Karo Syrup Experimenting

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SmokinEdge

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I have been experimenting with Karo in sausage just a little. The idea came to me after experimenting with pure vanilla extract, yes vanilla in sausage, it’s not what you think it would be and belongs in baked goods I know, but so does nutmeg and mace as well as allspice but they all can and do work some sausage varieties.

Any-who, in some commercial sausages there is a flavor in the back that really makes the over all sausage flavor work. I can’t put my finger on it exactly but I believe the subtle flavor of vanilla is at play, it may not be vanilla exactly but something similar and it plays way in the back. A creamy sweetness but still savory is the best I can describe this subtle flavor I’m chasing.

The vanilla absolutely worked in breakfast sausage. But not exactly what I was looking for. So when I happened to look at a bottle of Karo, I haven’t specifically tasted the syrup in probably 25 years or so, it said right on the label “with real vanilla” and the syrup is obviously sweet so a light went off. I first tried it in my kielbasa recipe but I screwed that up by adding stone ground mustard as well, which was good btw, So I thawed out some of my Cumberland sausage and added Karo at 1.5% same as the salt. Fried up a small test patty and really couldn’t taste sweet or vanilla. Long story short I had to get up to 6% before the family agreed they liked the flavor change. Seems a lot of corn syrup in the mix but there is no additional sugar and I don’t believe it’s sweet power or flavor is as strong as cane sugar.

Just sharing my preliminary findings. I think this is worth further exploration.
 
I have been experimenting with Karo in sausage just a little. The idea came to me after experimenting with pure vanilla extract, yes vanilla in sausage, it’s not what you think it would be and belongs in baked goods I know, but so does nutmeg and mace as well as allspice but they all can and do work some sausage varieties.

Any-who, in some commercial sausages there is a flavor in the back that really makes the over all sausage flavor work. I can’t put my finger on it exactly but I believe the subtle flavor of vanilla is at play, it may not be vanilla exactly but something similar and it plays way in the back. A creamy sweetness but still savory is the best I can describe this subtle flavor I’m chasing.

The vanilla absolutely worked in breakfast sausage. But not exactly what I was looking for. So when I happened to look at a bottle of Karo, I haven’t specifically tasted the syrup in probably 25 years or so, it said right on the label “with real vanilla” and the syrup is obviously sweet so a light went off. I first tried it in my kielbasa recipe but I screwed that up by adding stone ground mustard as well, which was good btw, So I thawed out some of my Cumberland sausage and added Karo at 1.5% same as the salt. Fried up a small test patty and really couldn’t taste sweet or vanilla. Long story short I had to get up to 6% before the family agreed they liked the flavor change. Seems a lot of corn syrup in the mix but there is no additional sugar and I don’t believe it’s sweet power or flavor is as strong as cane sugar.

Just sharing my preliminary findings. I think this is worth further exploration.
Nice experimenting, and it doesn't seem odd to me!

I've seen a number of sausage mixes where "corn syrup solids" was an ingredient. The solids sound like a concentrated Karo in easy to measure and use "powder" form.

Feel free to go down that rabbit hole and experiment if it seems helpful. I'm looking forward to seeing what you land on in the end :D
 
Very interesting, love this type of flavor sleuthing!
I also am surprised at 6% to get the flavor, but there is a lot of water in "syrup" vs solid sugar, so it's probably like adding 3% sugar only.

I didn't post the writeup yet, but I just made some cheesy smokies, and went 3% sugar equivalent to get that sweet/salt flavor you get from bacon, so I can for sure see 6% syrup as the dlsame ballpark! I used an artificial sweetener for keto but same same.

Lol, just went to pantry to check ingredients label, look what I have! Will be following, and will try making your suggested results!
17190957067737397070439846435073.jpg
 
Very interesting, love this type of flavor sleuthing!
I also am surprised at 6% to get the flavor, but there is a lot of water in "syrup" vs solid sugar, so it's probably like adding 3% sugar only.

I didn't post the writeup yet, but I just made some cheesy smokies, and went 3% sugar equivalent to get that sweet/salt flavor you get from bacon, so I can for sure see 6% syrup as the dlsame ballpark! I used an artificial sweetener for keto but same same.

Lol, just went to pantry to check ingredients label, look what I have! Will be following, and will try making your suggested results!View attachment 699319
Thank you Dave. This is a rabbit hole, but that said, this syrup works flavor wise exceptionally well. Still not sure it’s what I’m after but can say that it’s a good ingredient.

As to syrup solids in mixes, they seem to use that or add that as a “binder” so there is that. I care less about adding binder but more pushing for flavor. What the heck, it’s a fun hobby.
 
Grandma always had Karo syrup on the breakfast table, a big spoonful of butter stirred into it and 1 of her flatter than a flitter biscuits were hard to beat :emoji_laughing: I don't think I have ever bought the first jar of it, being diabetic does things for ya.
 
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Thanks! Taking notes as fast as I can. For years I couldn't make sausage worth a bean, now I feel a bit like Marianski--I wish EVERYONE had this skill and so many others. (If we did, the food companies wouldn't have us over a barrel.)

Bidding you a sunny day from NW Minnesota, where we are about to have our first frost of the season, fully a month late. 🙂
 
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Karo syrup is the devil!! Concentrated fructose is the absolute worst food on the planet for your body. The #1 main cause of NAFLD (non-alcohol fatty liver disease). Also causes high uric acid in the body which can lead to gout.

