2nd try at sticks, first try not so good

[novadoc]

When you probe your sticks where do you put it?

I am going to try and smoke some sticks on Saturday, this will be my second attempt. First time was not so good.

Do you use a water pan? Do you ice bath them when they are finished?

My first attempt resulted in pasty meat (overground) And dried out casings that could be peeled right off the meat.
Got any tips? Maybe I'm doing something wrong.

I am going to stuff some 19mm casings tomorrow for smoking on Saturday. I just want to make sure they turn out ok this time.

I see a lot of people who say they dry the casings for an hour before they smoke. Am I supposed to wet the collagen casings before I stuff? It says not to on the package. Or are these people using natural casings?

Sorry for all the questions I just want to do it right this time

Thanks!

 

[jarhead]

Do you use a water pan? NO

Do you ice bath them when they are finished? YES

My first attempt resulted in pasty meat (overground) And dried out casings that could be peeled right off the meat.
Got any tips?

I grind with a 1/4" plate one time. I put the body, auger, knife and plate in ice water or in the freezer. Keep EVERYTHING as cold as possible. I think you may have melted your fat while grinding.

Sounds like you were too hot and/or you went too quick on raising the heat. For sticks, I apply hickory smoke with the AMNTS for about 2 hours. Start your smoker temp at no more than 120. Bump 10 degrees every 30-45 minutes til you hit 170. Cook til 152 IT in the center of the stick.

I see a lot of people who say they dry the casings for an hour before they smoke. YES at room temp for 2 or 3 hours.

Am I supposed to wet the collagen casings before I stuff? It says not to on the package. NO, don't get the casings wet. Just stick em on the horn.

Or are these people using natural casings? You can use natural sheep if you wish. $50 per hank does not fit in my budget.

 

[bmudd14474]

Based on what you said it sounds like you cooked them too hot and rendered out the fat. Take the advise of Jarhead on cooking temps.

 

[coffee_junkie]

Do you use a water pan? NO

Do you ice bath them when they are finished? YES

My first attempt resulted in pasty meat (overground) And dried out casings that could be peeled right off the meat.
Got any tips?

I grind with a 1/4" plate one time. I put the body, auger, knife and plate in ice water or in the freezer. Keep EVERYTHING as cold as possible. I think you may have melted your fat while grinding.

Sounds like you were too hot and/or you went too quick on raising the heat. For sticks, I apply hickory smoke with the AMNTS for about 2 hours. Start your smoker temp at no more than 120. Bump 10 degrees every 30-45 minutes til you hit 170. Cook til 152 IT in the center of the stick.

I see a lot of people who say they dry the casings for an hour before they smoke. YES at room temp for 2 or 3 hours.

Am I supposed to wet the collagen casings before I stuff? It says not to on the package. NO, don't get the casings wet. Just stick em on the horn.

Or are these people using natural casings? You can use natural sheep if you wish. $50 per hank does not fit in my budget.

Everything Jarhead said except:

I always use water when smoking sausage, collagen or natural casings.

I grind through the course plate, mix in my seasonings, then through the fine plate. Before the first grind make sure your meat is almost frozen, not rock hard but quite icy... Keep everything as cold as possible just like JH said. Before my second grind I place the mixture in the freezer for about an hour, until the top and bottom have a crust of ice. It makes the grind go so much better. Your fingers should be completely frozen by the time your are done with each step.

 

[novadoc]

Thanks for the help!

I already have the meat mixed with cure and seasoning sitting in the fridge.
So before I stuff I should put my meat in the freezer? To make it extra firm?

Sorry for acting like a new guy. ribs, butts, fish, jerky I can work with but sticks were a big let down last time lol.

I'll keep trying till I get them right

 

[jarhead]

So before I stuff I should put my meat in the freezer? To make it extra firm?  Not if it's ground

You'll never get it to go through the stuffing tube. Just keep it cold.

Sometimes I have to add ice water to the mix to get it through the tube, if it's too dry.

 

[novadoc]

Well I figured out my grinder/stuffer is the problem.

I am unable to pick up a new stuffer till next week so what options do I have for this meat?

 

[jarhead]

Well I figured out my grinder/stuffer is the problem.
I am unable to pick up a new stuffer till next week so what options do I have for this meat?

Bag it up and press it thin so it will freeze quickly.

I don't like doing it that way, with the cure on it, but you don't have much choice, if you wanna save it.

If you were closer, I'd say come get mine.

I never thought about you stuffing with your grinder. It will work, but you would need a kidney plate and no knife installed.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[novadoc]

I tried stuffing with no plate at all but the 19mm tube creates too much back pressure that the feed screw keeps working the meat into mush

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[jarhead]

I don't know if a wetter mix would help or not.

I've never done sticks (or stuffed anything) on a grinder before. They always went on the Jerky Blaster, til I gave it to my grandkids.

The 19s won't fit on my stuffer horn, so I have to go with a 22mm, I think.

I'm just about ready to break down and get the Dakota Water Stuffer.

 

[novadoc]

Will 19s fit on a jerky blaster?

I can probably go pick one of those up at Wally world

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[novadoc]

Answered my own question

Thanks for the help, I am probably going to smoke them tomorrow after my batch of moose jerky.

I will post back with my results

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[jarhead]

Looks good. Now let's see em smoked.

 

[novadoc]

In the smoker now pics to come soon

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[novadoc]

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[novadoc]

How long do you ice bath your sticks for once they cone out of the smoker, also, once they have the ice bath, do they air dry? Or just dry them off with paper towel?

Thanks!

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[DanMcG]

if you ice them let them get down to about 100°f (38°c) then hang them at room temp to dry and bloom.
Oh and nice smoker!

 

[novadoc]

Well here are the results

It looks like I had a little fat rendering on a couple of the sticks, I will cut these up into small pieces for dog treats.

I used the pre-made peppered stick seasoning from sausage maker, flavour is good but I think resting in the fridge for a few days.

It seems the casings peel off very easy so we will see what happens in the next 24 hours

 

[novadoc]

Still had problems with the casings separating from the meat

Any suggestions on why this happened?

I am thinking the fat content of my mix was too high, could this have caused it to happen?

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[jarhead]

Were they dry when you put them in? I let mine air dry at room temp 3-4 hours. You can put a box fan on them to speed up the process.

I am still thinking a temp issue to start.

If you know the fat content, you can adjust it on the next batch.

Are you using a binder of any kind? That will help maintain moisture and prevent the shrinkage.

Sometimes I use Soy Protein, Non-Fat Dry Milk (ground to a powder) or Binder #86 from Butcher and Packer. Especially on Summer Sausage.