Frying sausage?

[cjordan]

So technically it's sitting in melted ice, but when I drain it there might be 1-2 gallons of water that comes out if that
It's usually a 120qt cooler with 50-100lbs of meat the rest is completely full of ice

 

[chopsaw]

I do the same with Deer meat .

 

[daveomak]

I've "soaked" freshly butchered chickens, rabbits, grouse, ducks, geese, hearts, livers etc. in cold salt water... the salt reduces the chance of bacterial growth...

To remove all blood, this article on Koshering Meat is cool...

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/82678/jewish/Koshering-Meat.htm

 

[Smokehowze]

Been running into some issues when frying... pan pork sausage, and could use yalls input/help on how to correct it.

It seems to take a while to cook and at times they come out "mushy" if that makes any sense?

.

Is this a one off with this particular hog batch or more a general issue? In reading your post you indicated "at times". I was wondering if something like this is happening in your grinding

http://www.alliedkenco.com/mushymeat.aspx

Also, regarding stuffing bulk bags. I developed a cheap and simple solution my son and I have been using for years. Also works pretty fast and easy. Often better than getting out the crank stuffer and having the pain of cleaning it. I made several of the outer tubes so they could be loaded like magazines and then production stuffed. Stand the tube vertical in the meat lug. Pack with meat to about 1 inch below the top. Tamp gently with plunger to pack. Insert bag onto outer tube hold with hand and insert plunger and push. Can be done by one person by standing it vertical with end of plunger on counter and outer tube and bag at the top but two people is way easier and quicker. After a few times you know exactly how much to put in the tube. I do not glue the cap onto the plunger tube. Makes it all easier to wash up.

Outer Tube: 2 inch Schedule 40 PVC 15 inches long (this is good length for fully stuffing 1 lb bags)
Plunger Tube: 1.5 in thin wall PVC 16.5 inches long
Plunger Cap: Cap for 1.5 inch pipe

Looks like this:

 

[cjordan]

Is this a one off with this particular hog batch or more a general issue? In reading your post you indicated "at times". I was wondering if something like this is happening in your grinding

http://www.alliedkenco.com/mushymeat.aspx

Also, regarding stuffing bulk bags. I developed a cheap and simple solution my son and I have been using for years. Also works pretty fast and easy. Often better than getting out the crank stuffer and having the pain of cleaning it. I made several of the outer tubes so they could be loaded like magazines and then production stuffed. Stand the tube vertical in the meat lug. Pack with meat to about 1 inch below the top. Tamp gently with plunger to pack. Insert bag onto outer tube hold with hand and insert plunger and push. Can be done by one person by standing it vertical with end of plunger on counter and outer tube and bag at the top but two people is way easier and quicker. After a few times you know exactly how much to put in the tube. I do not glue the cap onto the plunger tube. Makes it all easier to wash up.

Outer Tube: 2 inch Schedule 40 PVC 15 inches long (this is good length for fully stuffing 1 lb bags)
Plunger Tube: 1.5 in thin wall PVC 16.5 inches long
Plunger Cap: Cap for 1.5 inch pipe

Looks like this:

View attachment 343358 View attachment 343359 View attachment 343360

Hum... after reading that article, now I need to check my grinder out. This grinder is at least 20 years old... probably older, so I'm sure there's worn parts.

Also, I do like your idea with the pvc. I've got something similar for filling 8" vacuum seal bags, so I can keep the sides from getting wet while filling. I believe it's a piece of 4" that I stick down in the bag, fill with meat, then slide the pipe out allowing the meat to fall out of the bottom.

As far as one certain hog. No sir, I think last year we butcherd four or five one time then two or three another so it wouldn't have been the meat from a certain hog, because it seems like just about every bag I've cooked has been this way.

Part of me thinks I might have had too much fat in the mixture, I know this is something none of you can help trouble shoot since your not here to visually inspect it.

Here is my thought process behind that theory.. tell me what y'all think please.

When I grind deer burger I normally do a 70/30 mixture. 70% deer to 30% store bought bacon ends.by doing this the meat is always firm

On deer pan sausage it's normally a 60/40 mix, again the outcome had always been firm.

I think this is due to deer meat being so lean, and bacon ends being 50/50 on fat to meat give or take.

Although, they were what we call "woods" hogs last year, they were extremely healthy and fat. I didn't discard any of the fat, all of it got ground up with the meat.

Most of the hogs weighed between 180-220lbs on the hoof, with a good thick layer of fat across the back

 

[Smokehowze]

A few more thoughts.

Since you mentioned it lets calculate the net % fat in the two deer examples -

Using 10 lbs mix result:
For the 70/30 deer to bacon end - 7 lbs deer 3 lbs bacon.

Bacon is as you said about 50/50 but bacon ends might have somewhat higher fat. So let's give it 60% fat. Therefor 3 lbs *.60 = 1.8 lbs fat.

Give the venison 0% fat for simplicity. So now we have 1.8 lbs fat in 10 lb meat or 18%.

In the 60/40 case ... same 10 lbs .. 4lbs bacon... 2.4 lbs net fat . or 24% in the sausage. Not a bad ratio for sausage keeping it on the lower side.

So that is why those come out fine.

I would not think too much fat is there in your ground hog meat but in future you can always trim the fat to the extent practical and then par-freeze it and grind it separate and mix back in by weight what you think works. Indeed I always do test fry of a patty when I am making sausage.

Now switching back to the issue..

I am now wondering beside old grinder issue in general if the meat is getting too warm during grinding, causing the muscle fibers fat to smear. If you keep your grinder head and screw and plates in the freezer and chill your meat well before grinding (cut it into chunks, place them on a sheet tray spaced apart from each other, and freeze for about 15 minutes until starting to freeze but still pliable), then you should be able to avoid this problem.

Maybe the cutter and/or die plate holes is no longer sharp and smearing the meat even if it does not look like it. How difficult is it to get meat pieces to go through the grinder? Do you get much sinew wrapped around the blade? All of these can cause major issues.

How are the patties fried right after grinding? Same mussy issue? Freezing can also further break down the torn/smeared cut meat. You could always compare a test fry of the texture of the meat that is ground versus some you knife mince and fry.

Any possibility that this pork might have experienced a Pale Soft Exudative (PSE) issue from stress during the hunt and/or butchering and handling?

Having the meat with a long immersion in the melted ice water (not in a brine) may be contributing to softening of the raw meat for some depth into the tissue.

Just about out of ideas..