Beef Bung Cap

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Rick
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Beef Bung Cap

Post by Rick » Sat Oct 04, 2014 16:05

I was going to stuff my second attempt at headcheese into a Beef Bung Cap. I noticed that the bottom is naturally closed and about 4-5 inches from the open end there is another natural opening about 1 1/2 inches in diameter in the side. Well I got my bung filled which was kind of a pain ladling past that hole, and because it's me attempting this operation, of coarse that side hole tore open. So now I'm going with a fibrous casing.

But just for future reference, before I soak the natural bung and while it's in its salted dry state, should I find that side hole and cut the end off to that small hole to stop the tearing of that smaller hole.
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Bob K
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Post by Bob K » Sat Oct 04, 2014 17:32

Rick-

I don't think that was a natural hole. I have done a bunch or Cappicolas using beef bungs and only one had a hole in the side. Since I was stuffing a whole muscle piece into it I was able to patch with a section cut off from the end.

Just check the casing for holes before you start.
For me if making headcheese synthetic is the way to go. Its only on a short period of time.
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Post by Rick » Sat Oct 04, 2014 17:58

Bob, since I had ordered two of the beef bung caps, I just went and checked the other salted cap and it does indeed have that hole in the side. Now in the salted state it would be very easy to just take a knife and cut the bung back to that hole and I think the problem would be solved. Or I suppose one could sew it shut before soaking in the warm water, but I'm not sure as to what kind of thread would be used for that.
Here's a diagram that shows that side hole. See the beef diagram.
http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/x6556e/X6556E03.htm

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Post by Bob K » Sat Oct 04, 2014 18:17

If you wanted to go through the hassle you can sew it with a #4 glovers needle and nymo ( size D nylon thread) or even cotton hand quilting thread. . Using a simple whip stitch.

Much easier to tie it off and go from there!
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Post by Bob K » Sat Oct 11, 2014 16:53

Hey Rick-
Just FYI check out the pictures Redzed posted of his Head cheese....Beef bung-no holes.

Those diagrams can be misleading as far as dimensions...the middles are meters long.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v310/ ... 57a137.jpg
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Post by Rick » Sat Oct 11, 2014 19:37

Hi Bob, I see that. The beef bung caps I ordered were from BP. They both had that extra small hole in the side. The one that I soaked and used, which tore, and the unused one that I inspected also has the side hole.

Of coarse once I soaked the first one, the hole did grow to about 1-1 1/4 inches in diameter. As you probably know, once they've been soaked in warm water, they do for the lack of a better word, become snotty feeling, so there's no sewing now.

As for my unused bung, I'll just solve the problem by taking a pair of scissors and trimming away the bung material to the bottom of the hole, albeit I'll be losing about 4 inches of casing.

Perhaps if redzed reads this post, he'll inform us as to whether or not his cap had that small side hole.

I suppose I could always call BP and ask them about it, but it's really no big deal to just do the trimming.
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Post by Janlab » Sun Oct 12, 2014 01:44

The beef bung cap is the cecum, which is the start of the large intestine. Into it, but not at the end, enters the small intestine or rounds, hence the hole. So if your bungcap is long enough, it will have the hole. Short ones would have been cut beneath it.
In humans the analogous structure is the ileocecal valve. Insidentally, in humans the appendix hang from the bottom of the cecum, a source of much misery!
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Post by redzed » Sun Oct 12, 2014 06:54

Rick, the bung certainly did have that hole, (as do all of the bund I get) about 2 inches from the open end and was about 3/4" in diameter. This was a smaller bung about 41/2 inches in diameter, so a bigger bung would have a larger hole. I used half of the bung for the salceson, and used the other half on some lonzino. That cut was not that big so I cut off the section with the hole.
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Post by Rick » Sun Oct 12, 2014 13:31

Thanks Jan and Red, I knew I wasn't losing my mind and seeing things!
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