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Sausage & Jerky Thoughts

Another day or two and Allen's buck will be completely processed. My wife mentioned taking a bunch of the trimmings up to a butcher shop to have them made into sausage but I've always wanted to give it a shot at home. I have a grinder with the stuffer tube attachments and an old Little Chief smoker I could dust off. Really would like to do it simple for now but don't want to waste meat either.

Any thoughts to doing it with a grinder...is it just a pain in the ass to do it that way or do you really need a press? Also, what store brand seasonings/kits would any recommend for both jerky and sausage? Any other comments on the subject would be appreciated.
 

Blan37

Member
1,800
64
SW Ohio
I'm interested in this as well. I got a grinder for Christmas and the plan is to give it a try and see how it does. Some grinders are better than others for stuffing.
 
i make deer sausage all the time, i just use the LEM mixes but its not hard to just make your own if you have the right seasonings. the LEM maple and regular breakfast and the hot sausage are awesome. i just go to my local butcher shop and get some pork trimmings and usually go about 20 to 25 percent pork to venison ratio. if you are stuffing it make sure to use real pork or sheep casings because the fake stuff dont work good for sausages. i dont smoke my sausage but i need to try it next time but when i smoke my deer bologna i usually go 1hr at 120 degree then 1.5 to 2 hr with smoke at 140 degree then an hour at 160 then i go up to 170 until i get an internal temp around 155 then it goes into an ice bath. i dont know if sausage would be smoked the same way or not.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,867
274
Appalachia
I'll be joining the sausage makers club when we move. This is something I'd really like to get in to, but simply don't have the room where we live now. The move can't come soon enough for a lot of reasons and making my own meat treats is one! lmao
 

Jamie

Senior Member
5,684
166
Ohio
I've never used my grinder to stuff, but my experience stuffing various sausages into various size/type of casings with a good sized quality stuffer is that the smaller the casing, the more difficult it is. to get your feet wet, you could make some sausage that does not require stuffing like breakfast sausage? you can grind, mix and package, but you don't need to stuff it into a casing or smoke it. otherwise, get yourself a copy of "Great Sausage Recipes and Meat Curing" by Rytek Kutas. this is the sausage makers bible and is full of good basic information, a ton of recipes and some rather sophisticated info as well. The venison summer sausage recipe in this book is the best you'll ever eat. his breakfast sausage is excellent as well. so is the kielbasa and Italian sausage. german bologna ain't none too hateful either.

the only prepackaged seasoning I think much of is the Rebel Smoked Sausage mix from Rebel Butcher supply. I make some of this every year, but every other mix I've used was not very good, imo. this mix can be used with or without cure. I have put this in large hog casings and linked/smoked, in 2.5" fibrous casings and smoked and bulk packaged fresh to patty for breakfast, and this is my favorite breakfast sausage.

for bratwurst types of sausage, do not be afraid of using edible collagen casing. they are about 100 times easier to use than hog casing, are just as durable, have no objectionable taste and are not the least bit chewy or tough after cooking. they do not link very well, though. I don't even bother linking fresh sausages like these anymore anyway. just cut them to length with scissors, package, and freeze.
 
Great start to this thread everyone! I'm probably going to grind and freeze most of the burger this week. Then once I figure things out I will start making plans to get some done. Will post the results here as I get things and how it all turns out. I recall having a smoking/sausage/jerky book years ago when I first got the Lil Chief smoker but have no idea where it went. Perhaps my dad has it so I will ask him next time we are down.

In the meantime keep the thoughts coming.
 

Buckmaster

Senior Member
14,361
191
Portage
I have the basic tools for sausage making.....big grinder, meat mixer, a 5 pound stuffer, a 15 pound stuffer, an insulated stainless smokehouse, meat lugs (tubs), vacuum sealer.

I typically mix my own spice mixes.

Visit:
www.sausagemaker.com
 
I have the basic tools for sausage making.....big grinder, meat mixer, a 5 pound stuffer, a 15 pound stuffer, an insulated stainless smokehouse, meat lugs (tubs), vacuum sealer.

I typically mix my own spice mixes.

Visit:
www.sausagemaker.com

How much sausage do you end up making per year? Wondering if it's worth buying at least the sausage stuffer for 5-10 lbs of sausage this year. Perhaps some years it would be more.

i would recommended buying a stuffer before trying to make sausage because it takes forever with a grinder and it doesnt work nearly as quick and easy as a stuffer.

I was wondering about that. Sounds like the grinder doesn't provide the pressure needed to fill the casings evenly??
 

Buckmaster

Senior Member
14,361
191
Portage
How much sausage do you end up making per year?

I did close to 100# last year. The case of pork butts I bought went 71#, plus 15# beef, plus a deer.
I've been researching building a backyard smokehouse lately but I'm having a tough time justifying it since it would hold rakes and shovels most of the time.
 

dante322

*Supporting Member*
5,506
157
Crawford county
I was wondering about that. Sounds like the grinder doesn't provide the pressure needed to fill the casings evenly??

using a grinder as a stuffer allows air into the casing. stuffers should have a vent on top of the pressure plate to allow air to escape. Too much air in the sausage will make it pop open during cooking.

x2 on natural casings, the smaller sheep casings can be difficult to feed onto the horn at times, but they are definitely more elastic than synthetic, which makes them more forgiving if they get packed a little too tight. the exception would be if you are making summer sausage or bologna. you're going to be removing the casing anyway.

there are tons of seasoning recipies on line, but using the store bought seasoning mixtures can be more economical. you dont need to buy large quantities of seasonings you only need a little bit of, you get the exact amount you need in the packet and the cure is typically included.

so far it seems a mix of 65% lean deer meat and 35% fatty pork has worked best for me. just be sure to place the sausages in a tub of ice water as soon as they come out of the cooker. This will set the fat and make a more moist end product.
 
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giles

Cull buck specialist
Supporting Member

Michael introduced me to this stuff earlier this year. It is by far, the best damn stuff I've tasted.

You can see it in the background. We use ground to do our jerky also. Kids seem to like it better and they help make it all.