Mortadella: 'Fancy' Italian Bologna

[smokinhusker]

Great tutorial, great looking mortadella and so professional looking! I'm in awe of your skills. Thank you for sharing

 

[alelover]

That looks perfect. Excellent job. It's got to have pistachios. Isn't that a law in Italy?

 

[sprky]

That looks exactly like I remember having in Italy. 

 

[couger78]

Wow Kevin, those sliced views are out of the park. awesome

What casings are you using? protein lined? When I probe them the water ends up under the casing and separates it from the meat, yours look perfect

Thanks, Dan.

I used Inedible Collagen casings (120mmx27) I ordered from Butcher & Packer. Nothing fancy.

Per B&P: "Inedible collagen middles and rounds can be used to make ring bologna, ring liver sausage, kishka, summer sausage, bologna and dry sausage. Inedible collagen middles and rounds are uniform in size, allow for excellent smoke penetration, provide superior adhesion and deliver a unique final appearance. They range in size from 43mm to 120mm and length from 16" to 27"

I didnt have much water intrusion at all where I inserted the probe - only a slight 'water pocket' formed at the insertion point. Overall, the casing remained intact over the rest of the chub. The casing DID give way, however, when I attempted to pull the chub out by the hanging string. Note to self: after 3+ hours in warm water, don't try to lift chubs by the string.

- Kevin

 

[big casino]

That looks perfect. Excellent job. It's got to have pistachios. Isn't that a law in Italy?

Actually I looked up mortadella on wikki b4 I made mine,

there are several versions the pistachio version is more of a middle eastern trend

in poland they dip it in batter and deep fry it as a cheaper version of pork chops...

@Kevin I always thought collagen casing would come apart in water?  or is it because those one are inedible? oh and how long did it take to poach it? cause mine took 15hrs to smoke it, and I definately wanna  smoke mine for a while next time and finish it by poaching

 

[couger78]

Kevin I always thought collagen casing would come apart in water?  or is it because those one are inedible? oh and how long did it take to poach it? cause mine took 15hrs to smoke it, and I definately wanna  smoke mine for a while next time and finish it by poaching

BC, this particular casing held up quite well considering what I put it through. It's integrity began to wane at the end of the cook so I was fortunate. It was soaked twice (once a week ago when I made bologna, but didnt use both casings); air-dried, then this week soaked again in warm water for 30 minutes before stuffing, and THEN into the poacher. The poach took a little over 3.5 hours to finally reach the desired IT of 155. A whole lot faster than if I'd used the smoker to cook it, that's for sure.

For this mortadella recipe, anyhow, I think smoking might overwhelm some of the subtle flavoring in it. Its not as robustly spiced or strong as the bologna I made—which was smoked for a few hours before being poached. I have seen other recipes where the spices differ and call for smoking.

Kevin

 

[oregon smoker]

Great Job Kevin!! will have to put this on the list of to do. saved the recipe...

Tom

 

[big casino]

Yeah my recipe called for light smoke so I only applied smoke for an hour, then just finished cooking it in the smoker, but it had me "ramp" up the temp from 120 to 160  in 8hrs, then to just leave it hang there until I reached the IT, next time definately going to poach it to the IT

I Don't have a lot of experience with collagen and fibrous casings I usually use all naturals, but from looking at your picture and remembering what mine looked like, I am wondering if a fibrous casing and the inedible collagen are one in the same?  if anyone knows for sure lemme know...LOL

Also I was reading on Wikki about this sausage, and it said something about  the smoked version resembles more of a Cotto (cooked) salami, and I think that mine tastes a lil more like that, maybe due to the smoking?

no matter what version I made I am glad I made it cause the more I eat it the more I like it!

 

[ronrude]

That sausage is a work of art.  Thanks for sharing!

 

[venture]

Great job as always, Kevin!

I see that double grind is working well.  Looks great to my eye!

Like you, I use plastic wrap and zip bags on some of my stuff.  I save those more expensive bags for others.

We do have a cheaper source for the vac bags here:

http://www.vacuumsealersunlimited.com/

Still, I do use the wrap and zip bags a lot.

Good luck and good smoking.

 

[couger78]

Thanks for the link to the vac-seal bags, Merv!

That'll save a few $$ on the storage so I can spend it on other sausage-making toys....

The double-grind seems to do the job....smooth & even without any mushiness. I do make sure that whatever I put through the grinder is WELL chilled.

We'll see how it fares on my next attempt at a fine textured sausage ( 'Braunschweiger' maybe?)

Thanks for all the kind words!

- Kevin

 

[skully]

thats some great lookin mort......xcellent job

 

[gersus]

Wow! Excellent looking bologna! Sure haven't seen anything like that around here but then again, the "bologna" we get around here can barely be called bologna!

Thanks for the photos and play by play!

 

[moikel]

Great job,pretty neat set up . From here your mort looks every bit like deli bought. Down my way there s a choice of plain,green olive or pistachio & Im smack bang in the middle of a little Italy.

 

[pops6927]

Looks exactly like the mortadella we sold in the deli's!  Excellent job and excellent post!

 

[frosty]

What a beautiful Mortadella, excellent color, texture, and spice mixture.  Looks like a complete sucess, and the wife liked it as well.

 

[venture]

Kevin, I can't wait to see your posts on the liver sausages.

I have been working up my courage on those!

Good luck and good smoking.

 

[sausageboy]

Looks excellent!

:sausage:

 

[ak1]

Wow!  Nice job. That Mortadella looks fantastic.

 

[couger78]

Thanks for all the nice comments, everyone.

If you've written down the recipe,please pay attention to the comment below with regards to cure & food-safety.

I've since added this note to to the posted recipe.

thanks

Kevin

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NOTE: ***Cure amount is on the low side in this recipe. Cure is added for texture and color ONLY.

This sausage is meant to be cooked thoroughly at a higher temp (165°),  NOT  smoked.

If one wishes to smoke it, the cure amount needs to be adjusted per meat weight in the proper proportion (1 level teaspoon of cure should be used for every 5 lbs. of meat)