I make Italian (mild & hot) breakfast sausage, rabbit, chicken & pork sausage & many other fresh meat styles. Put the casings on the extruder tube. Like always the care of all meat is vital. Milder? For a leaner sausage with an 80/20 ratio, use 2 pounds of venison, and 1/2 pound of pork fat. I typically use the smallest diameter possible on my ground meat. Getting the perfect stuff is actually a little easier if you have less, you can always twist the links and make them tighter. This will keep the whole pile of meat as cold as possible. It is confined to fresh sausages – ie not smoked or cured. Don’t take chances – CHILL IT DOWN BETWEEN STEPS! For more exotic sausages, such as venison or other game meat, you may need to add fat into the mix. Next let the meat extrude into the casing, twisting the casing every six inches or so to mark each of the links location. 12 pounds of combined pork meat and pork fat (I do a 75% meat and 25% fat blend. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. I prefer making fresh sausage as I get immediate feedback on what I’ve done. Lamb, hog, cow, synthetic and plastic options are all available. I have spent over 30 years in the meat and food industry, predominantly as an independent butcher, having owned my own shop for 10 years until a medical condition forced me to retire from the business. discussion from the Chowhound Home Cooking, Pork food community. If you don’t have a butcher or 20% ground meat, then you can just purchase some kind of pork joints that have fat with them and then trim them when you get home. Sausages can sometimes get a bad rap as being unhealthy due to the amount of fat content, or low quality meat used. Therefore the shoulder of these animals would not likely produce the correct fat to lean ratio for making sausages. The fat on wild animals is totally edible if not prevalent. If I don’t want to eat it, I do not want it in my sausage. If you like more flavor and don’t mind a bit of fat, you may want to increase the ratio until you think it is just right. ( Log Out /  Want to make it healthy? I can get just regular pork fat but not fatback. Will that be a problem? I like to premake a large … You really should chill the meat back down after every 20-30 mins of it being out of refrigeration. Fat has several vital roles when it comes to sausages. Check out our article here: Why Rusk Makes Better Homemade Sausages. So for a batch of 5lb sausage you would want 4lbs of lean meat and 1lb of mostly fat. ground venison • 2 lbs. If you don’t yet have a meat grinder, you can ask the butcher to grind the meat for you at the same time. In... How To Prevent Dry & Tough Pork Chops With Perfect Result Every Time! Some recipes recommend adding the seasoning before the grinding, some recommend it afterword. Featured Image of Collar Bacon By - Neil Powell Butchers (UK) If you wish to make a leaner sausage that’s fine, however,  I wouldn’t recommend going below a 15% fat content. Why? The Casing – Manny options exist for the sausage casing. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. How to Stick to Healthy Eating Resolutions in 2021 … Nothing is more frustrating than a grinder that cannot keep up, clogs, over heats or is just a cheap POS in the first place. If they make their own sausage links, they may be willing to sell you the casings you need as well. Eat the fresh sausage within a week, or freeze patties in between sheets of parchment paper. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Pork … Have you tried using Rusk in your homemade sausages? Make it your own. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. If the shoulder looks too lean (for example if too much fat has been trimmed), just add some pork back fat or pork … By no means is this article an exhaustive “how too” guide for making sausages. But crumbly is not a desired texture with sausages. You want to use pork butt. It's also handy because you need to keep the meat as cold as possible in I get this from a friend at Snake River Farms, Chef Alan Turner, and I have never been let down. You want the casing to be full but not as tight as it will get. The best sausages are about 30% fat by weight, I don’t care how fat a mule deer you harvest is it will never reach that ratio. Mix the Seasonings. Most times I add 10% by weight of pork fat when making a pork sausage. Basically if you try to stuff crap into a casing it will taste like crap. Hunters that kill their own food will often have a butcher process the carcass, and ask the butcher to add pork fat or beef trim to the sausages and burgers if the animal is a particularly lean one. So long as there is a healthy amount of visual fat in the meat you are using then you should be good to go. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. ( Log Out /  Your local butcher will be a valuable friend to have if you are in any way thinking of making sausages on a regular basis, or getting into a little home butchery. *Note: This is sausage has an 70/30 ratio of venison to pork fat. If possible grind the meat into a stainless steel bowl that is sitting on top of ice. As you can see from the article, it will be YOU that decides the answer to this question. No need to ruin a bunch of wild game meat by adding the fat from old dairy cow to it. This mixed meat sausage is often lovingly called “Owyhee bush meat.”