Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post Reply
LinkMeAllOver
Beginner
Beginner
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2019 18:57

Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by LinkMeAllOver » Sun Oct 16, 2022 18:51

Just wondering if anyone has a recipe or recommendation for making a low salt/sodium product. Obviously this is less than ideal, as least for me, as I prefer to use whole foods only when making sausage. That said, I've had a number of people come to me asking if I can make a low sodium option. I know there's things like textured soy protein, milk powder, various gums, potato starch, and less common things like carrot fiber.

Does anyone here have any experience with these ingredients and/or have some info on how to best use them in lieu of salt?

Thanks.
User avatar
jcflorida
User
User
Posts: 98
Joined: Wed Dec 06, 2017 21:14
Location: Orlando

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by jcflorida » Sun Oct 16, 2022 21:24

I don't know how to use those in lieu of salt, but I make most of my fresh and cooked sausages using 50% salt and 50% "No Salt". The No Salt is potassium chloride, so reduces the sodium that my cardiologist scolds me about every time I see him.

Here's a link to discussion of reduced salt sausage in the main site: https://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausag ... lt-sausage
User avatar
Dumoine
Beginner
Beginner
Posts: 32
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2011 19:26
Location: Traverse City, Michigan

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by Dumoine » Sun Oct 30, 2022 19:10

I have found that reducing the salt to 1% in most sausage recipes results in an improvement of flavor. Many recipes call for 1.5% or more. In my opinion, that higher salt content make salt too dominant and masks the taste of the meat and seasonings.
User avatar
Scogar
Passionate
Passionate
Posts: 218
Joined: Tue Jan 08, 2019 23:28
Location: Atlanta GA

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by Scogar » Sun Oct 30, 2022 19:21

I haven't ventured down to 1% but I'm making a lot of fresh or cooked sausages between 1.5 and 2.0%, many falling around 1.6%. I have not made any uncooked dry sausage so far, but I know that salt percentage becomes far more important to safety with the raw meats. Again, I do hope to "finally" make some uncooked dry sausage this year as I hoped to last year and the year before.
SmokenEdge
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Feb 22, 2020 17:32

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by SmokenEdge » Thu Nov 17, 2022 04:05

You don’t have to use any salt in a fresh sausage, or use as little as you like. In semi-dried or dried sausages salt, specifically sodium chloride is essential. In cured sausage that will be cold smoked, salt is essential, but if hot smoked, not dried, and you go from 40-140F in 4 hours internal temperature you are fine.
LinkMeAllOver
Beginner
Beginner
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2019 18:57

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by LinkMeAllOver » Mon Nov 28, 2022 20:03

SmokenEdge wrote:
Thu Nov 17, 2022 04:05
You don’t have to use any salt in a fresh sausage, or use as little as you like.
I'm not sure where you're getting that information from but it's empirically not true at all. You definitely have to use a certain minimum of salt to get a bind, regardless of what kind of sausage you're making.

@Dumoline - How is the bind when you go as low as 1%? I've bottomed my recipes out at 1.43% to maintain a nice springy bind.

Also, a general question for anyone who knows. Is potassium chloride also a salt that will draw out the binding proteins that sodium chloride does? I'm clear on its use as a salt substitute in terms of flavour, but not if it helps with the sausage making process.

Lastly, I'm eyeing a combination of non-fat milk powder, potato starch, and soy protein isolate to help the bind along if I drop the salt as low or lower than 1%. Does anyone have practical experience with these ingredients?
User avatar
Dumoine
Beginner
Beginner
Posts: 32
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2011 19:26
Location: Traverse City, Michigan

Re: Anybody experiment with low salt sausages?

Post by Dumoine » Thu Dec 01, 2022 21:49

I get a good bind with 1% salt. I mix the sausage in a stand mixer and it gets good and sticky. In some sausages I will go 1.1% or a little higher, it depends on what I am making. I have found that when making sausage with with wine and cheese, the salt needs to be a little higher to bring out the flavor of the cheese. I make my own sausage because it is better than what I can buy. It is better than what I can buy often times because of the lower salt content.
Post Reply