Jalapeño Popper w/ Cheddar

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RedSkip

Fire Starter
Original poster
★ Lifetime Premier ★
Jan 11, 2020
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Sienna, TX
Just thought I’d share…

BD61A744-9246-480A-B501-B9F20526457B-COLLAGE.jpeg
 
I'd have to make some with and some without the jalapenos.
Wife has gotten soft and doesn't like spicy foods any more.
 
RS, Looks delicious ! Care to share your recipe and your methods ? :)
100% Gemsbok (10#)
High Temp Cheddar (1#)
Walton’s Jalapeño Popper Premix, portioned to 10#.
2 C ice water

Mix until super sticky, stuff in 28-32 mm natural casings, air dry in the refrigerator for 36 hours.

Smoked this morning at various time/temperature profiles:

100F - 1 Hour
115F - 1 Hour
135F - 1 Hour
150F - 1 Hour

Bumped the temp to 175F until the internal temperature was 155F. Ice bath to stop the cooking process, and bloomed in the refrigerator for 2 hours before vacuum sealing. The photo I posted was a photo shoot before sealing, and I tried one during the process.

I will say, it’s a little gamey, and I’m not sure if it’s the casings or the Gemsbok itself.

Thanks for looking,
Skip
 
Last edited:
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RS, thanks for sharing your recipe and process. Here is a good post from one of our sausage experts on casings preperation if that was your "gamey" taste?.

How to handle natural casings

Thanks for the link! I definitely did not follow those steps. I soaked them in water for 30 minutes and didn't do a water change either... eek! Lots to learn in this game.

Thanks again for the discussion, I'll be adding a few more days/steps to my routine.
 
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Awesome looking sausage! I'd take a few of those. Is this meat gamey?
In my experience it hasn’t been. It has a grassy smell to it, but generally goes away after seasoning and cooking.

My guess is I didn’t soak/rinse the casing properly. I’ll give these ones away 😉 and get a consensus from the crowd. It could just be me, but I feel there is a slight gamey-ness to them.
 
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In my experience it hasn’t been. It has a grassy smell to it, but generally goes away after seasoning and cooking.

My guess is I didn’t soak/rinse the casing properly. I’ll give these ones away 😉 and get a consensus from the crowd. It could just be me, but I feel there is a slight gamey-ness to them.
RS, IMHO I would blame the gamey taste on the animal and not the casing. Casings will make a tougher chew/bite etc. My episodes with gamey taste have come from older animals , animals that ate lousy vegetation, those that weren't processed properly or were gut shot. That critter looks like lean meat and a 25% addition of some pork butt would do wonders for your sausage. I am not an expert but I have been making sausage from deer and moose for 35 + years. P.S. I would still devour a few of your delicious links !
 
RS, IMHO I would blame the gamey taste on the animal and not the casing. Casings will make a tougher chew/bite etc. My episodes with gamey taste have come from older animals , animals that ate lousy vegetation, those that weren't processed properly or were gut shot. That critter looks like lean meat and a 25% addition of some pork butt would do wonders for your sausage. I am not an expert but I have been making sausage from deer and moose for 35 + years. P.S. I would still devour a few of your delicious links !
I’d be happy to give you some, are you in the Houston area?!
 
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