Recent content by tastetester

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  1. tastetester

    Deer Sausage

    I'm pretty much in 100% agreement with the logic of everything you mention here. I think the evaporative cooling is the issue I want to look into as my times are running longer than the book time by a significant amount. And to a great degree it's the time I'm interested in as I don't have any...
  2. tastetester

    Deer Sausage

    This would be my question, too. It's been 5 or 6 years since I've made any sausage and my memory isn't so good anymore. I seem to have vague memories that it helped. I still have a few variables I need to get dialed in. My smoke generator moves quite a bit of air through the smoker and I...
  3. tastetester

    Deer Sausage

    I finished u a batch of deer sausage using the recipe from meatsand sausages. com. I used pre-ground venison and pork as the base and added a proportion of back fat that I ground through a 3/8" plate. Stuffed it into 31 mm hog casings and held it in the fridge overnight. Then smoked it with a...
  4. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Thanks disco. After another 24 hours in the fridge the flavors have melded nicely. I made a nice big sandwich out of that and some cheddar I smoked a couple o weeks ago for breakfast. Of champions. Haha. Michael
  5. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Thanks Adam. I like the way the muslin casings worked out. Thanks for scattering this table around the forum, Dave. I was referring to it last night when it was approaching my bedtime and stuck at 140. So I knew it should be safe per the general instance. That never keeps me from worrying...
  6. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Got the sausages smoked yesterday. Starting up Some smoke after they dried for an hour or so. Getting close to ready to pull They stalled out at 140 degrees internal in the 165 degree smoker. They were above 135 for about 2 hours and at 140 for about a half hour. Hope that is good. Chilled...
  7. tastetester

    Pastrami

    Had to have this for breakfast today. Is it too early to take a nap? Michael
  8. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Nice. Looks like they took the smoke very well, indeed. Thanks, Michael
  9. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Thanks guys. I'm afraid I run a pretty low budget operation, by necessity. But if I may ask, what don't you like about the Enterprise, besides the fact that it weighs 150 lbs empty and rusts at the speed of light? ha ha. It will probably have to do me for awhile. I would like to budget for...
  10. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Yes, cure #1. Here is the recipe. Ingredients: 1) 6 lbs coarse ground venison 2) 4 lbs course ground fatty pork butt/shoulder 3) 3/4 cup + 1 tblsp low fat cultured buttermilk (Cultured buttermilk will help give sausage its "tangy" flavor.) 4)...
  11. tastetester

    First Try at Vension Summer Sausage

    Since I've got the smoker running again, and at the same time have a bunch of ground venison in the freezer, I figured I needed to try my hand as summer sausage. I used about a 60/40 mix of venison and pork shoulder and a spice recipe I got from my sister. Ground the pork through some old...
  12. tastetester

    Pastrami

    Thanks for all the nice comments guys. It was definitely a successful return to the smoking arts, as far as I'm concerned. I remember when I could regularly get it after St Pattys for 99 cants. Damn computers have fine tuned inventory control too well. Ha ha. I looked the day before at a...
  13. tastetester

    Pastrami

    Thanks guys. It is very tasty. I got two of them into the fridge, but I seem intent on eating that last one until I pass out or something. And I hope it's not or something. Yes, Al, I like the points, too. And these I picked up for $1.99/lb, so it was good for an inexpensive, and tasty...
  14. tastetester

    Controller Questions for my Fridge Smoker

    Yes, I was worried that it could throw it off. Which is why I want to look into it right away. If it throws it off I can do a factory reset and at this point only lose one simple recipe. Ha ha. Thanks, Michael
  15. tastetester

    Controller Questions for my Fridge Smoker

    Thanks for the info, Alan. It seemed to start lowering the power well before the set and climbing up to it very slowly. On the other hand, the smoker was cold and later when it changed during a step and went up 25 degrees it seems to have climbed quickly because it did it while my back was...
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