Halusia's Kabanosy
Halusia's Kabanosy
Halusia's Kabanosy
There is a long and continuing thread on the Polish WD forum on the subject of Halusia's Kabanosy. Countless forum members have tested her recipe with satisfaction and compliments. I finally got around to giving them a try as well. It's a very basic recipe, but with a couple of subtle differences. Kabanosy are made differently than other sausages when it comes to mixing the ground meat and spices. Most sausage recipes will tell you to mix until the mass is sticky and gluey, making it possible for a ball of meat to stick to your palm without falling off. Not so with Kabanosy, you do not mix to that consistency, but rather fold the meat just so the spices are distributed. Otherwise the finished sausage sticks will be rubbery like licorice twists. What you want to achieve is a crumbly or brittle texture so that the kabanos snaps easily in two. Original Kabanosy are made with sheep casings and now I know why. The casing is thin, sticks very well to the sausage, gives off a nice snap when you bite into it, and experts claim that it imparts a special flavour.
I followed Halusia's recipe quite closely with a couple of minor deviations. I added sugar to the cure as in the traditional recipe, which is supposed to assist in the activity of lactic acid that help in making the meat less sticky. (that is not my theory, so don't ask me to explain). For the meat I used pork loin, picnic trimmings and threw in a bit of back fat since jowl is impossible to source here. Kabanosy are supposed to be a bit on the fatty side. Note that in the recipe the spices are mixed into the cubed meat after curing and before grinding. That step reduces the amount of mixing before stuffing. I should also add that Kabanosy are never poached or cooled with water.
Halusia's Kabanosy Recipe
Pork , class I - 30% hind leg (fresh ham)
Pork, class II - 30% ham and/or picnic trimmings, 40% pork jowl
Curing ingredients - salt 16g/kg, Cure#1 2g/kg (I also added sugar, 2g/kg)
Added before grinding:
Fresh ground pepper - 1.8g/kg
Nutmeg - 0.5g/kg
Caraway - 0.7g/kg (I toasted and ground mine)
Garlic - 2.0g/kg
Cubed meat cured for 48 hours
Class I meat ground with 10mm plate
Class II meat ground with 6mm plate
Sheep casings are stuffed firmly
Setting (drying) approximately 12hours at 2-8 C (35-45 F) (Mine set at room temp. for approximately 90 minutes)
Drying (in smoker) up to 60 C (140 F)
Smoking at 45-70 C (115-155 F) until achieving the right colour, around 60 to 90 minutes (mine took a little over 2 hours)
Finish (bake) at 85-90 C (185-195 F) around 20-30 minutes (I did mine for an hour at 170-175 F)
Cooling by air.
The recipe does not go into drying the sausages. Traditional recipes call for drying at a temp of 12-15 C and humidity of around 75%, until reaching losing 40-45% of raw weight. I dried mine for 24hrs at 18°, then 2 days in my curing chamber at 12°. They are ready to eat, so who cares about the weight loss percentage!
There is a long and continuing thread on the Polish WD forum on the subject of Halusia's Kabanosy. Countless forum members have tested her recipe with satisfaction and compliments. I finally got around to giving them a try as well. It's a very basic recipe, but with a couple of subtle differences. Kabanosy are made differently than other sausages when it comes to mixing the ground meat and spices. Most sausage recipes will tell you to mix until the mass is sticky and gluey, making it possible for a ball of meat to stick to your palm without falling off. Not so with Kabanosy, you do not mix to that consistency, but rather fold the meat just so the spices are distributed. Otherwise the finished sausage sticks will be rubbery like licorice twists. What you want to achieve is a crumbly or brittle texture so that the kabanos snaps easily in two. Original Kabanosy are made with sheep casings and now I know why. The casing is thin, sticks very well to the sausage, gives off a nice snap when you bite into it, and experts claim that it imparts a special flavour.
I followed Halusia's recipe quite closely with a couple of minor deviations. I added sugar to the cure as in the traditional recipe, which is supposed to assist in the activity of lactic acid that help in making the meat less sticky. (that is not my theory, so don't ask me to explain). For the meat I used pork loin, picnic trimmings and threw in a bit of back fat since jowl is impossible to source here. Kabanosy are supposed to be a bit on the fatty side. Note that in the recipe the spices are mixed into the cubed meat after curing and before grinding. That step reduces the amount of mixing before stuffing. I should also add that Kabanosy are never poached or cooled with water.
