Mastering the Craft of Making Sausage (33 page)

THE SEASONING

2 tsp. (10 ml) salt

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) Cure #1

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) paprika

1 tsp. (5 ml) black pepper

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) marjoram ½ tsp. (2.5 ml) oregano

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) coriander—packed in the spoon

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) apple cider vinegar or wine vinegar

2 Tbsp. (30 ml) water

½ cup (120 ml) powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. 
 Mix the seasonings, vinegar, water, and skim milk in a large stainless steel mixing bowl until they are thoroughly blended and the powdered milk has dissolved. Refrigerate this mixture for at least 15 minutes.

2. 
 Blend the meat and the seasoning well by kneading for about three minutes.

3. 
 Stuff the sausage in hog casings, and twist the sausage rope into links. For linguisa, links about 10 inches (25 cm) long are traditional.

4. 
 Refrigerate overnight to allow Cure #1 and the seasonings to penetrate the meat. Do not cover, or cover with paper towels only.

5. 
 Linguisa is sometimes smoked. If you wish to smoke the linguisa, please see Chapter 7 for suggestions and directions. If you wish to omit smoking, please see the cooking suggestions in Chapter 6.

Mashelle’s Hotlinks

Mashelle Cromis, a friend, asked me if I could make a sausage similar to her favorite brand of sausage: Fletcher’s Louisiana Hotlinks. I accepted the challenge. A branch of a Canadian company that produces ham, bacon, and sausage for the Pacific Northwest makes Fletcher products. A few grocery stores in this area sell them.

I bought and tasted the Fletcher’s Louisiana Hotlinks. The Fletcher product is cured, and it seems to be like a mild version of a sausage called Texas hotlinks. There is an uncured hot sausage made in Louisiana called chau-rice—sometimes called Louisiana hotlinks—but the Fletcher product is not the same.

I created a first-test formulation to imitate the Fletcher’s Louisiana Hotlinks. I prepared, cooked, and tasted the sausage myself. I also gave some of the links to Mashelle so that she could serve them as she usually serves the store-bought product. I then tinkered with the formulation to make it a little closer to the Fletcher product. This testing, tasting, and tinkering was done several times, and the result is below. Mashelle believes that I met the challenge; the taste is not exactly the same, but the sausage is just as good, and the homemade version has a milder and more pleasant salt content.

CASINGS

The Fletcher product is stuffed in a collagen casing that is about the same diameter as a hot dog. It is dyed bright red. To imitate that casing, I used sheep casing and dyed it red by putting about a teaspoon (5 ml) of red food color in the water used to soak it overnight. About 14 feet (420 cm) of casing is required. Rinse the casing well. Add the food color (optional) to a small about of water, and soak it in the refrigerator overnight. Rinse again, and soak in warm water for a few minutes before using.

The red food color effectively dyed the casing and made an interesting visual impact. However, using the dyed casing was messy because the red color was transferred to the hands and to everything it touched—though it was easily washed off. If this dyeing of the casing and the resulting visual impact is desirable, you may wish to buy the red food color at a restaurant supply grocery store. A 16 fluid oz.- (2 cups or 475 ml) bottle purchased at a restaurant supply store is much more economical than using the tiny bottles of food color sold at a common grocery store.

THE MEAT FOR 2
¹
⁄2 LBS. (1,150 G) OF MASHELLE’S HOTLINKS

Prepare 2½ lbs. (1,150 g) of pork shoulder. Cut into ¾-inch (2 cm) cubes and refrigerate. While this meat is being prepared, chill the grinder and sausage stuffer in the refrigerator.

SEASONINGS AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

2 tsp. (10 ml) salt

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) Cure #1

4 tsp. (20 ml) black pepper, ground

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) paprika

2 tsp. (10 ml) crushed red pepper 2 tsp. (10 ml) cayenne

1 tsp. (5 ml) thyme

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) granulated garlic

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) coriander—packed in the spoon

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) mustard powder—packed in the spoon

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) powdered bay leaf

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) powdered anise

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) MSG (optional)

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) light corn syrup

½ cup (120 ml) finely powdered skim milk

¼ cup (60 ml) cold water

¼ cup (60 ml) cold red wine

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. 
 Grind the chilled pork with a 
-inch (4.8 mm) plate. Refrigerate the ground meat for about 30 minutes.

2. 
 While the meat is chilling, mix all of the remaining ingredients thoroughly in a large mixing bowl. Refrigerate this mixture for about 15 minutes.

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

4. 
 Stuff the sausage into the casing, and twist the sausage rope into links. Refrigerate the links overnight to permit the seasoning to be absorbed by the meat. Use an uncovered container (or cover with paper towels) so the casings will dry.