. Any place with a decent butcher shop will sell you pork trim. Along with buying the freshest meat you can find, you need to make sure that you keep the meat chilled during the sausage making process. Nothing is worse than trying to stuff a casing that is not fully hydrated or rinsed – this one I know from experience. ( Log Out /  Ingredients • 4 lbs. This way I can make different flavors of sausage without having to clean my grinder. Speaking of grinders – if you are going to buy one make sure it is of high quality. Not only does it have a bad taste, but also you are potentially opening yourself up to making yourself ill. This last batch I made had a multitude of animals in it – antelope, caribou, bear, jackrabbit, elk, deer and wild boar. You DO NOT want this in your sausages! This will work just as well. As a note – external fat on an animal is used for insulation while internal fat is used as fuel. In instances like this, depending on personal preference and the recipe being used, pork or beef fat would be added to the mix to provide the correct fat ratio. Whatever the method just remember that direct high heat can cause the casing to split. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Remember, sausage making is a personal thing that you do for you. Depending on the type of flavor you want, pork adds the fat without overpowering the original meat, beef fat can have a stronger flavor that could compete with the original meat. It is the most reliably good casing and will work for most occasions. Without fat sausage is just not sausage. That would depend on how you want your sausage to cook up, how lean your game meat is, what type of game meat and type of pork you are using. Use a ratio for the salt when making sausages – figure 1/3 an ounce of salt per pound of meat. At this point, you have loose sausage that can be cooked as is or formed into small patties. I have never made a better investment for wild game meat. Butchers love to share their knowledge, and are more than happy to spend time explaining things to those who truly have an interest in what we do. As mentioned before, don’t over think it or worry too much. Nearly freezing is the best possible option. If you don’t have an independent butcher local to you (we are a dying breed unfortunately! Traditional Fresh Breakfast Sausage. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. What Gives Breakfast Sausage Its Flavor? Making sausage at home is not a complicated affair but it does require a little bit of an investment. Pork fat has more favorable qualities which is why it is more common. With the fat it is ok to have it be nearly frozen when you start. (This is why so much wild game is wrapped in bacon and cooked, by the way). Sausage that is over-stuffed will burst open when cooked letting out all the tasty juices. The Eat – Ditch the bun. Take the rinsed casing and get it onto the extruder tube (either on the grinder or on the sausage stuffer). Game animals usually offer a very rich and lean meat. Wild game is naturally very lean, making sausage with wild game requires a person to supplement with pork or beef fat. However, in the meantime there are a couple of things you can do to make sure you are in the right area with your quantities. So you really enjoy having cooked pork chops for dinner but shy away from making them because they always seem to turn out dry and tough. The fat content can be adjusted by about 10% either way, however all sausages need a minimum of 15% fat to stop them being dry and bland after cooking. Sausages cooked with venison or red meated birds (goose, duck) need to be cooked to about 150 degrees. The ground pork used for sausage can come from a variety of cuts of pork including the shoulder butt and the loin. I use so many different animals in my sausage in order to fully utilize the few pounds of trim off each critter. The good news is that making sausages is not an exact science, and so ballpark ratios are fine. Since fat is lacking in the wild kingdom it is imperative to add it back in during the cooking process. Be quick and if you have to stop keep the meat in the refrigerator. As with most things sausages are a process. This will take a little trial and error to figure out. But some cite it as having a stronger flavor than the meat itself; often blaming the fat for the “gamey-ness” in the meat. You should also add more pork fat making sausage. Many butchers will grind the pork butts as they come without, the need to add any extra fat or lean to the mix, and the results are usually a very tasty sausage. Once you have your 2 piles, grind them together and you will have your 20/80 mix ready to go. ground pork shoulder • 3 Tbsp salt • 1 Tbsp ground black pepper • 1 Tbsp dried sage • 2 tsp nutmeg • 2 tsp … Sausage may be … This ratio will ensure the sausages have flavor, and will stay moist during cooking. Over time, you will get an eye for what looks to be about the right mix, and won’t think twice about it. I often use internal fat for sausage, like the fat around a deer’s kidneys, because it melts better in sausage. Whilst there are certainly some mass produced, lower quality sausages available in the supermarkets, you’ll find it’s a different story with the ones produced by independent butchers, or your own homemade sausages. The best sausages are about 30% fat by weight, I don’t care how fat a mule deer you harvest is it will never reach that ratio. The mixing and mashing of the ground meat activates the protein myosin, making the meat sticky. Great cooked in crumbles for biscuits and gravy, or in patties for breakfast sandwiches or eggs benedict. If the meat warms up to much in the Primary Bind stage the fat can melt causing it to lose its structure. Regular old beef fat can work but just make sure the quality is high. Yourmeatguide.