Mastering the Craft of Making Sausage (19 page)

Fresh sausage can be used as bulk sausage for seasoning, made into patties, or stuffed in casings. If it is stuffed in casings, it is still called fresh sausage, but some people prefer to call it
stuffed fresh sausage
.

Note: The sausages in this chapter have been arranged in alphabetical order. WARNING: Fresh sausage must be fried, grilled, roasted, poached, or steamed. Smoking stuffed fresh sausage, or cooking it at low heat for a long time, could cause botulism, a potentially fatal form of food poisoning.

Andersonville Brown Sugar and Honey Breakfast Sausage

The Johnsonville Sausage Company makes a very unusual and very tasty sausage called
Brown Sugar and Honey Breakfast Links
. The combination of sweeteners makes it unusual and tasty. This sausage is not exactly the same as that made by Johnsonville, but it is remarkably similar.

THE CASING

Make the sausage into patties, or use natural casings. If 24 to 26 mm (1 in. to 1⁄16 in.) sheep casing is to be used, prepare about 14 feet (420 cm) of casing. If small-diameter hog casing will be used, prepare 7 feet (210 cm). Rinse the casing, and refrigerate it in water overnight. Rinse again, and soak in warm water a few minutes before using.

MEAT FOR 2½ LBS. (1,150 G) OF SAUSAGE

Prepare 2½ lbs. (1,150 g) of pork shoulder butt that contains about 20 percent fat, or use 2 lbs. (910 g) of lean pork and ½ lb. (225 g) of back fat; cut the meat into ¾-inch (2 cm) cubes. Refrigerate the meat, and put the meat grinder in the refrigerator, too. If the sausage stuffer will be used, refrigerate it, as well.

SEASONINGS AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

2½ tsp. (12.5 ml) salt

6 Tbsp. (90 ml) brown sugar—packed in the spoon

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) honey

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) maple syrup

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) lemon juice

2 tsp. (10 ml) mild-flavored unsulfured molasses

1 tsp. (5 ml) Mapleine (imitation maple flavor)

1 tsp. (5 ml) white pepper

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) MSG (optional)

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) marjoram

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) onion granules

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) cold water

½ cup (120 ml) finely powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. Grind the pork with a ¼-inch (6.4 mm) or smaller plate, and refrigerate it for 30 minutes.

2. Mix the seasoning, powdered skim milk, and water in a 5-quart (5 liter) mixing bowl. Refrigerate this seasoning mixture for about 15 minutes.

3. Blend the meat and the seasoning well by kneading for about three minutes. Shape the mixture into 
-inch (10 mm) thick patties, and wrap them in plastic food wrap. Alternatively, stuff the sausage into collagen, sheep, or hog casings.

4. Refrigerate the sausage that will be eaten within the next two days, and freeze the remainder.

Please see Chapter 6 for cooking suggestions.

Basic Turkey Sausage

This turkey sausage formula was developed by an organization that promotes the consumption of turkey meat. They assume that the ground turkey available at grocery stores will be used. Vegetable oil is added to the seasoning mixture to compensate for the insufficient amount of fat in commercially ground turkey. The oil is not required if the amount of fat in the ground turkey is about 20 percent of the total meat.

This sausage is pleasantly seasoned, and it is suitable for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It may be made into patties, stuffed into natural casings, or even stuffed into synthetic fibrous casings to make luncheon meat. However, it cannot be smoked because it is not a cured sausage.

CASINGS

If 24 to 26 mm (1 in. to 1
in.) sheep casing is to be used, prepare about 14 feet (420 cm) of casing. If small-diameter hog casing will be used, prepare 7 feet (210 cm). Rinse the casing, and refrigerate it in water overnight. Rinse again, and soak in warm water a few minutes before using.

THE MEAT FOR 2½ LBS. (1,150 G) OF SAUSAGE

Prepare 2½ lbs. (1,150 g) of turkey. Use the skin and fat, too. (Ground turkey available at a grocery store is also usable. If this ground meat has an inadequate amount of fat, add the vegetable oil listed below.) Cut into ¾-inch (2 cm) cubes. Refrigerate. While this meat is being prepared, chill the grinder and sausage stuffer in the refrigerator.

SEASONINGS AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

2½ tsp. (12.5 ml) salt

1 cup (240 ml) onion, minced

2 tsp. (10 ml) parsley, dried 1½ tsp. (7.5 ml) black pepper 1 tsp. (5 ml) thyme

1 tsp. (5 ml) nutmeg

1 tsp. (5 ml) ginger powder

1 tsp. (5 ml) red pepper flakes

2 cloves of garlic, minced

¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil (if required—see above)

¼ cup (60 ml) cold water

½ cup (120 ml) finely powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. Grind the well-chilled turkey with a medium plate. Refrigerate the ground fowl for about 30 minutes.

