Any of you guys make your own sausage?

[FreeFlyNole]

I have wanted to make my own for a long time, my grandmother used to make a ton of it when I was a kid, and I always remembered it being so good, but I don't have any of her recipes, and it always seemed so labor intensive. Also, I always wanted to buy a KitchenAid stand mixer, but they just seemed so expensive. Last week I was at Costco and they had them for less than $300, so I went ahead and bought one.

I made about 7lbs (24 6' links) of Donald Link's simple pork sausage (chef at Cochon in NOLA). It wasn't that tough to do, and it is absolutely the best sausage I've ever eaten.

Tonight I'm going to make a traditional Argentinian beef and pork chorizo.

Tomorrow Donald Link's Boudin.

Any of you guys make it? if so any go to recipes?

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

Never have, but that looks really good.

Would be interesting to experiment with different ingredients (and know exactly what is going into the sausage you're eating)...

 

[SoProudNole]

You kidding?? Of course I do.......

 

[FSUTribe76]

Yeah I've got the Kitchenaid with the grinding and stuffing attachments so we make various sausages periodically. To make the really good salamis and other aged and/or smoked kinds you need a place to hang it. We don't usually make the fresh sausages as I'm not a hunter and it's just as cheap or cheaper and probably just as good truthfully to just buy the Publix or Fresh Market fresh sausages. What we tend to do more often than not is make other more freeform kinda of charcuterie like homemade blood pudding, liver mush, and head cheese. All sound gross by name but call them black sausage, Piedmont pate and pork terrine and suddenly everyone wants some.

I'll see if I can dig up some of my stuffed sausage Recipes.

 

[NDallasRuss]

Originally posted by FreeFlyNole:

24 6' links

That is a LOT of sausage.

 

[NDallasRuss]

I've thought about it, but haven't done it. I've got the kitchen aid mixer, so I'd just need the attachments. It seems like it would be a lot of fun to come up with different combinations of meats and spices - see what works, and what doesn't.

 

[Fijimn]

The trick for the Kitchenaid grinder is to put the dials into the freezer and have the bowl that catches the grind in a bowl of ice to keep the fat from melting.

We use the kitchen aid to make chicken or turkey breakfast sausage. Williams-Sonoma had a really good spice package for breakfast sausage with apples, which we adopted with minor modifications.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Originally posted by Fijimn:

The trick for the Kitchenaid grinder is to put the dials into the freezer and have the bowl that catches the grind in a bowl of ice to keep the fat from melting.

We use the kitchen aid to make chicken or turkey breakfast sausage. Williams-Sonoma had a really good spice package for breakfast sausage with apples, which we adopted with minor modifications.What do you mean "dials"?

I have the meat cold, from the fridge, then put it back to cool it down before putting it in the casing, you'd suggest freezing the meat?

 

[troyboyone]

Any of you willing to try Free's sausage? I'm gonna pass

 

[Fijimn]

Originally posted by FreeFlyNole:

Originally posted by Fijimn:

The trick for the Kitchenaid grinder is to put the dials into the freezer and have the bowl that catches the grind in a bowl of ice to keep the fat from melting.

We use the kitchen aid to make chicken or turkey breakfast sausage. Williams-Sonoma had a really good spice package for breakfast sausage with apples, which we adopted with minor modifications.

What do you mean "dials"?

I have the meat cold, from the fridge, then put it back to cool it down before putting it in the casing, you'd suggest freezing the meat?

The internal assembly for the grinder. For my kitchenaide is has two dials that I put in the freezer. I don't freeze the meat but keep it very cold and use the ice. I picked up the trick from watching American Test Kitchen or something like that because the friction when grinding meat can cause the fat to melt and you don't get it even. Especially if you are adding extra fat

 

[SoProudNole]

Truth be told, sausage is nasty gross. This is the only kind I eat now.

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Originally posted by Fijimn:

The internal assembly for the grinder. For my kitchenaide is has two dials that I put in the freezer. I don't freeze the meat but keep it very cold and use the ice. I picked up the trick from watching American Test Kitchen or something like that because the friction when grinding meat can cause the fat to melt and you don't get it even. Especially if you are adding extra fatAhhhh, thanks for the tip, I will do that.

 

[DefNotPanHandler2007]

Exclusive footage of Free and Tribe:

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Originally posted by DefNotPanHandler2007:
Exclusive footage of Free and Tribe:

That is hilarious. There is no way I'd wear gloves.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

 

[cmanole]

Made sausage once, in college, when I was drunk. I wasn't into it. I choked on one and threw up. It left a bad taste in my mouth. I've seen the blood sausage though and have always been intrigued by it...

 

[KitingHigh]

I make boudain on occasion. And yes, real Cajuns typically spell it with an "a".


by the way, if you can't find pork liver calf liver will work.
This post was edited on 3/24 10:15 AM by KitingHigh

 

[FSUTribe76]

Originally posted by cmanole:
Made sausage once, in college, when I was drunk. I wasn't into it. I choked on one and threw up. It left a bad taste in my mouth. I've seen the blood sausage though and have always been intrigued by it...

Here's the base recipe for the blood pudding my wife and I made on St Patty's Day. It's very easy and turned out great.

