This batch of sausage I made used the High Mountain Venison Bratwurst mix. I bought it just to try it out. The kit comes with all the spices, cure, salt and hog casings. I mix a combination of 10lb. venison, 7 lbs. pork and 7 lbs. beef. The family doesn't like the strong venison taste in sausage so I do the meet mix with a little less than 50% venison. sometimes I use less beef and sometimes no beef. I did put about 5 T of crushed garlic into the recipe besides the spices that came with the kit. I ground the meat in an almost frozen state. Grinds very nicely that way, especially the pork. Never gums up the grinder.
Once all the meet was ground, it's time to mix it all up. Spices, ice water and meat. Keeping it all very cold is critical. . Once mixed I stuff the casing immediately before the meat starts to bind and gets too stiff..The longer you soak the casings the better and more tender the casing are when you eat them.
Here comes the sausage out of my 5lb. Gander Mountain stuffer. The stuffer is a must have. I also lube the stuffer tube with olive oil periodically. It helps the casings slide on easily. The pricker in the picture, I use to pop the air bubbles out of the sausage. The casings are self healing and seem to seal back up after you poke holes in them..
I use jerky racks and stack the sausage to conserve space. In the refrigerator overnight to allow all the flavors to marry before smoking. It's important to let the casings dry before they hit the smoker. Your refrigerator acts as a dehumidifier and does a great job drying the casings........... 24 lbs. of sausage soon will be blooming....
Never got a pic of the sausage while in the smoker...Oooops! It takes two batches to smoke 24 lbs in my MES30. Smoked with
hickory, maple and cherry. I smoked them at 160-165° to the internal temp of 152° then in the tub of ice water to immediately cool the sausage down. Here is the first batch blooming. Vacuum sealed and in fridge for 12 more hours before I freeze them.
Going to do my next batch soon. I have a great recipe from the master sausage makers cookbook. Here is the link.
Thanks for looking....RTBBQ...