2. Measure the seasoning and other ingredients (everything except for the ground turkey) into a large mixing bowl, and mix well. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

3. Add the chilled ground turkey to the seasoning mixture, and knead until it is thoroughly mixed and uniform. This will require about three minutes. Chill this sausage paste while the sausage stuffer and casings are being prepared.

4. Make the sausage into patties, or stuff it into casings and twist into links. Refrigerate the sausage overnight to permit the seasoning to be absorbed by the meat. Use a covered container.

5. Sausages that will not be eaten within two days should be wrapped in plastic food wrap individually, placed in a plastic bag, and frozen.

Please see Chapter 6 for cooking suggestions.

Bockwurst

To me, this light colored sausage is elegant and delicate. In Germany, however, bockwurst is considered a two-fisted beer-drinker’s sausage. It is commonly eaten while drinking a strong, dark beer called bock beer; hence, the name
bockwurst
was given to this sausage. In some parts of the United States, bock-wurst is also known as
white sausage
because of its light color. The formula is complex, but the numerous and unusual ingredients complement each other very well. It is one of my favorite sausages, and I make it several times during the spring when wild chives appear in my backyard.

THE CASINGS

Prepare 7 feet (210 cm) of hog casings. Rinse the casings, and soak them in water overnight. Rinse the casings again, and soak them in warm water 30 minutes before using.

THE MEAT

Prepare the following meats. Refrigerate the meat, and put the meat grinder and sausage stuffer in the refrigerator, too.

• 1¾ lbs. (800 g) fatty pork butt

•
₄
lb. (340 g) veal, chicken thighs, or turkey thighs (veal is traditional)

SEASONINGS AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

¼ cup (60 ml) fresh milk

2 tsp. (10 ml) salt

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) onion granules

1 tsp. (5 ml) chopped parsley, dehydrated

¾ tsp. (3.75 ml) white pepper, finely ground

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) celery seed, ground

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) mace

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) lemon juice

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) light corn syrup

¼ cup (60 ml) green onions or chives, minced

2 eggs

½ cup (120 ml) powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. Grind the meats with a
-inch (9.5 mm) or smaller plate, and refrigerate them for 30 minutes.

2.
 
Except for the meat, mix the seasonings and other ingredients well in a large mixing bowl. Chill this mixture for at least 15 minutes.

3. Add the ground meat, and knead at least three minutes until the seasoning and ground meat blend is uniform.

4. Stuff the sausage, and make the rope into 5-inch (13 cm) links. It is best for the stuffed sausage to be refrigerated overnight, or for a few hours at least.

5. Steam the links until the internal temperature is 160° F (71° C)—or 165° F (74° C) if chicken or turkey was used. Spray the sausage with cold water for one or two minutes, or cool in front of an electric fan. Refrigerate, uncovered, until chilled. Package the sausage in plastic bags, and freeze the portion that will not be consumed within two days. Bockwurst is traditionally eaten with mild mustard.

Cajun Boudin Blanc

Several distinctly different Cajun sausages use the word
boudin
in the name. If
blanc
is used in the name, the sausage is whitish because it does not contain blood in the formula. Not only are there many formulations for boudin blanc, there are many approaches to blending, preparing, and cooking the sausage. The list of ingredients, below, is typical, but the processing method of the sausage in this recipe is one of the easiest I have seen.

It is certainly an unusual sausage. In addition to meat, it contains vegetables and rice. It is truly a meal in one, and it is very popular in Louisiana as a snack food.

The way that Cajun boudin blanc is eaten is also unusual. Because there is cooked rice and vegetables inside the sausage, the sausage is not firm and the teeth will not cut through the casing when it is bitten. Because of this, almost no one will try to eat the casing. Instead, they will squeeze the contents out of the casing into their mouth and discard the casing when it is empty.

THE CASINGS

Prepare 12 feet (360 cm) of hog casings. Rinse the casings, and soak the casings in water overnight. Rinse again the next morning.

THE MEAT

Prepare 2½ lbs. (1,150 g) of minced pork butt. The sausage will be less greasy if the fat content of the meat is about 15 percent rather than 25 percent. Use a ¼-inch (6.4 mm) plate to grind the pork.

OTHER INGREDIENTS AND SEASONINGS

6 cups (1,440 ml) cooked rice, long grain preferred, cooled

¾ cup (180 ml) onions, finely chopped

¾ cup (180 ml) parsley, finely chopped

¾ cup (180 ml) green onions, chopped

 cup (80 ml) green bell pepper (or 1 jalapeño), finely chopped