Homemade Sausage Making

Hello All
Have a question regarding venison in sausage, like Kielbasa, etc.

I had 7.5 lbs of hind-quarter venison meat and 2.5 lbs brisket fat trimmings that I cured with #1, and all the salt for two days before grinding. (I got excellent bind doing this.) I then added the S/P, garlic and marjoram, plus 2 cups water.

It had excellent taste, aroma, and snap after smoking. But, the texture was a bit firm, more like a beef stick, and definitely was not juicy. Does venison need 1 1/2 cups water instead of just 1 cup per 5# batch?

I made half the batch into some breakfast links in 21mm size collagen, and I did put on some new muscle in the workout it gave me. The regular kielbasa was in 32mm--no troubles there.

So you venison sausage makers -- do you always add a bit more water than when using beef and / or pork? As I said above, just venison and brisket trimmings is what I had to be used.

Thanks guys!

R


I know that beef can handle 1 to 1 1/2 cups water per 5 # batch.

Definitely not more water, to make it moister use 50% venison and 50% pork and pork fat. Venison because it contains little fat is very dry.

I agree with Bob that the sausage will be better with fatty pork. Beef fat is hard and has a waxy mouth feel when the sausage is eaten cold. As to the water, as with most other sausages, you can add up to 10% but make sure you mix well so that the water is absorbed. You have to also adjust the water amount to the amount of fat, since it does not hold water.

I agree. Key to good deer sausage is adding liberal amounts of pork fat.

Thanks much to all of you.

I'll be adding more fat.

R