5. 
 If you wish to smoke the hotlinks, please see Chapter 7 for suggestions and directions. If you wish to omit smoking, please go directly to the cooking suggestions in Chapter 6.

Mettwurst

All of the famous sausages have many variations, and Mettwurst is no exception. Most recipes give instructions for a cured mettwurst that is not cooked; it is smoked at about 100° F (38° C) for 12 hours or so. Of course, when the sausage is finished it is still raw meat—very red and very raw. This raw, ground meat is spread on crusty bread or crackers and eaten. To this, I say no, thank you—I prefer cooked sausage.

The following recipe will be for a cured and fully cooked mettwurst, made of beef and pork, stuffed in a fibrous casing, and intended to be eaten as snack or lunchmeat sausage. It is a tasty, safe, healthy, and appetizing sausage.

THE CASINGS

Soak fibrous casings in warm water for 30 minutes before using. Make sure that there is a liberal amount of water inside the casings. If you are using 2½-inch (6.4 cm) diameter casings that are about 12 inches (30 cm) long, two of them will be required.

THE MEAT

Prepare 1½ lbs. (680 g) of beef chuck and 1 lb. (450 g) of pork butt. Cut the meat into cubes. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Refrigerate the grinder and the stuffer while the meat is being prepared.

Grind the meat with a 
-inch (4.8 mm) plate. Chill the meat thoroughly while the seasoning is being prepared.

THE SEASONING

2 tsp. (10 ml) salt

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) Cure #1

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) white pepper, finely ground

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) allspice

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) whole mustard seed

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) marjoram

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) coriander—packed in the spoon

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) nutmeg

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) ginger powder

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) celery seed, ground

1 Tbsp. (15 ml) light corn syrup

¼ cup (60 ml) water

½ cup (120 ml) powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

1. 
 Mix all the seasoning ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl, including the corn syrup, water, and powdered milk.

2. 
 Add the meat to the seasoning mixture. Blend by kneading until it is uniform. This will require about three minutes.

3. 
 Stuff the sausage into fibrous casings. Insert the cable probe of an electronic thermometer in the open end of one of the sausages, and close the casing around the probe with butcher’s twine.

4. 
 Refrigerate the stuffed sausage overnight so the seasoning and curing powder will blend with the meat.

The next morning, the sausage may be smoked. Please see Chapter 7 for smoking instructions and suggestions. Cold smoking and steam cooking is recommended. If the sausage will not be smoked, steaming or poaching is recommended. Cooking by steaming or poaching is explained in Chapter 6.

Minced-Ham Lunchmeat

Many kinds of lunchmeats are actually sausages. A product variously called 
chopped ham
, 
minced ham,
 or 
pressed ham
 is one such product, and it is widely sold in grocery stores. The commercially produced product looks good, but the taste of salt overrides all other flavors. If you make the product described below, it is likely that you will no longer be satisfied with the commercial product. The following minced ham will look similar to the commercial product, but it will have a delicious ham flavor that is lacking in minced-ham lunchmeat offered by the large meat processors.

THE CASINGS

Fibrous casings about 2½ inches (6.4 cm) in diameter are used for this sausage. Two casings that are about 12 inches (30 cm) long each will be required. Soak the casings in water for 30 minutes before stuffing. Be sure to flood the inside of the casing with warm water. If this product will not be smoked, it may be processed in a loaf pan instead of fibrous casings—please see 
Sausage Loaf (Lunchmeat Loaf)
 in Chapter 6.

THE MEAT

Use 2½ lbs. (1,150 g) of pork butt. Roughly separate the lean meat from the fat. Mince the lean meat with a ¼-inch (6.4 mm) plate, and mince the fat with a
-inch (4.8 mm) plate. The fat should be partially frozen before it is ground. Combine the lean meat and the fat. Refrigerate the meat while the curing mixture is being prepared.

SEASONINGS AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

2 tsp. (10 ml) salt

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) Cure #1

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) white pepper

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) onion powder

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) garlic powder

4 tsp. (20 ml) maple syrup OR 1 Tbsp. (15 ml) honey

¼ cup (60 ml) water

¼ cup (60 ml) water

½ cup (120 ml) powdered skim milk

MIXING AND STUFFING

¼ cup (60 ml) water

1. 
 Mix all the seasoning ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl, including the water and powdered milk.

2. 
 Add the meat to the seasoning mixture. Blend by kneading until it is uniform. This will require about three minutes.

3. 
 Stuff the sausage into casings. Insert the cable probe of an electronic thermometer in the open end of one of the sausages, and close the casing around the probe with butcher’s twine.