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  1. rohfan2112

    "Ideal" type of collagen casings for Lancaster County sweet sticks?

    We're going to be making sweet sticks like the kind you'd get at any farmer's markets in Lancaster County, PA. I don't want to use natural casings because I want them to be authentic. I have LEM 21mm fresh collagen casings on hand but I'd rather use their smoked mahogany 21mm casings but I...
  2. rohfan2112

    Sausage feels "light" in weight?

    When I pick up my freshly made (but yet uncooked) kielbasa it kind of feels a little "light" in weight. The only thing I can think of is that my grinder is injecting too much air into the meat being that the throat is so small. It only "sucks in" one chunk of meat at a time which surrounds it...
  3. rohfan2112

    My DIY, very cheap, very ugly cold smoker!

    Total price was about $34. Trash can was $22 and all the ducting cost about $11. I already had the 3" flex hose for use with the pictured external smoke box. Build time: 47 minutes because we rushed it and it came out ugly! We will probably get cuts on our hands loading up meat because I...
  4. rohfan2112

    Butcher sausage...how do they do it?

    I was browsing in a new marketplace type store and saw some nice Italian sweet sausage. Pieces of meat and fat were clearly visible. On this forum we like to mix it well so the meat and fat binds and gets "fuzzy" looking so it doesn't "fat out". The store sausage just looked so much more...
  5. rohfan2112

    Adding onions and peppers to sausage mixture before stuffing

    There's a pork store nearby who carries onions and pepper sausage. It's basically a sweet sausage that contains pieces of onions and peppers. Has anyone tried doing this? How did you do it? How did it come out? I plan on making it this week.
  6. rohfan2112

    In praise of Mercer Culinary

    I recently bought a new knife that I've been using non-stop for three weeks and wanted to pass the info along. It's the Mercer Culinary Ultimate White 8-Inch Chef's Knife. This thing is sharp! If you're not used to very sharp knives, take care when handling this one. The only thing I do is give...
  7. rohfan2112

    Refreshing Pop's brine due to small liquid capacity

    So, I'm making smoked pork chops and have put a pork rib roast into Pop's Brine. The container I'm using only allows for about a little less than 1 gallon of brine to be used. There are about 7 ribs to the roast. Since the roast is only sitting in about 7/8 of a gallon of brine should I dump...
  8. rohfan2112

    Question about finishing Kielbasa

    So I ground up 5 lbs. of pork butt for Kielbasa and tonight I will stuff into casings. I don't have a way to reliably cook at 180F to bring the IT up to 155 for hot smoking so I'm considering options. I have a charcoal/propane grill with too many hot/cold spots to cook consistently even. And the...
  9. rohfan2112

    What the heck is bloom??

    And why do I need to do it??  :) I'll be smoking a kielbasa tomorrow and a lot of the recipes call for poaching it in a heated water bath after smoking and then letting it "bloom." What does that do, and what does it look like. What happens if I don't bloom it?
  10. rohfan2112

    Kielbasa--cold smoked or hot smoked?

    Kielbasa will be my first sausage recipe as I just got my grinder and the stuffer comes in a coupla days. I've read that it can be smoked either way, but is there a consensus? Is either way considered "traditional?" Is cure always used? Thanks for your help, gang.
  11. rohfan2112

    Noob needs guidance sharpening knives

    I recently bought a Smith's Tri-Hone sharpener, which is 3 stones--coarse, medium and fine. Using them, I was able to sharpen a dull knife with the tri-hone and I figured a higher grit and a strop would make my knife even sharper. I was wrong, and now I'm in the process of trying to figure out...
  12. rohfan2112

    Kitchener #12 vs. LEM #8. Which one? Help... I'm researched-out!

    Been doing exhaustive research on grinders and narrowed it down to these two. They are both in my price range and I'll only be using it for about 5 lbs at a time. So, if you're on a deserted island with a limitless supply of pork butt for sausage and chuck roasts for hamburger and had to choose...
  13. rohfan2112

    Ordering an STX Internatioal STX-300-TF grinder. Any opinions?

    Before I submit my order I just wanted to see if anyone had any experience with this grinder. It has great reviews on Amazon and the company regularly responds to its customers in the review section which I like. They seem very connected to their customer base. Here are the specs: Features a...
  14. rohfan2112

    Butchered (and not in a good way) belly from supermarket. What to do with it?

    Picked up about a 4lb. belly from a supermarket. I was in a hurry and didn't inspect their "butchering" until I got home (my bad) so, well, after they removed the skin and ribs there's not much left of the thing. They must have trimmed the fat and discarded it and took off way too much fat when...
  15. rohfan2112

    Pastrami. Be More Moister! Q View.

    Been tinkering with pastrami via the corned beef from the supermarket method. I coat the corned beef liberally with pepper and coriander, and other spices, wrap it in plastic wrap and let it sit overnight in the fridge. Next day I take it out and cold smoke it for 2 hours and then finish it in...
  16. rohfan2112

    LEM 575 Watt #8 Grinder. Jump on it?

    I don't have experience with grinders but this one gets good reviews on Amazon: Right now the price is at $69.99 down from 99.99 and I have an Amazon credit for $30 bringing the cost of the grinder down to $40. Should I jump on it before the price goes up? The few negative reviews stated that...
  17. rohfan2112

    Knife I want. Good? No good?

    Been jonesing for a slicer for some time to cut my bacon and pastrami, etc., and I like this one by Forshner: I don't want to spend tons of cash so this looks like a decent option for me. Anybody using this knife? Would like to hear opinions since I don't have much experience. Also...are the...
  18. rohfan2112

    Preferred methodology of smoking CB

    Got a pork loin in the wet cure to smoke this weekend for Canadian bacon. I've read about different methods for smoking but what is the general consensus here? Should it be cold smoked only, or cold smoked then hot smoked, hot smoked only? I was intending to do the cold then hot method to bring...
  19. rohfan2112

    Need speedy feedback on this slicer...have to order tonight. UPDATED.

    I'm ready to pull the trigger. My Amazon Prime runs out in a few hours and I'd like to order this to get the free 2-day shipping. Does anyone have this slicer and do you like it? The construction is aluminum and stainless and has almost all positive reviews. I will be using this to cut my...
  20. rohfan2112

    Combining different pork cuts in one brine?

    I plan to use Pop's brine recipe for my next batch of bacon. I'd also like to try some CB and I'm wondering if I can put the pork loin in the the belly or is that a no-no? Or should I just use two different containers?
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