Homemade Sausage Making

My first attempt at sausage making is now under my belt. I made a few rookie mistakes but Chuckwagon`s "32 sausage making tips to save you Grief" stopped me from making 32 mistakes but I found a few that he did not anticipate (Steelchef warned me that he was getting old and forgetful)
I used the Hot Smoked Polish Kielbasa recipe from the wedlinydomowe.com site and I think it turned out pretty good. I will be looking into getting a vertical stuffer and will be coming after all you guys with a lot more questions to help me improve once my old brain has a chance to process what I just accomplished and my belly has had a chance to settle down from eating too much Polish Kielbasa!
Some of my mistakes were as follows.
1. Overstuffing (causing the casing to burst)
2. Struggled with the casing (in general)
3. Getting my smoker too corporate. (tough time getting the temperature stabilized)
4. Not thinking ahead and getting to excited (I blame that on being male)
Here are some pictures

They look great jbk101, nice color, how did they taste ? I was thinking of trying this recipe for some Easter brunch sausages I am a beginner as well but I can tell you this, a nice stuffer makes life much easier

They tasted real good! I smoked this batch with a 50/50 mixture of Cherry and Apple until the internal temperature of the kielbasa was 155 degrees F. And the comment about the stuffer is right on that was probally the hardest part But I will over come the issues with some practice.
John

Hi JBK! Wow, nice job! love to help you with quality control taste testing. Those look great.
I've made this recipe twice now and am planning to make it again this weekend. I've been using hickory and it turned out well. I'll use it again for this batch and then try something else.
Did you have problems with stuffing? Me too. I broke down and bought a new vertical stuffer for this batch. Chuckwagon says that this the only way to go. I'll find out for sure in a few hours. Hopefully I can get some pictures to post for the "jury".
Again, "nice job". Love to share them with you.

Palace Hill

I can bring the beer. Very fine looking work. My day will come, I hope.

Way to go John! Wow, it looks like you`ve been making sausage for thirty years! They are gorgeous. Well done my friend. Now can you see why people get tired of paying double for an inferior product at the grocery store? I'd be willing to bet that you just saved 60% AND you have a much better sausage!

I believe you chose the best recipe possible for good Polish kielbasa. Stan Marianski doesn`t like to put in too many "perfumes and spices". He says the best sausage is simply spiced with salt and pepper and I agree with him. You wouldn`t believe how many folks overspice their first attempts at sausage making. I would guess MOST of them! All I can say John, is that I wish my first attempts at sausagemaking looked as good as yours. Well done pal! What`s next? Have you thought about a "semi-dry cured" product such as Landjagger? Keep posting those great photos.

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon

Palace hill
Hello, Yes I did have the most problems during the stuffing process. The first problem I had was getting the casing to feed cleanly onto the stuffing tube. I lubed it up real good but still had difficulty feeding it onto the tube. I switched to a slightly smaller tube and then I seemed to be able to get it to feed onto the tube easier.
While stuffing I had some problems with the casing filling with air around the stuffing tube (see attached Picture)
The other problem (I think these two are related) was feeding into the grinder, the meat mixture seemed not to want to flow without some force and that seemed to create some suction. I am not sure on this but I might not have had the right attachment installed for the stuffer to work properly. When I got the grinder/stuffer (new but a return item that I got for half the cost) did not have the manual with it so I kind of guessed at which ones to use.
The third problem was also related (I think) that since I had a hard time getting the meat mixture to "flow" through the grinder the casing filled with air and had a tendency to break which is why I have different size links etc.
But overall the experience was a good one just have to figure out some minor issues and learn how to improve so any suggestions and comments etc. are highly appreciated.
John

Chuckwagon
Thanks for all the kind comments and encouragement also for all your help and guidance! In the short time I have learned allot from joining this forum and really looking to learn more! I also post to an about.com forum and will pass this sites info on to the members that belong to that forum in the hope of getting more members etc.
I followed Stan`s recipe to the tee and I even added the spices and mixed it in small batches (2.20 lbs. per batch)
Mixing it by hand and then after mixing all the small batches I combined it all into one big batch before starting the stuffing process.
The next step for me is to try making some other types of Sausage, like Kabanosy (Hunters Sausage), Bratwurst, Breakfast type of Sausages and some homemade hot dogs

I also am looking at trying some cold smoking and will be making my own cold smoke generator soon. Steelchef passed some info along to me on this, and I have done own research on it, and think I can duplicate something rather inexpensively for my smoker.

