Homemade Sausage

[TGTyson]

I just made my first batch of homade sausage (I used a recipe out of Bruce Aidells book) and am completely blown away by how easy it was to make and how good it is.

Are there and favorite recipes for great sausage out there? I used to think Neese's was it, but now my eyes have seen the light!

All I have to do now is just wait for the stuffer tubes and casings to get here so I can try some homeade links in my smoker.

- Tom Tyson, Richmond, VA

[woodburner]

Do tell.

Craft Sausages are a great food hobby of sorts. Were you able to grind your own meat mixture? I've been dabbling for a few years, with some very good success, but my goals are always shifting upwards, which is a good thing.

woodburner

Edited November 10, 2004 by woodburner (log)

[TGTyson]

Craft Sausages are a great food hobby of sorts. Were you able to grind your own meat mixture?  woodburner

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Yes, I finally used the grinder attachment on the Kitchenaid.

2 1/2 Lbs Pork Butt

1/2 Lb Salt pork

1/4 C coarsely chopped Parsley

1/4 C finely chopped Onion

1 Tbs Kosher Salt

2 tsp ground Sage

1 tsp Thyme

1 tsp dried Basil

1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes

1 tsp coarsely ground Black Pepper

1/2 tsp Worchestershire Powder

1 tsp ground Ginger

3/4 tsp Minced Garlic

1/4 C White Wine

Ground the meat with the 1/4" perf disk after chilling the meat >ALMOST< to to the point of freezing. Kneaded it all together after grinding and put it back in the refrigerator (after making one test patty, of course).

Good Stuff!

- Tom

[polack]

I've been making my own sausage for close to twenty years and let me tell you there is nothing that can compare to when you do it yourself. Matter of fact I'm in the final stages of building my much larger 2nd smoker. The first smoker I have can do about 30 to 40 rings and the new one should do well over 100 rings. I usually make about 100 rings, for Thanksgiving, of fresh and smoked kielbasi combined, with the smoke being about 80 of the 100 rings, so you can see that I needed a much larger smoker. What kind of smoker are you using? A good book on sausage making is Rytek Kutec's sausage making, it has numerous recipes and good pointers on how to make different types of sausage. I would have to say his book is probably one of the best, if not the best sausage book.

Polack

[woodburner]

Len Poli does some great craft sausages in my opinion.

My favorite is his Bauerwurst, which is a German Hot Dog.

No question that craft sausage is much better than most if not all store bought.

woodburner

[Wayne]

Congratulations on your first batch on homemade sausage.

I've been doing it for two years and really enjoy it. I did a fair amount of research

when I got started and settled on Bruce Aidell's Complete Book of Sausage.

I regularly make southern breakfast sausage, hot italian sausage and the New

Mexico roasted pepper sausage.

I've also had very good results with: sundried tomato, pine nut and lamb sausage

crayfish sausage

game sausage made with wild goose and porcini

My one major modification to Aidell's recipes is I use much more fresh herbs (per-

sonal taste and a productive garden).

My next big step will be to start smoking them.

[hwilson41]

I noted that two folks mentioned Aidell's sausage book. I haven't read it, but have been very disappointed by his commercial brands because they are so bland compared to what I'm used to. His Andouille in particular is pretty pitiful compared to the real thing. Are the recipes in the book better?

Another book you might want to look at is Susan Mahnke Perry & Charles G Reavis, Home Sausage Making. I found it quite helpful.

THW

[Wayne]

I haven't tried Aidell's commercial sausage so I can't comment on it.

With respect to his book on sausage making the recipes, as with any

other recipe, are starting points. I use them as guidelines for a partic-

ular style of sausage and adjust the level of flavor to my taste.

Since I started making my own I find most commercially available

sausage bland and oversalted.

I've read the Perry and Reavis book and it is usefull.

[MarkinHouston]

Bruce sold his name to the commercialized corporation that now produces the Aidells sausage you see in the grocery store. I have used his books for years, and I particularly like his Tuscan Sausage and Hunter's Sausage.

[Busboy]

Len Poli does some great craft sausages in my opinion.

