Ref; Finished Summer Sausage and a new idea in mind!

[TomKnollRFV]

Here we go..6 cased up sausages sitting out for a few hours per directions following their smoking. The piece you see cut up is from a mini loaf I made from what was left over and didn't have enough to put in another casing. ..

I used OFG's Summer Sausage recipe with extra garlic, I think I'll put in red pepper next time or some thing. Extra black pepper too. It's a very mild summer sausage to me <I'm known to fry pieces of summer sausage and dash hot sauce over them and hack them up to put in rice for a lunch>...

And now onto my next question following what a friend asked me on FB.. can I make Chorizo he asks.

Can I make Chorizo using Tenderquick or Prague Powder 1? I'd like to use non edible casings because I heard hog/sheep gut casings are finnicky and that intimidates me, also I ordered a 25 pack of non edible fibrous casings with my Prague Powder 1.

PS: I did this using the Pitboss Competition Blend and I can't taste to much smoke. Which I guess might be the flavour, or maybe they don't put out much. No idea, could be my taste buds are non functional tonight too!

 

[sky monkey]

I've been wanting to get into some charcuterie but have been intimidated by the whole process. Good looking sausage!

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I figure these over night in the fridge sausages are safe..I bring them up to a safe IT. As I understand the curing is to get rid of botulism during the early stage of drying. I've had friends out of state ask me to send stuff but I'm not really sure what makes commercial stuff safe to ship. But I've got an ever growing list of cured stuff I wanna make...and it just keeps growing..

 

[crazymoon]

TKRFV, Good looking sausage, don't be afraid to try hog casings for sausage ! You can always try the cheaper home pack size for starters. They are shorter strands with some imperfections but the price is much cheaper than buying a hank of casings. Read Boykos' post on preparing casings and you will have no problems with them.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I just gotta find them first Moon. It's a bit surprising to me how hard some of the sausage making stuff is to find here. I can locally purchase those edible collagen ones, but people say those are horrible, is that true?

 

[jimmyinsd]

TKRFV, Good looking sausage, don't be afraid to try hog casings for sausage ! You can always try the cheaper home pack size for starters. They are shorter strands with some imperfections but the price is much cheaper than buying a hank of casings. Read Boykos' post on preparing casings and you will have no problems with them.

If I had based my future casing choices on the first 2 or 3 home packs I tried... I would likely have given up on natural casings. I say skip the home packs and find a local sausage maker to buy them from or use one of the good casing suppliers that are talked about on here. I am assuming that their home packs are likely just as shitty, so IMO go with the bigger packages... ive found them to be so much better and well worth the extra money up front... and in the end they will all get used and it will actually save him money. (just my 2 cents on the matter) but yeah, definitely get into using natural casings, so much better its not even really a discussion IMO.

 

[jimmyinsd]

I just gotta find them first Moon. It's a bit surprising to me how hard some of the sausage making stuff is to find here. I can locally purchase those edible collagen ones, but people say those are horrible, is that true?

Its been my finding that local collagen casings from the sporting goods stores or other large chain stores are pretty crappy. take the leap and either hit your local sausage makers up, or try one of the 3 or so suppliers that get recommended on here by most. I will be trying syracuse casings next batch myself.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I don't really have a local sausage maker other then butchers. Right now all the sausages I want to make work in non edible casings. But I'll have to get some natural casings for trying my hand at bratwurst, and my friend wants me to try to make Chorizo and I believe normally, that is in an edible casing..

 

[crazymoon]

TKRFV, The Sausage Maker or Syracuse Casing are my go to companies for hanks of hog or sheep,there are others that members highly recommend also.I have used the edibled collagen casing and IMHO aren't something I would recommend. I prefer the natural casings.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I'll have to check them out; other wise I just planned to order every thing from LEM.

