Smoking sausage

[southcedar]

Ive been reading the forums for a while and decided to join the crew. Im building a smoke house with external firebox for my smoke and heat. From what ive read on here its best to start at 100 degrees and go up 10 degrees every hour until internal temp reaches 152. Now heres the DUMB question....it appears that the general rule is to put sausage in smoker for the first hour at 100 degrees WITH NO SMOKE. Yeah its surely a rookie question but for the guys who use wood as fuel source , how do you accomplish this ?
Thanks for any help you may have.

 

[themule69]

Ive been reading the forums for a while and decided to join the crew. Im building a smoke house with external firebox for my smoke and heat. From what ive read on here its best to start at 100 degrees and go up 10 degrees every hour until internal temp reaches 152. Now heres the DUMB question....it appears that the general rule is to put sausage in smoker for the first hour at 100 degrees WITH NO SMOKE. Yeah its surely a rookie question but for the guys who use wood as fuel source , how do you accomplish this ?
Thanks for any help you may have.

I see this is your first post. When you get a chance will you drop by roll call so we can all give you a proper SMF welcome?

You didn't say what kind of smoker you have. It is hard to get most wood burners down to 100° or even 175°. You just have to learn your pit and what temps it will hold. Then you adjust from their. That is why  a bunch of us have more than one smoker.

Happy smoken.

David

 

[southcedar]

Will do on the roll call....
It's a wooden smoker built out of oak planks... 4 ft by 4ft by 6ft tall .... Fire box is external with smoke and heat piped in with 6 inch stove pipe.

 

[dirtsailor2003]

The main hing for the 100 degrees for the first hour is to dry out the casings. In your case you will have smoke and it really shouldn't be a problem. Give it a whirl and see how they turn out. If you like them then do it again. If you don't rig up a propane or electric heat source in the smoker itself. Or come up with a way to run a flue from your inlet into the smoker, that exits through the roof. Having the pipe in the smoke chamber should provide enough heat, but allow the smoke to exit. When your ready for smoke remove the flue so heat and smoke both enter the smoke chamber.

 

[sam3]

Are you using Cure #1 with your sausage?

If you have to, you can hang your sausage inside and set up a fan to blow on them for an hour. Then put them in your smoker.

But getting some heat on them while drying helps speed the time it will take to reach 152 IT.

Remember to take pics.

 

[Bearcarver]

 
Are you using Cure #1 with your sausage?

If you have to, you can hang your sausage inside and set up a fan to blow on them for an hour. Then put them in your smoker.

But getting some heat on them while drying helps speed the time it will take to reach 152 IT.

Remember to take pics.

What Sam said about air drying with a fan, if you can't have an hour of heat without smoke. You have to get the exterior dry before you put the smoke on it.

Also, I believe on this forum the safe internal temp for sausage is 160*.

Bear

 

[rgautheir20420]

The fan idea works great for those looking to smoke on the same day. As long as the Cure is in there, I've stuffed on a Saturday and simply let them hang out in the fridge until smoking on Sunday. This gave them plenty of time to dry out the casings for smoking.

 

[kesmc27]

Ditto on the letting hang for a day and smoking the second.

 

[Bearcarver]

 
The fan idea works great for those looking to smoke on the same day. As long as the Cure is in there, I've stuffed on a Saturday and simply let them hang out in the fridge until smoking on Sunday. This gave them plenty of time to dry out the casings for smoking.

That's actually what I do, but I have an extra fridge. So I put the whole racks in my fridge with the sausages on them, ready for the smoker.

Also I'm not actually drying my casings, because I don't use casings.

Bear

 

[southcedar]

The sausage will have cure in it. I'll probably just rig up an electric heater or something to dry it for a bit. What happens if it's not dry and you start the smoke ? Thanks for the help

 

[Bearcarver]

The sausage will have cure in it. I'll probably just rig up an electric heater or something to dry it for a bit. What happens if it's not dry and you start the smoke ? Thanks for the help

The smoke could mix with the moisture & give it a bitter greasy coating, instead of an Awesome Smoky flavor.

Bear

 

[boykjo]

When drying the sausages outer casing you are forming a pellicle.(a skin or coating of proteins on the surface of meat, fish or poultry, which allow smoke to better adhere the surface of the meat during the smoking process.). You can over dry the casings by leaving them in the fridge too long so be careful. The casings should be tacky to the touch for the best smoke adhesion.