reasonable and the end product comes out much better.

Cooking a small patty of the sausage before stuffing to check the seasonings is a great suggestion. As with all recipes, you can always put more salt in but you can't take too much out. Five tablespoons of salt to ten pounds of beef is usually about right. Two cups of ice water or chilled stock/broth will make mixing easier.

And don't be afraid to use plenty of water when stuffing the sausage. It makes sliding the casings on the stuffer easier and keeps everything sliding smoothly as you stuff.

Tons of fun, good luck.

What do you think the flavor changes to? Serious question. I have used both a Pink Cure and Tenderquick. I never really thought there was a difference.

I thought the biggest difference with the cure was texture and color more than anything else.

 

[MattG]

I'm making some this weekend. I'll take pics and let everyone know how it goes. Thanks everyone

 

[IamMadMan]

What do you think the flavor changes to? Serious question. I have used both a Pink Cure and Tenderquick. I never really thought there was a difference.

I thought the biggest difference with the cure was texture and color more than anything else.

Like BaronVonOttomatic said think of a pork roast, when it's cured it becomes ham, consider the difference in flavor, color and texture. Also think of brisket, when it's cured it becomes corned beef. again consider the changes to flavor, color, and texture. The taste of the fresh meat is nowhere near the flavor of the cured product. Granted some of the flavor changes come from added spices, but the cure will also change flavors. Consider fresh Kielbasa vs cured Kielbasa......

BTW TenderQuick and Pink Cure are not directly interchangeable in measure, they are used in different quantities.

 

[smokerpa]

Like BaronVonOttomatic said think of a pork roast, when it's cured it becomes ham, consider the difference in flavor, color and texture. Also think of brisket, when it's cured it becomes corned beef. again consider the changes to flavor, color, and texture. The taste of the fresh meat is nowhere near the flavor of the cured product. Granted some of the flavor changes come from added spices, but the cure will also change flavors. Consider fresh Kielbasa vs cured Kielbasa......

BTW TenderQuick and Pink Cure are not directly interchangeable in measure, they are used in different quantities.

I agree that they are different, I was just mentioning that I use both. I guess I always attributed the flavor when I make sausage, pastrami, bacon and other things, that the flavor was reflective of a seasoning mix, rather than the cure. I have never done a straight cure, as I am always adding seasoning.

Thanks for the clarification. I guess you learn something knew everyday. I might just have to try that out.

 

[MattG]

Ok guys I finally made a batch of sasuge. I mixed everything up Friday and put it in the casing today and grilled it. A few things that I learned.

1. Sausage making is a lot more work than the first thought.

2. It's easy to overgrind your meat.

3. I LOVE the natural casing! There's nothing like that Snap!

4. Putting the casting over the grinder to start stuffing Sucks!

5. I should have added more fat.

6. The simple blend of spices I put in were the bomb.

7. I'm going to do this again but I'm going to add .5 lb more fat.

Here's some pics.





I took my apple corer and used it to blow out the casing to make it easier to put on the grinder.








http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu288/MattG902/image.jpg6_zpsyxo
mvdii.jpg

 

[cpw]

Looks good! Did you end up doing pork, beef, or a mixture?

 

[MattG]

I did a mixture. 5lbs beef and .5lb of Pork. I also put in a few slices of bacon.

 

[cpw]

I did a mixture. 5lbs beef and .5lb of Pork. I also put in a few slices of bacon.

Nice! I can't wait to give sausage making a try myself.

 

[Pitbull]

I did a mixture. 5lbs beef and .5lb of Pork. I also put in a few slices of bacon.

Looks good! Takes a little practice, but it gets easier and faster. For the pork, did you use pork butt? That's the best for fat content. They also make a Fat Replacer, but ive never liked it very much. If you can find a butcher get you a big fatback for the extra fat.