We did a few things differently than the recipe as it's tough to find pure pig fat in the US so we basically made it almost midway between an Irish white pudding (which usually uses pork meat not 100% fat) and the original recipe. What we used (and it turned out awesome) is the fattiest cuts of salt pork (the kind next to your ham hocks, pork jowls and other cheap products at Publix's meat fridge) then ran it through our food processor to get it minced very finely. Make sure you get the correct oatmeal (steel cut) as well. Other than using fatty salt pork and beef blood as it's easier to find at Asian markets than pigs blood and adding in some fresh ground mixed peppercorn and a tiny bit of ground cardamom and anise we actually followed the recipe. As a word of warning the recipe makes two huge loaves so you might want to cut it in half. Once you bake it, you cut off bread sized slices and then panfry it with a little butter just like you would livermush, souse or any other soft and loose breakfast sausage like Jimmy Dean's. Panfry it until it's crisp on the outside but still soft on the inside.




Base for black pudding

 

[jy2581]

Originally posted by Fijimn:

The trick for the Kitchenaid grinder is to put the dials into the freezer and have the bowl that catches the grind in a bowl of ice to keep the fat from melting.

Man, this was my constant issue when I'd try and use the grinder on my Kitchenaid. I tried putting everything in the freezer, but every damn time the fat would just build up near the plates and create a mess. I could never get a clean grind on anything. I got the grinder free when I bought the kitchenaid, and always wondered if it was used or something. Maybe dull blades or something? At any rate, I eventually just threw the grinder away I got so fed up with it.

 

[SoProudNole]

Originally posted by cmanole:
Made sausage once, in college, when I was drunk. I wasn't into it. I choked on one and threw up. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

Dude, is your name Erica Kinsman?

 

[FSUTribe76]

Originally posted by jy2581:

Originally posted by Fijimn:

The trick for the Kitchenaid grinder is to put the dials into the freezer and have the bowl that catches the grind in a bowl of ice to keep the fat from melting.

Man, this was my constant issue when I'd try and use the grinder on my Kitchenaid. I tried putting everything in the freezer, but every damn time the fat would just build up near the plates and create a mess. I could never get a clean grind on anything. I got the grinder free when I bought the kitchenaid, and always wondered if it was used or something. Maybe dull blades or something? At any rate, I eventually just threw the grinder away I got so fed up with it.

I'll have to try the freezer technique next time. It sounds like it might work better.

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Just made this gem last night. Flippin' amazing.... I used pork shoulder, fat back, beef ribs and a $30 bottle of Cab... I doubled the size, it made about 14 6 inch links.

Argentinian chorizo

Meats
US
beef
0.55 lb.
lean pork
1.10 lb.
pork back fat, bacon or fat trimmings
0.55 lb.
Ingredients per 1000g (1 kg) of meat
salt
3 tsp.
pepper
1½ tsp.
paprika or sweet pimentón
5 tsp.
garlic
2 cloves
red wine
½ cup
Instructions
Grind meat through large plate (1/2", 12 mm).
Smash garlic cloves and mix with a little amount of wine.
Mix meat, garlic, salt and all ingredients together.
Stuff into hog casings, 32-36 mm and form 6" (15 cm) links.
Keep in a refrigerator.
Cook before serving.

I'm going to be the sausage king of Satellite Beach.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

Originally posted by SoProudNole:

Originally posted by cmanole:
Made sausage once, in college, when I was drunk. I wasn't into it. I choked on one and threw up. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

Dude, is your name Erica Kinsman?

I was wondering if "made sausage" was some sort of euphemism.

NTTAWWT, of course.

 

[FreeFlyNole]

So, the key is COLD. I split the portions into different bowls, and kept it in a bowl on top of a bowl of ice, and kept the other portion in the freezer,

I ground it all, then put it all in the freezer for 30 minutes while the hog casing softened, not to the point it was frozen, but until it was firm to the touch and very cold.

It went through so much easier and quicker this time. To grind it took me less than five minutes, and to stuff the casings took less than 15 minutes.

This was about 1/3 of the time it took me with the simple pork sausages.

Cold is absolutely key.

It may have also been a bit easier because with the beef there was overall less fat, I'm sure that had some effect too.

Next up Boudin (no a because I'm not Cajun)

 

[Fijimn]

Make you some boudin -- but I suggest using chicken livers instead of pig liver.

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Originally posted by Fijimn:

Make you some boudin -- but I suggest using chicken livers instead of pig liver.

Thanks, I'll do some of both. I'm a big fan of innards of all types.

 

[Fijimn]

Originally posted by FreeFlyNole:

Originally posted by Fijimn:

Make you some boudin -- but I suggest using chicken livers instead of pig liver.

Thanks, I'll do some of both. I'm a big fan of innards of all types.

Gotcha. It's a matter of personal taste. I find that chicken livers have less of that iodine/metallic off-putting flavor. I believe that Donald Link's recipe uses chicken livers.

 

[FSUTribe76]

I cook beef heart all the time either tartar with egg and caper, in stew or quickly seared in an anticuchos style but I was just reading that Franklin BBQ puts a lot of heart in their sausage. So I might try a clone of that next time.

 

[cmanole]

How much sausage are you planning on eating dude?

 

[FreeFlyNole]

Originally posted by cmanole:
How much sausage are you planning on eating dude?

All of it. I'm vacuum sealing it and freezing it.