Has any used this book: Great Sausage Recipes & Meat Curing - Rytek Kutas

[chopsaw]

Buddy said that for German stuff...the recipes are legit. But he also said you gotta watch the salt and cure percentages.

I refer to his formulas a lot , just to compare spices with Poli and Marianski . Always close between the 3 . I'll have to check the book for the ring bologna . I just did an all pork chub based on a Marianski formula , but I added white pepper and ginger . Did a double smoke " thing " ( story behind that ) but it's really good . Love the sting of the ginger on the back end , and the white pepper really adds to it .

 

[kawakx125]

The thing about this book compared to others, is that it was written for the individual getting into sausage making. Hence why his recipes aren't weighed. It is an introductory book with alot of good information meant to make the process as simple as possible and easy to understand.

 

[thirdeye]

Rytec‘s recipes have enough safety issues in them that I avoid them. Never read one of his books, but have seen enough of the recipes posted on line to know better. Take for instance the recipe listed just above in post #8. He lists salt at about 0.75%. Which may be fine for a small batch that’s cooked right away to safe temp, but 5# made with 0.75% salt is at minimum 1/2 the required salt for food safety.

And could you imagine how low the percentage would be if using Morton Kosher, or worse.... Diamond Kosher.

I have a few recipes that started life out of the Rytek book. I think someone already stated that he uses way to much salt, IMO almost twice too much. If you plan to use the book for recipes, maybe cut your salt and work up, i almost wasted 5 lbs of pork first time. I managed to choke it down but immensely salty.

I double check the salt and/or Cure amounts on any new recipe, and use a gram scale for measuring those two ingredients. For complementary and signature seasonings, I'm fine with teaspoons or tablespoons, or a calibrated eyeball.

If you convert your trimmed meat weight to kilograms, it's really easy to calculate the salt percentage you prefer. For instance, 2% salt is 20 grams per kilogram. So if you have 3.6 kg of meat: 3.6 X 20 = 72 grams of salt needed.

The thing about this book compared to others, is that it was written for the individual getting into sausage making. Hence why his recipes aren't weighed. It is an introductory book with alot of good information meant to make the process as simple as possible and easy to understand.

I think the reason he uses volumetric measurements is the fact almost nobody weighed ingredients prior to maybe 2000. Out of these 5 sausage books, only the Marianski Recipe Book (top row, center) lists ingredients in grams and ounces.

 

[DanMcG]

Kutas's book was considered the bible for sausage making not all that long ago, Mainly because it was the only one out there at the time.

 

[Robert H]

I have this book also and agree with the salt comments, way too high for the recipes I have tried. I have made the andouille with the onions(did not know better at the time). It is pretty good but the onion is a bit overpowering and I will not use next time I make it. FWIW, I think we all try recipes that other people give or what we see in print and either go with it or add/subtract ingredients to make it our own. My copy was a gift and while there is useful info in it, you can find more on this forum alone.

 

[sawhorseray]

It's been my go to bible for over 20 years. My sausage making and meat smoking mentor, Barry Byner, aka Chuckwagon, was a Kutas follower. I haven't followed any of his sausage recipes for years, prefer the mixes I get from PS Seasonings. Ruhlman? Way too much salt, more than Kutas even. RAY

 

[DanMcG]

Barry Byner, aka Chuckwagon,

Man he was a character! I sure miss his writing style.

Kutas's book offers a lot of valuable info for sausage making I still refer to it now and then. And if you find his recipes to salty, cut back on the salt.

 

[jimmyinsd]

i was pointed to his book early on, some things I have tried and not liked, some are staples in our freezer. I was put onto Rytek by another poster on here when I was looking for a venison summer sausage recipe, I modified it to my liking but it was a good place to start. Also it is a very good read if for nothing more than his stories about his own experiences and such. I would recommend picking up a copy.