I'm on a health overhaul....I have learned a ton in info......
 
Karo syrup is the devil!! Concentrated fructose is the absolute worst food on the planet for your body. The #1 main cause of NAFLD (non-alcohol fatty liver disease). Also causes high uric acid in the body which can lead to gout.

I'm on a health overhaul....I have learned a ton in info......

True enough. And the food companies have been putting this stuff into nearly everything; it's one of the addicting ingredients they're so fond of. (Look into burdock, a wild herb, for uric acid and related ailments.)

Don't get me started... 🙃
 
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This forum is a surprisingly good resource for those with dietary needs and who are trying to eat healthy, using the newer info we keep discovering these days. Versus all the bogus things we learned growing up.

I also am interested in ingredient health posts, just throwing my support to future posters wondering in there IS interest, on a BBQ meat forum lol.

I have lost 80 lbs and dropped A1C from 12.5 to 5.1 in last 13 months. Keto, meat, no carbs, no sugars, veg, etc. So when you read my sausage recipe posts, they are always designed with this keto mindset, just in case anyone else is looking for such info too ;)
 
I agree that Karo is the debil , lol
However this thread was about chasing commercial sausage flavors which are hard to nail down. As I stated when I posted this thread that I hadn’t even tasted Karo in about 25 years, I also don’t drink soda or any high fructose corn syrup products. I was simply chasing flavors. So take it for what it’s worth to you. As a side, I still prefer my recipes with no sugar or if added it’s usually just plain white sugar but sometimes use cane sugar from Florida.
 
I have lost 80 lbs and dropped A1C from 12.5 to 5.1 in last 13 months. Keto, meat, no carbs, no sugars, veg, etc. So when you read my sausage recipe posts, they are always designed with this keto mindset, just in case anyone else is looking for such info too ;)

That's fabulous! I did keto for a while to give my liver a rest. Now I eat mostly ethnic German, Polish, and eastern European (skipping the sugary desserts and simple carbs). My A1C has also bottomed out. Pretty wild stuff in the stores--avoid the seed oils used as engine lubricants in WWII (look it up) and anything you can't pronounce. Also 'natural flavors' a miss (sounds Frankensteinian to me).

Okay, okay, getting off the soapbox now. 😊
 
"...sometimes use cane sugar from Florida."

I react to beet sugar but cane doesn't seem to bother me as much. Interesting. Must be how it's processed.
 
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Sorry to vanish briefly. To get back to sugar and vanilla in sausage: tomorrow I'll mix up another batch of the country cousin, with Fueling's fresh sage option--would it be crazy to add an 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla per lb. to the brown sugar already present in the mix?

I'm thinking of trying it.
 
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Sorry to vanish briefly. To get back to sugar and vanilla in sausage: tomorrow I'll mix up another batch of the country cousin, with Fueling's fresh sage option--would it be crazy to add an 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla per lb. to the brown sugar already present in the mix?

I'm thinking of trying it.
Yup, give that a go. It will surprise you.
 
The idea of vanilla in sausage is intriguing.

Interesting fact about "vanilla". There are hundreds of varieties of the flowering plant that produces a bean pod with vanilla flavor. In the US, only 2 or 3 varieties are allowed to call themselves true vanilla. The other varieties can only be called vanilla flavor or imitation vanilla.
Learned that just recently from a college friend that is a Horticulture Professor and currently working on a vanilla project.
"...sometimes use cane sugar from Florida."

I react to beet sugar but cane doesn't seem to bother me as much. Interesting. Must be how it's processed.
99.98% of beet sugar and cane sugar are identical ie sucrose.
The other 0.02% is carry over flavor from the source. I cannot stand beets, but beet sugar doesn't bother me. I cannot taste any difference between cane & beet sugars, but I rarely use either.

...
tomorrow I'll mix up another batch of the country cousin, with Fueling's fresh sage option
...
The fresh sage suggestion came from SmokinEdge SmokinEdge
I was amazed the game changer on my last batch of breakfast sausage and my wife called it the best ever.
 
I've never made my own sausage, but when I want a hint of sweetness in sauces I start with maple syrup. Usually I avoid using so much the maple flavor becomes obvious, and then I'll add Karo if I just want more sweetness. But it seems for just "sweetness per ounce" the maple syrup packs a bigger punch than Karo. Note I don't use the real stuff typically, but Mrs Butterworth's imitation.
Anyone try maple syrup (real or imitation) in their sausage?...sounds good to me.
 
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That picture of the syrup bottle has them advertising Zero G HFCS. Did they replace it with something just as bad?
Love me some Karo but use very little of it. It is corn syrup but not HFCS. Large misconceptions about it. IMO HFCS is cheap and in lots of well known junk food so conclusions are drawn. "Johnny has diabetes since soda has HCFS". No, he's got diabetes since he drinks 8 cans a day. Interesting tidbit, agave nectar a well known "healthy sweetener" has 2x more fructose than HFCS but you don't hear about that...

I've not done a deep dive think Karo should be a win win in sausage, adding both sweetness/browning and binding power.
 
That picture of the syrup bottle has them advertising Zero G HFCS. Did they replace it with something just as bad?

I hate to be negative, but it seems every time manufacturers change something it's not an improvement.
 
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