I have thought about and probably will advance at some point to the "semi-dry cured" products but I will try to get better at the basic type of sausage making techniques before getting more brave and doing more advance type of products.

One day we need to "all" get together bring along some of our Sausages, Bread and of course lots of Beer for a little Quality Control Tasting Session!

Again thanks to all members for you help and kind words
John

OUTSTANDING job John!

I am totally impressed with the way in which you have approached this. So many of us bring old/bad habits to the process. You have chosen the right way. Discard the baggage and follow the path of truth. Jeez, now I'm sounding religious. In a way I guess this is a religion.
"Strict adherence to a belief or philosophy which we believe will help us to attain the highest order of ultimate reward."
Well my friend, you are at least a Deacon.
A word about your issues with unwanted air. I always prick the end of my first link. That allows the initial air to flow through. If the valve on your stuffer is working properly, there should be no other serious issues. If you do end up with air pockets, pricking them is perfectly acceptable. Do this while they are fresh and squeeze the air out. Using a too small tube can contribute. I had to experiment quite a bit in order to find a suitable tube for hog casings. Casings should also be thoroughly soaked prior to stuffing. If they have been frozen, a lot of water content may have been evaporated. Sounds pretty simple but it's not always so. Stuffing casings is kind of like riding a bike. Not all that hard to learn, just takes time an patience.
Keep up the good work John. You are an inspiration to many newcomers and us oldsters too.

Hi guys,
Some time ago, I made slick little adapter by braise-welding a piece of copper tubing to an old threaded screw-tap connection. I filed an almost "sharpened" slanted end on the tube (like a huge hypodermic needle) that allows me to quickly change the nozzle on the kitchen tap to a slightly tapered but smooth "fitting" for finding its way into wet casings quickly for flushing without a hassle. (I buffed out any sharp burrs and edges.) To get the casing started over the tubing, I've found that if I snip off the very end of the casing with a pair of scissors, it is a snap to slide over the tube. I place a deep bowl beneath the tap to contain the casings as they are flushing with water for several minutes.

Same with getting casings onto the stuffing tube of the stuffer... I snip the very end off the casing cleanly with a pair of scissors. Lubricating with anything but water is a big mistake. Butter, oil, grease, etc. will "smear" the inside of the casing and interfere with drying and smoking. It also changes the cooking rate and appearance of the sausage when they are fried up. Just put a large "bubble" of water into the casing before you slide it on the tube and work it down through the casing as the rest slides onto the tube.
I use a piano tuner's "voicing needle" to take out any trapped air bubbles. Actually the tool has four elongated needles (in a row) that work very well.

The best news for you at this point is... ta da!.... when you get your new vertical stuffing machine, those problems will have magically seemed to all but dissappear! Oh, you still have to watch what you're doing alright, but it just takes all the hassle, work, and frustration out of the process.

I also made my own 18mm o.d. kabanosy stuffing tube from a piece of stainless steel tubing that I braise-welded onto a connection to fit my vertical stuffer. Now I just slip an entire "tube" of 19mm collagen casing over the nozzle and kabanosy is just a matter of seconds. My wife and I make it so quickly, we have to have someone help lay it out in lengths as it comes out of the stuffer.

Hmmm.... yes, yes... indeed as I did a batch last Saturday, it was coming out of the stuffer so quickly that the plastic fitting around the nozzle started to smoke! Then it suddenly it burst into flames! I guess I better slow down eh? You see, the flames caught my wife's new kitchen curtains on fire and we had to bring in the yard hose just to wet down the kitchen!

Hang in there sausagemakers and keep grindin' and smilin'. Life is too short to frown!
Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon

Hi John, Cannot but help to admire the sausages you made. Stuffing sausages with a mincer must be one of the most frustrating things to do on the planet.
Just a tip when you do get your stuffer is to use your thumb and fore finger to control the meat as it comes out of the tube, the trick is to make the meat sort of fold back onto the tip of the tube, that way the meat goes into the casing and the air is forced out the back end of the casing.

Maz
Thanks for the tips! I already have contacted my used equipment source to see if he has stuffer available.