Does store-bought sausage take to smoking? plus more questions...

[tender loins]

Sorry, I tried searching but found very little.

I am doing ribs, flank steak, a few split chicken breasts, etc, this weekend but didn't decide how to do everything. The flank steak (and I also bought skirt steak too) I assume I grill instead of smoke?

I also have to get a plan together to do mixed things... do I start the ribs & chicken at a median temp, or try to do the ribs at 225 3-2-1 style and then bump up the temp for the chix part way thru? The items can be ready at different times & eaten later.

Back to the sausage. I bought a few different gourmet types, like Southwest chicken w/jalapeno & cheddar, Italian w/peppers, onions & wine, etc.

Can I smoke these or won't they make much difference since they are links with casings? Do I perforate the casings? Use a pan? Don't bother & just grill them? with a smoke packet? Any additional precautions because being chicken based?

Thanks for any help.

 

[pineywoods]

I would do the flank steak on the grill personally and I would put the ribs in on the upper grates and if spares that would be 3-2-1 or baby backs at 2-2-1 whichever I would put the chickens on below them about the time I went into foil with the ribs then I would finish the chicken on the grill to get the skin crisp especially since you'll be doing the steak on it. The sausage will take in smoke just fine.

 

[DanMcG]

The sausage will take on smoke like piney said, but they sound like fresh sausage so watch your time in the danger zone of 40°-140° and enjoy!

 

[tender loins]

Thanks. YES, the sausage is fresh sausage, I have no idea how long they would take to cook either. The smoker is at 225, I took it up to 235 to see more smoke but brought it back down again. I didn't put the sausage in yet, is there a certain amount of time they will need?

I started the ribs on the 2nd rack at 12:30pm, hoping for late supper about 7pm.

I put 3 big chicken breasts on the bottom rack at around 1:30pm, some will be hungry around 4-5pm and won't want to wait for the ribs, hope they get done by then. The chix, I used mostly just soy sauce, heirloom garlic powder, and pepper. I rubbed on some Montreal Chicken just before putting them in.

I used the ziploc freezer bags that you use the little vacuum pump to suck all the air out, they have been in this since last night after using a 48-blade jacardi type tenderizer tool.

I found a bunch of peppers I did last year that are starting to soften up (just a little less than leathery) so put them back in on the top rack to dry crispy again.

Does all this sound ok? How long for fresh sausage & the chicken?

Thanks.

 

[rivet]

Can't add a thing to Piney's advice!

^^^^^^^^^

 

[DanMcG]

You want to limit the time the meat is in a temperture range of 40°-140°F. (no more then 4 hours including the time it sat on the counter before you put it in cold storage and while you were waiting fot the smoker to heat up )
I like to give fresh sausage a hour or two of smoke then throw it on the gas grill to finish them off quick, and crisp up the casing some.

 

[bigsteve]

I smoke sausage from the grocery store all the time. Make sure they are raw, and in natural casings. I don't puncture mine, it dries them out. Keep an eye on the temperature, they cook quick even at 225*

 

[teacup13]

i agree...i smoke them all the time

beef sausage links

 

[tender loins]

OK, ironic that I FORGOT to take the sausage out of the fridge! I will have to do it tomorrow, or throw it in now and refridge it & finish on the grill with the flank & skirt steak tomorrow?

The ribs are still smoking, not very much pullback from the bone. This is going on 3-2-2 now, and it was just a single rack... 3 hours smoking, 2 hours foiled, 1.5 finish smoke (& counting.)

The chicken breast was GREAT, I let it stay in until maybe a half hour ago, removed it to foil, then just ate it a few minutes ago. It felt firm outside, but was really moist inside, perfectly clear juice when carving it, no pinkness or redness at the bones.

Looks like tomorrow will be lime-raspberry flank steak and gourmet sausages, maybe I'll save the skirt steak for fajitas during the week. For the price I paid for the skirt steak, I coulda had porterhouse for the same amount per pound up here.

I think I will go throw in a couple of the sausages for a couple hours. Thanks.

 

[tender loins]

Is that the temp I should use for fresh sausage, 225? And am I needing to look for a specific internal temp or no? I'll be pulling the ribs so they will be the only things in the smoker.

Thanks.

 

[bigsteve]

I smoke them at 225* by default. I've never smoked them at a higher temp. I figure going higher will cook it so fast it won't pick up much smoke.

I pull them at an internal of 160*. I recommend you doublecheck FDA guidelines for the meat contained in the sausage. IMHO, you do not want to cook them any lower than 160, because once the meat is ground up, E-coli and other yuckies get in just like ground beef.

YMMV

 

[tender loins]

I left them on for 2 hours, I didn't have my digital thermometer out. They were firm. I put them in a ziplock bag. Didn't eat them. Then after cooling down put them in fridge.

Can I just microwave them when I want to eat them? Or grill them? One variety had pork and the other had chicken.

 

[pineywoods]

As long as it reaches the proper temps you can finish it any way you'd like