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com / .co.uk, Privacy Policyeval(ez_write_tag([[250,250],'yourmeatguide_com-large-leaderboard-1','ezslot_6',123,'0','0']));report this ad. Taste the fat before you use it. If you overdo it with the fat, your sausages will end up being too greasy and will have an unpallatable texture. This will allow built up air in the device to escape and the casing will not have an air pocket. Remember a temperature is more important than a time. If you were making beef sausages, then the chuck would be a good starting point. This saves me a lot of time and I can accomplish more sausage making at one time. This was a bit arduous as the natural casings have variations … Read the pork belly for sausage making? The reason is that no wild animal (except maybe a fall bear) have any substantial amounts of intramuscular fat. After that ratio the rest is up to you or the recipe you are working with. The Meat –Sausages, especially mine, tend to be a mixture of things. Adding moisture during the cooking process to keep your sausages succulent and juicy, Adding flavor. Repeat until you have all your meat in a tube. If you are going to attempt smoked or cured sausage types (and they are awesome) consult a trusted book or website first. I typically split the difference and add the salt before the grind and the rest of the seasonings – herbs, garlic, wine ect – after the grind. Next allow the meat to extrude into the casing. The rendering process … These cookies do not store any personal information. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. I suffered through this for a few seasons and finally broke down and bought a $300 meat grinder. Since fat is lacking in the wild kingdom it is imperative to add it back in during … If there isn’t a butchery dept, check the meat cabinet for whole pork butts or ground pork or beef with approx 20% fat content. This can also cause a drying out of sausages. Personally, I would start at about 20% Fat to 80% Lean and if you wish to alter the content one way or the other, just adjust by 5% until you reach the ratio that fits your taste. Beef fat has a higher melting point temperature and a stronger flavor. Pork fat is preferred for making sausages as it is hard, white and tastes the best. If you are looking to have a go at making your own sausages, go to your local independent butcher and tell them that you are making your own sausages and would like a 20/80 mix of the type of meat you want to use. So to begin with I suggest you return the meat to the refrigerator after each of these steps: It may seem a bit time consuming, but it only takes 20 minutes for dangerous bacteria to start multiplying once the meat begins to warm up. If you are lacking anyone of these things, especially time, do not attempt to make the sausages. Change ). Thus the lower melting point of internal fat. Simply add or subtract the amounts of the seasonings you like best. Take the total weight of meat you need for your batch of sausage and then separate the lean from the fat. The Fat – Fat is VITAL to making a good sausage. The last note I want to make with regards to the meat you are using for your sausages is Freshness. Remember that bear meat causes 90% of the trichinosis cases in the country, simply because it is not cooked enough. Sub out ground turkey for pork to lean it up a little bit. Just enjoy the process of finding out, and enjoy the sausages made your way for years to come. Join the discussion today. Not wanting to be completely out of the trade, I have created this blog and Youtube channel to help teach others all about meat, cooking and simple butchering techniques that can be done in the home kitchen environment. When done correctly bear fat is white gold. Next is pork fat. It exhibits different degrees of hardness depending from which animal part it comes from. Try this one … I buy this for next to nothing from my local grocery store. That stickiness is what gives you the good sausage texture. ( Log Out /  I hope that you will get value from the information provided and I thank you for taking the time to visit. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Collar bacon is not as popular as the more commonly available gammon cut, but that may because people are not sure what it is. But never do I add the sinew, connective tissue or other trash. Pork can be almost all fat … I am making sausages for sausage stuffing. Internal fat will have a bit more subtle flavor and will more readily melt than external fat. Collar Bacon - A Tasty Alternative to Gammon Ham. Pork Shoulder naturally has an 80 / 20 ratio of meat to fat. That said I shoot inland bears not the crustacean and rotten salmon eating bears on the coast. You can control your own ratio but, sausage has to be mixed with sufficient amount of fat … The other fat for me is from Kobe beef. The Cook – Everyone cooks sausages differently. The Temperature – Keeping it simple – the meat needs to be as cold as possible. This lets me make more sausage and not have to constantly add more casing to the extruder. Mixing bowls, a grinder, a stuffer, a scale, a good sharp knife and a little bit of time are the major necessities. Spicier? If you’re health concious, you will probably start to decrease the fat content until you reach a level that is too lean, at which point the previous batch to that is your ratio. The goal is to transform overlooked meat into a special occasion. Leave a portion of the casing off the end of the tube; tie this in a knot, then poke a small hole on the machine side of the knot. Homemade breakfast sausage made with ground pork and seasonings. If you try to make “lean” sausages, you will likely be very disappointed with the results as the final cooked product will be dry and crumbly with very little taste. Back fat, jowl fat, or butt fat … I use the edible trim, sometimes the shanks, the neck meat, and the odd cuts that don’t make good roasts or steaks. After a while pork fat can start to discolor and turn rancid. Second tip: The best cut of meat for sausage is pork shoulder. I am making the breakfast sausages from Better than Store Bought by Helen … If you are new to making sausages, then you may feel a little intimidated as to whether you have got the right ratio of fat to lean for your sausages. Sausage is seasoned ground pork that is often enclosed in a casing. Fat is what keeps a sausage juicy and enjoyable. Remember to keep the meat cold! Also, while supermarkets may use lower quality cuts for ground meat, … Then I transform those odd bits into something greater – a sausage. