Meat mixer ?

[smokin pop-pop]

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all !!!
I have a question about encapsulated citric acid and powered meat mixers. I am getting ready to try ECA in some pepperoni sticks and I’m not sure if I can mix it into the meat with the mixer attached to my grinder or if I should mix it by hand.

 

[crazymoon]

SPP, Proably too late but I would mix by hand and do it right before stuffing/smoking.It supposed to be a temp release item but some folks here say overmixing will get it to "do it's thing" too soon.

 

[pops6927]

^^^^^

 

[smokininthegarden]

I agree with crazy moon be very gentle with it so that the capsules don’t rupture.
What I do is mix the ground meat and the seasoning together the day before then let
rest in the fridge overnight so that the flavors can meld with the meat. Then the next day
pull the meat mixture and let warm up for an hour or so at room temp so that it will
be more pliable when you mix in the ECA. Again be very gentle and cook/smoke as
soon as possible after stuffing.

Cal

 

[indaswamp]

X2 on what crazy has said.

The citric acid is encapsulated with hydrolyzed vegetable oil solids. the little capsules can rupture if mixed too much releasing the citric acid too early. The capsule is suppose to isolate the citric acid until the meat paste reaches 130*, after that point the meat proteins have already formed bonds and the meat paste is now "set". Citric acid released after this point will not interfere with the meat bonding together.


So now you know how it works.....

Mix it in gently for about 2 minutes. Then stuff. think of them as little bitty eggs.....

 

[indaswamp]

Should have kept reading...smokinginthegarden beat me to it....