"Craft sausages?" Sounds a little too earthy-crunchy for the links o' chaos that come out of our kitchen, but I'll keep the term in mind for next time I want to sound like a better cook than I really am.

Aidells books are pretty good but the truth is, after you have a batch or two under your belt, you can pretty much use his recipes as a shopping list and ad-lib quantities and additional ingredients to your heart's content.

I just made a big batch of lamb sausages flavored with cumin and coriander that had been roasted and ground, and a reasonable shot of cinnamon. I double ground it for a finer texture than usual. I can't find the lamb casings I need to make them look like the stuff I had in Greece, but they certainly have the Mediterranean taste I needed. I looked at Aidell's turkey (yuck) merguez recipe for hints, and added roasted pine nuts and sun-dried tomatoes to half the batch just for fun.

I also chopped up some fennel for some pork sausages, otherwise following the Italian Sausage recipe our family has settled upon. The next batch, I'll probably do that fall favorite, apple-sage sausage. I just kid of wing it.

For what it's worth, sausage making has become a major family activity at the Busboy household, with the kids -- 11 and 15 -- making their own, custom batches and bragging about whose is better over dinner.

PS, watch the salt if you're adding fatback and, you do know the trick of frying up a spoonful after you've mixed but before you stuff, don't you?

[ianeccleston]

This last summer I made some awesome Thai-spiced chicken sausages. I used all dark chicken meat, and brined it in fish sauce, red curry paste, sugar and a little lime for a couple days. I used the coarse setting on the meat grinder and folded in some chopped cilantro, and added lime juice and fish sauce to taste. The sausages came out juicy and tasty when par-boiled and then grilled.

[Cucina]

Okay - this is slightly off topic, but for those of you who don't have time to make homemade sausage but don't want to give up having any, my suggestion is

Duramus Family, Booth Alabama - they don't sell to any big distributors that I know of but my family has been ordering them for years. (My Dad remembered buying from them when he was a little boy and his father was stationed at a nearby air force base and happened to be going through about 15 years ago and rediscovered that they are still in business).

Second suggestion for those of you who are hunters is to find a game rendering place that will take your boar and turn it into sausage. My cousin does this and there's nothing that compares.

[phifly04]

Okay - this is slightly off topic, but for those of you who don't have time to make homemade sausage but don't want to give up having any, my suggestion is

Duramus Family, Booth Alabama - they don't sell to any big distributors that I know of but my family has been ordering them for years.  (My Dad remembered buying from them when he was a little boy and his father was stationed at a nearby air force base and happened to be going through about 15 years ago and rediscovered that they are still in business). 

Second suggestion for those of you who are hunters is to find a game rendering place that will take your boar and turn it into sausage.  My cousin does this and there's nothing that compares.

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Do they have a website??TIA

Dave s

[Cucina]

Okay - this is slightly off topic, but for those of you who don't have time to make homemade sausage but don't want to give up having any, my suggestion is

Duramus Family, Booth Alabama - they don't sell to any big distributors that I know of but my family has been ordering them for years.  (My Dad remembered buying from them when he was a little boy and his father was stationed at a nearby air force base and happened to be going through about 15 years ago and rediscovered that they are still in business). 

Second suggestion for those of you who are hunters is to find a game rendering place that will take your boar and turn it into sausage.  My cousin does this and there's nothing that compares.

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Do they have a website??TIA

Dave s

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Nope - they don't advertise. But you can call them at 334-365-8301 or write them at 1697 County Road 10, Booth, Alabama 36008 and they will send you a list of what they make. Prices are very reasonable.

[polack]

Like wayne said, recipes for sausage is a starting point, once you get the basic down you change it to meet your taste. The books you use to make sausage are used not only for starting points but for certain techniques, that's why I like Rytec Kutec' s book, it not only has recipes but will explain the in's and out's of making fresh, smoked, semi dry, and dry cured sausage and other products. When I made my first batch of smoked kiebasi, it was a starting point that told me I could make this like the recipe but for me it needs a change. Let me tell you the kielbasi I make now tastes nothing like the first batch. Matter of fact on Thursday I will start to make my fresh and smoked for the Holiday in my new smoker. Can't wait.

Polack