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Each year I delve into the bottom of my freezer. Sausage that is not full enough will be limp and lack that crisp bite. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! I like to get multiple casings onto the extruder at one time. Read the instructions and follow them. They like doing it, you will make a good butchers day by chatting him up about this sort of thing. My preferred, and least common, fat is fall bear fat. Get the knife and fork and eat sausage like a steak. Tie off the end of the casing. If you are not health conscious and don’t mind a little extra fat and flavor then by all means up the fat ratio slightly. I like to thaw my meat until I can just cut it with a sharp knife, then I grind it. Follow the GIGO principle with sausage – garbage in, garbage out. This will be an awkward moment in life, just an FYI. The fat within the animal is where most of the flavor lies, Binding the seasonings and ingredients together. Fatback is a solid slab of fat from the back of a pig, whereas lard is pork fat that has been rendered—that is, slowly melted and strained—before being allowed to cool and solidify again. They range from the common bratwurst to a Moroccan spiced Merguez sausage with ample chorizo, breakfast and Italian varieties included. Without exception, if we are talking about pork sausages, then the pork butt (shoulder) is about as close to the 20/80 ratio that you can get. I also freeze my grinder attachments. Beef fat can be used for making pork or venison sausage. The … A general ratio of fat to lean in sausages is about 25% fat to 75% lean. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. ), there may be a butchery dept in your local supermarket that you could use. Kobe and whitetail sausages are just about the best darn thing on the planet in my mind. The Bind – As tacos will tell us ground meat is inherently crumbly. link to Collar Bacon - A Tasty Alternative to Gammon Ham. I find the odd bits, the cast always, the oh-crap I forgot about that’s. The Seasoning – By far the most important seasoning ingredient in the sausage making process is salt. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The Grind – Grinding the meat is what starts the sausage process and is what can lead to an increase in temperature. Jones All Natural Fully Cooked Turkey Sausage. Ocassionally, if the pork was a bit on the lean side, the butcher may add a little pork belly or back fat into the mix. Divide into 2 piles so that you have 80% lean and 20% fat. Tastes great, but your breath will cause brain damage.). Equally, you can have too much of a good thing. Grinding meat for making sausages allows you to control the fat content and can also ensure that the meat is fresh. Some boil then grill, some brown then bake, some braise in beer. Homemade Sausage - The Best Fat to Lean Ratio for Great Flavor Sure, a meat mixer is a must if you're combining large batches of meat and seasonings. Especially in the beginning when you are not sure what you are doing and everything is taking longer than it will when you have a few sausage batches under your belt. Adding some of the fattier beef trim taken from the plate or brisket should bring the ratio up to where you want it. Sausages with bear, boar or white meated birds (turkey, chicken) need to be cooked to 160 degrees. To more fully utilize the life that was taken for food. Only one casing is really needed – the hog casing. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Should be very firm, … Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. This smaller grind gives the meat a smoother texture and will “take care” of most of the random hunks of sinew and tendon. The Stuff – This is more art than science. However, I wouldn’t recommend going above 35% or you may just find that the final product isn’t as nice as you hoped it would be. (For an especially mood killing technique use a blender and puree an onion in red wine and add it to the meat after it is ground. The way to avoid this texture issue is by forcefully mixing the ground meat together. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. So what is the right amount of fat to use in sausages? However, off flavors are more often caused by external factors with meat – temperature abuse, how long it took to die, the rut and external contaminants. If you are looking for a tiny bite of … We will now look deeper into how much of a difference the fat to lean ratio makes in a good sausage, and some tips you can try when making your own homemade sausage recipes. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. I have done my best to guide to to the basics of ratio used by many butchers and sausage makers, but ultimately it is your experimenting with what works for you, that will decide the final ratio you wish to use. This forceful mixing is called the Primary Bind and can be done by hand or in a mixer with a paddle attachment. Below I have laid out the constituent pieces of the sausage making puzzle. link to How To Prevent Dry & Tough Pork Chops With Perfect Result Every Time! You will never want store bought sausages again, I guarantee it! Experiment with your favorite spice mixture to use in the sausage. This also comes off the shoulder of the animal but may not have quite enough fat on its own. It is best to put the meat into the refrigerator after every process. Game meat is very usually very lean. In a given year I will use three types of fat in my sausages. (Remember bear HAS to be cooked to well done in order to be eaten). Make your sausages the way you like them and it can never be wrong. Place meats on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and freeze 1 1/2 hours.
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