BREAKFAST SAUSAGE




This is more commonly known as Pork Sausage.

This sausage contains all the steps for making fresh sausage so it is a good place to begin.



MEAT

All sausage begins with meat so we will devote a few lines to the subject. First of all, avoiding fat in sausage is like avoiding alcohol in a cocktail. What you end up with may be eatable or even good but fat really is an integral part of traditional sausage which will always taste better than the "health food" version. Most sausage requires about 30% fat, so keep this in mind, both in planning a sausage and troubleshooting one that does not turn out right.

I have found the most practical beef to use is round steak as it is easy to cut into 1" strips that just breeze through a typical small grinder. However, just about any kind of beef can be used, just keep in mind the 30% fat rule.

Almost synonymous with sausage is pork and other than religion, I can't think of any reason to keep pork out of a suasage. In fact, not using pork, leads to many of the problems first encountered in home made sausage. Pork provides the moisture and texture we look for and when used by itself or with beef, requires none of the wierd industrial additives found in even home made recipes.

Virtually any kind of pork can be used so just buy what's on sale. I usually buy shoulders and have the butcher bone them for me.

Once you have selected the meat, the most important aspect of handling it is to keep it cold througout the process. Warm meat turns to mush in the grinder and by the time it is stuffed will look like liver sausage. Furthermore, warm meat encourages the growth of bacteria and can produce serious health risks.

The closer it is to freezing the better. I clear a space in the freezer for my tub and put it there after every step, for at least 30 minutes. Partially thawed meat grinds very well. After grinding, I put it in the freezer while cleaning up the grinder and changing plates or stuffing tube. I usually leave it in the freezer for at least an hour before stuffing.

When a recipe calls for several different meats, I always grind a few pieces of each type in a round table sequence. This makes later mixing and blending more thorough.

SPICES AND STUFF

Most recipes simply require measuring out the spices and liquid and then mixing into the meat mixture. I generally sprinkle some of the spice mix over the meat as I am grinding. Grind a fourth of the meat and add a fourth of the spice etc. After grinding, mix will with your hands but avoid the urge to squeeze it through you fist... just a thorough mixing and then return it to the freezer.

I usually grind my meats twice and chill between. I start with the smaller 3/16" plate and follow this with the larger 1/4" plate. By the time it has gone through the second grind, it is well mixed and a nice texture for typical sausage.

All this assumes you own a grinder, if not just have the butcher grind it up for you.

Breakfast Sausage Recipe

PORK, boned ..........................................1 lb
SALT, pickling (non iodized)................. 1 tsp
PEPPER, ground ......................................1/4 tsp
SAGE, rubbed.............................................1/2 tsp
GINGER.........................................................1/8 tsp
NUTMEG.......................................................1/4 tsp
THYME...........................................................1/4 tsp
PAPRIKA........................................................1/4 tsp
WATER..........................................................2 oz

Grind pork through a 3/16" plate.

Mix all other ingredients in bowl and then mix into ground meat.

Chill in freezer for 30 min.

Grind through 1/4" plate.

If you just want bulk sausage, you can form into patties or just store in freezer bags, in freezer.

If you are going to stuff.....

Chill in freezer for 30 min.

Stuff into sheep casings.

This is no more difficult than it sounds if you know a few tricks. Just rinse about 3 feet of sheep casings in cold water and after finding the hole in one end, feed this onto the stuffing tube. Just keep sliding it on the tube until you reach the end. Tie a knot at the end and start stuffing. It is a lot easier with a helper to either keep the stuffer full or to do the stuffing.

When the 3 ft casing is full, lay it out on a counter and smooth it out with the hands to a uniform thickness. About 3" from one end, pinch the casing and give the link a full twist. Pinch again about 3" from the first link and twist in the opposite direction. Continue in this manner to the end, always twisting the current link in the opposite direction from the previous.

I always put the meat back into the freezer while linking just to keep it cold. Once the process is learned, you can stuff the whole batch and link them all at one time.

Hang the stuffed sausage in a cool place to dry to the touch, approximately 30 minutes.

Refrigerate or freeze immediately after drying.

You now have your own home made sausage. All the fresh sausages are made in the same manner.

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18016 Church Road ~ Marengo IL 60152
Phone:815 923 0031 ~ Email:arf@mc.net