Made some good Deutschland-style sausages this past weekend.
One version is a fresh (non-smoked) Bockwurst, a recipe I’ve made several times before. It’s probably our family’s favorite as it tends to disappear within a week, no matter how large a batch I make.
This bockwurst batch will be five pounds. It starts with a combination of pork, pork fat & veal. This time, however, I’m using beef in place of veal (!)—which probably makes this sausage more of a ‘bratwurst’ (beef & pork) whereas bocks tend to be veal-based.
Meats & fat ground & ready to go:
For a more detailed (photos) look at the process, see my earlier bockwurst thread. It includes the recipe:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/126739/german-bockwurst-with-many-pix
I’m also making a smoked Summer Sausage, made of pork and beef.
Meats ground for the SS:
For the summer sausage, I’ll be adding a number of ingredients (kosher salt, mace, garlic powder, marjoram, mustard seed, dextrose, paprika, black pepper, plus CURE#1), including juniper berries and caraway seeds.
The juniper berries & caraway I want to grind first, before adding it to the meat.
Into the spice grinder:
Once the meat is well-mixed, it gets placed in to the stuffer. I’m using 12” fibrous casings for these sausages.
Into the smoker:
After 1 hour @ 130°, I begin to apply heavy smoke (apple wood).
While the summer sausage is in the smoker, I can now begin stuffing the bockwursts.
Using 32mm natural pork casings that have been soaking in warm water & a splash of vinegar.
Made one long rope & tied off lengths. No blow outs!
These links will now get poached (165°F) for about 30 minutes until the internal temp hits 152°F
On the cooling rack, post-poach:
We had some of these for a late lunch-early dinner. Mild, oniony flavor; firm texture, tender casings.
My boys love these sausages anytime (afternoon snack, late night, whenever).
Back to the Summer Sausage:
After nearly 5 hours in the smoker, I pulled the SS & put the chubs into the hot bath (165°F) until done (about 25 minutes).
Into a quick-cooling icebath ad then I hung them overnight in the fridge:
NEXT DAY: slicing & sample time.
This SS sliced beautifully; very uniform distribution of lean/fat & spices. Good exterior color, too. Mildly spiced, with definite hint of both caraway & juniper. Not as smokey as I anticipated, but after these ‘rest’ for a few days (& lose some more moisture), I do a ‘re-taste’ and see how the flavors continue to develop.
Kevin
One version is a fresh (non-smoked) Bockwurst, a recipe I’ve made several times before. It’s probably our family’s favorite as it tends to disappear within a week, no matter how large a batch I make.
This bockwurst batch will be five pounds. It starts with a combination of pork, pork fat & veal. This time, however, I’m using beef in place of veal (!)—which probably makes this sausage more of a ‘bratwurst’ (beef & pork) whereas bocks tend to be veal-based.
Meats & fat ground & ready to go:
For a more detailed (photos) look at the process, see my earlier bockwurst thread. It includes the recipe:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/126739/german-bockwurst-with-many-pix
I’m also making a smoked Summer Sausage, made of pork and beef.
Meats ground for the SS:
For the summer sausage, I’ll be adding a number of ingredients (kosher salt, mace, garlic powder, marjoram, mustard seed, dextrose, paprika, black pepper, plus CURE#1), including juniper berries and caraway seeds.
The juniper berries & caraway I want to grind first, before adding it to the meat.
Into the spice grinder:
Once the meat is well-mixed, it gets placed in to the stuffer. I’m using 12” fibrous casings for these sausages.
Into the smoker:
After 1 hour @ 130°, I begin to apply heavy smoke (apple wood).
While the summer sausage is in the smoker, I can now begin stuffing the bockwursts.
Using 32mm natural pork casings that have been soaking in warm water & a splash of vinegar.
Made one long rope & tied off lengths. No blow outs!
These links will now get poached (165°F) for about 30 minutes until the internal temp hits 152°F
On the cooling rack, post-poach:
We had some of these for a late lunch-early dinner. Mild, oniony flavor; firm texture, tender casings.
My boys love these sausages anytime (afternoon snack, late night, whenever).
Back to the Summer Sausage:
After nearly 5 hours in the smoker, I pulled the SS & put the chubs into the hot bath (165°F) until done (about 25 minutes).
Into a quick-cooling icebath ad then I hung them overnight in the fridge:
NEXT DAY: slicing & sample time.
This SS sliced beautifully; very uniform distribution of lean/fat & spices. Good exterior color, too. Mildly spiced, with definite hint of both caraway & juniper. Not as smokey as I anticipated, but after these ‘rest’ for a few days (& lose some more moisture), I do a ‘re-taste’ and see how the flavors continue to develop.
Kevin
Last edited:
