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Time to restock country sage sausage
- Thread starter jcam222
- Start date
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hog warden
Smoking Fanatic
- Feb 10, 2009
- 428
- 39
Recipe for smoked breakfast? Same (or some) level of salt, pepper and sage as OP used, PLUS, 0.25% by weight of pink curing salt (1 teaspoon per 5 pounds of sausage dissolved in 1 cup ice water per 5 pounds), and I now include dry powdered milk in all my smoked sausage. By volume, it's 1 cup dry powdered milk per 5 pounds. That is not a magic number. You could also do 2 to 3 level tablespoons per pound and be close. Without the milk powder, when cooking, the fat would render out, the case would bust, grease would squirt out or run out on the plate when cut, and cooked sausage would be dry and crumbly. With milk, none of that.
So basic breakfast, plus cure in ice water, dry milk, stuff and smoke same as any other smoked sausage.
I have found the easy button is to grind the meat, THEN take salt, pepper, sage, cure, dry milk and mix all those in ice water to make a slurry, then pour the slurry onto the ground meat, then start mixing. Some people recommend you let that sit overnight before stuffing. If you do, it will turn into something that resembles cement that does not want to run thru the stuffer. Better to stuff it first, then let it rest.
So basic breakfast, plus cure in ice water, dry milk, stuff and smoke same as any other smoked sausage.
I have found the easy button is to grind the meat, THEN take salt, pepper, sage, cure, dry milk and mix all those in ice water to make a slurry, then pour the slurry onto the ground meat, then start mixing. Some people recommend you let that sit overnight before stuffing. If you do, it will turn into something that resembles cement that does not want to run thru the stuffer. Better to stuff it first, then let it rest.
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This will last forever, Brian.
I buy freeze dried chopped green onions 2 lb at a time, I used them in everything from omlets, soups, stews, to burgers, and sausage.
I have sage growing. Was wondering about using it in BS. You have any idea how much to use?
I use between 2-3 grams per Kg. It’s right around 1 gram per pound. Then you can adjust from there if needed
Breakfast sausage: so easy to make decent stuff but so hard to nail. People will dismiss me for saying it, but think McDonalds might be the best there is. I think there is another herb that works along side of sage that is doing the magic. I saw rosemary listed on a few formulas and tried it but no dice. Next to try is thyme. Last reddit dive says clove. We'll see. From here, the "natural flavor" commonly listed is yeast extract.
What about allspice? Haha just guessing
Were you dropped as a kid ?
For me it is a little bit of mace that pops off the sage. Nutmeg may work but never paired it with sage.
I used it at about 3X the dried and was very impressed.
I think Jeff @JC in GB posted that adding mace recreated the MacDonalds flavor. I cannot comment on the McD flavor as I don't eat there.
I do sub in about 25% of the nutmeg with mace in my JD clone sausage.
Look up Cumberland sausage..closest thing I have made to McDonald's breakfast sausage.
All joking aside . Sam and myself have been sharing ideas and methods for years now .
The amount of research , effort and testing he does with stuff is to be admired .
I have personally learned and realized a ton of stuff just by PMing with him , so if he says clove
you can bet there's a high percentage that he on to something .
Actually enjoyed the chuckles. Too busy at work to keep with your guys momentum, sorry. I DO think we're onto something...
It's rare that I get McD breakfast so for a long time I always thought that it was "absence makes the heart grow fonder" about the sausage but after looking for hints, it's not that. There is a LOT of love for the stuff online. For me, there is a "pop" to it that is missing in my own stuff. Originally I thought it would be easy and was simply citric acid or maybe cayenne or a TON of BP would do that, nope. That said, ton of BP was close... At work, I decided to search for BF sausage recipe with clove and to my surprise I found a LOT more than expected.
I am always mixing up stuff trying things like Grandpa Munster so made a small test last night and to my surprise, it has that pop! Not saying I got it nailed but it shows promise. Totally making a batch soon and will report back.
It's rare that I get McD breakfast so for a long time I always thought that it was "absence makes the heart grow fonder" about the sausage but after looking for hints, it's not that. There is a LOT of love for the stuff online. For me, there is a "pop" to it that is missing in my own stuff. Originally I thought it would be easy and was simply citric acid or maybe cayenne or a TON of BP would do that, nope. That said, ton of BP was close... At work, I decided to search for BF sausage recipe with clove and to my surprise I found a LOT more than expected.
I am always mixing up stuff trying things like Grandpa Munster so made a small test last night and to my surprise, it has that pop! Not saying I got it nailed but it shows promise. Totally making a batch soon and will report back.
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I'm a fan of McD's sausage . I used to go in and get a half dozen patties put in the foam box thing . No biscuits or muffins . Just the sausage .
Heavy black pepper is the thing for me . Outside of the pepper flake and heavy sage , black pepper brings in for me .
Heavy black pepper is the thing for me . Outside of the pepper flake and heavy sage , black pepper brings in for me .
I made up that fresh batch of sausage earlier in the week from the spare rib trim .
Used AC Leggs No. 10 . I just left it in a gallon zip lock and have been using it .
I didn't have any clove , but I had some Garam Marsala .
Made up a patty , and just spinkled a pinch on both sides , then mixed that into a ball and let it sit .
Pressed it out , and fried it up .
Added a warmth to it for sure . Smell was awesome . Been awhile since I've had Ronald's , but made me think in that direction . It's good . I can see the clove by itself working .
Next time I do my Pop's mix ( heavy Black pepper and sage ) I'll be adding some Garam marsala to it .
Sam , all the great things you come up with , just think if you hadn't been dropped !
LOL I been playing drums since 10 so I am definitely following my own beat. Did the same stuff on homebrewing forums and oh man did that wreak havoc.
Not really trying to clone McD's per se but figure out that bite. Same bite is in the hot italian stuff I like. Anymore think the bite might just be "bitter". Clove can acutally numb your mouth so could actually be more of a sensation than flavor.
That's exactly what the garam marsala was like , along with the smell . It was good .
Make a good middle eastern style meatball .
That's one reason I like breakfast sausage in bulk . Makes a great base for other profiles in a pinch .
I've added fennel and used it as Italian before .
Believe it or not, a very small amount of vanilla is surprisingly good and pops a lot of other spice. I’ve also just used Karo syrup with vanilla which works if you want sugar in your BS. I haven’t played with vanilla very far in BS but it was surprising, just not something you would naturally pair with meat but it does do something interesting.
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