 

[jimmyinsd]

I'll have to check them out; other wise I just planned to order every thing from LEM.

unless getting them fresh from LEM makes them better I would skip them for the natural option. I hope this is ok to phrase this way but even bad sausage is typically pretty good, but why settle for pretty good when you go through all the work.... sex with a condom... yeah!.... sex without a condom....hell yeah! ( or so Ive been told ) :cool:

 

[jimmyinsd]

I don't really have a local sausage maker other then butchers. Right now all the sausages I want to make work in non edible casings. But I'll have to get some natural casings for trying my hand at bratwurst, and my friend wants me to try to make Chorizo and I believe normally, that is in an edible casing..

also, dont be so quick to discount that local butcher.... he will likely be your best friend in this game. they have access to things in bulk that the average hobby guy like us wouldnt get. cases of quality pork trim, quality casings, bulk seasonings and such. as well as a usually great source of information. some will act like you are asking for their daughters hand in marriage, but most that I have talked to are pretty forthcoming. they wont likely give you the recipe to their award winning mexican bacon or blueberry pepper sticks... but still very good guys to know.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

My local butcher is a bit..on the over priced side to say the least is the problem. Unless he has a sale, your talking 15-20 USD a pound for ribeye. I've paid that much in a steak house for fillet mignon and shrimp. Still might have to ask him, or start ordering from butcher packer.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Just tried one of the smoked sausages; flavours are much better now. Still a bit bland but the garlic comes through. Not much smoky flavour.

I think using ground turkey instead of beef might be part of the flavour profile issue though.

 

[jimmyinsd]

My local butcher is a bit..on the over priced side to say the least is the problem. Unless he has a sale, your talking 15-20 USD a pound for ribeye. I've paid that much in a steak house for fillet mignon and shrimp. Still might have to ask him, or start ordering from butcher packer.

I hate seeing that... it pushes people off of beef. i sold 1200 pound animals last month for as low as .59 per pound for holstein steers, to $1.00 per pound for angus. its ridiculous how much is made on the back end of this supply chain.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I fairly well know pricing and frankly I could care less if it's free range or not in the end. Pricing is Pricing. <Also he's a bit of a jerk. He's barred people from the shop because they complained about bratwurts being dried out. Which they were. Things like that>.

I also need to invest in wider casings for summer sausages. I like doing 1 pound chubs, but wish these casings were thicker now. Just personal preference there.

 

[jimmyinsd]

I fairly well know pricing and frankly I could care less if it's free range or not in the end. Pricing is Pricing. <Also he's a bit of a jerk. He's barred people from the shop because they complained about bratwurts being dried out. Which they were. Things like that>.

I also need to invest in wider casings for summer sausages. I like doing 1 pound chubs, but wish these casings were thicker now. Just personal preference there.

I love the marketing bull shit that the average consumer gobbles up. I about got thrown out of a restaurant in Iowa one time by a snobby owner as he was bragging up his steaks, I simply asked him what made his 16oz ribeye worth $38 bucks (ala carte, sides were extra) .... I said its a $7 cut of meat like I got at home in my freezer, so what made his so much better.... he went on and on about his meat guy that hand selects and hand cuts each of his prime angus steaks in Chicago..I asked him how he knew they were angus and not some milk cow with an angus label on the box then I started to chuckle and told him the only fat steers I had seen in chicago were in a zoo. ( yes booze was involved and later I felt kind of bad, but he kind of had it coming with his snobby attitude)

 

[TomKnollRFV]

Ha. Yah..when it comes to things like steak etc. I just..I don't go out for them. I can get a decent ribeye at the store and do it how I want it. So really what I end up paying for is some one else to do it. Not worth it! I like grilling up some steaks!

 

[crazymoon]

I'll have to check them out; other wise I just planned to order every thing from LEM.

IMHO , Lem doesn't have quality products.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

No? Woops. Well. I mean thats what I got in a 25 pack. Also the only thing I've ever seen locally in stores for casings. Guess online orders for me it is! I just wish edible natural casings didn't come in such huge amounts. I can't see my self doing 25+ pounds of sausage in them a year.