Halusia's Kabanosy Recipe
Pork , class I - 30% hind leg (fresh ham)
Pork, class II - 30% ham and/or picnic trimmings, 40% pork jowl
Curing ingredients - salt 16g/kg, Cure#1 2g/kg (I also added sugar, 2g/kg)
Added before grinding:
Fresh ground pepper - 1.8g/kg
Nutmeg - 0.5g/kg
Caraway - 0.7g/kg (I toasted and ground mine)
Garlic - 2.0g/kg
Cubed meat cured for 48 hours
Class I meat ground with 10mm plate
Class II meat ground with 6mm plate
Sheep casings are stuffed firmly
Setting (drying) approximately 12hours at 2-8 C (35-45 F) (Mine set at room temp. for approximately 90 minutes)
Drying (in smoker) up to 60 C (140 F)
Smoking at 45-70 C (115-155 F) until achieving the right colour, around 60 to 90 minutes (mine took a little over 2 hours)
Finish (bake) at 85-90 C (185-195 F) around 20-30 minutes (I did mine for an hour at 170-175 F)
Cooling by air.
The recipe does not go into drying the sausages. Traditional recipes call for drying at a temp of 12-15 C and humidity of around 75%, until reaching losing 40-45% of raw weight. I dried mine for 24hrs at 18°, then 2 days in my curing chamber at 12°. They are ready to eat, so who cares about the weight loss percentage!
Last edited by redzed on Wed Nov 23, 2016 18:21, edited 2 times in total.
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Naw, you don't need a curing chamber to make these, you can dry them just about anywhere. They are thin diameter and fully cooked and dry quickly. The folks who post on the Polish forum dry them in the kitchen, on balconies, attics and cellars. If you have a place at home under 18° (65F), hang them them there for three days and they will be perfect. The fridge is an option, but leave them out at room temp for a full day first. I don't know whether it's just me, but I found that drying them in the fridge takes something away from the flavour, in a way diminishing its robustness.
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Thanks Bob. There is not much difference in Halusia's Kabanosy and the the one you posted here http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.php?t=5979&start=0 a couple of years ago. But there are differences in the production process, main ones being the 48hr cure and adding the spices before grinding. Today's pork butts may also be a bit on the lean side, and kabanosy are thin, but fatty little sausages. The sheep casings are an integral part of traditional kabanosy, and there is absolutely no comparison to those accordion collagen tubes from China. The only drawback, of course, is the cost. I paid 50 bucks for a hank of 22mm casings. But, they were of excellent quality, and I had only a couple of bursts in a 10kg batch which were my fault.Baconologist wrote:Looks great!
I'm glad to see these made with traditional sheep's casings rather than the collagen craziness that's become popular.
redzed wrote:Naw, you don't need a curing chamber to make these, you can dry them just about anywhere. They are thin diameter and fully cooked and dry quickly. The folks who post on the Polish forum dry them in the kitchen, on balconies, attics and cellars. If you have a place at home under 18° (65F), hang them them there for three days and they will be perfect. The fridge is an option, but leave them out at room temp for a full day first. I don't know whether it's just me, but I found that drying them in the fridge takes something away from the flavour, in a way diminishing its robustness.
Thanks !! sheep casing will be ordered next .
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Yeah. After I posted that I went and looked and prices. Sheep casings are expensive!!! At the moment, a little out of my zone, but I'll have to give it a shot soon. Are the collagen casings an ok sub for the sheep casings?cogboy wrote:The sausagemaker has a hank for $53 w/free shipping.rgauthier20420 wrote:That is some amazing color you've got on those Red. I like the simplicity of the recipe. I think I'm gonna have to get some sheep casings and give these a shot.
I'm not sure and we will leave that answer for the website pros!rgauthier20420 wrote:Yeah. After I posted that I went and looked and prices. Sheep casings are expensive!!! At the moment, a little out of my zone, but I'll have to give it a shot soon. Are the collagen casings an ok sub for the sheep casings?cogboy wrote:The sausagemaker has a hank for $53 w/free shipping.rgauthier20420 wrote:That is some amazing color you've got on those Red. I like the simplicity of the recipe. I think I'm gonna have to get some sheep casings and give these a shot.
Another inspirational thread Red I like the way the recipe and process is presented over a straight-jacket formatted approach. Bookmarked for another one to make (without the curing chamber). I've learned not to just copy a recipe but rather to keep track of the whole thread because there is almost always something to know as the thread progresses.