Kiełbasa Toruńska – Sausage from Toruń
Kielbasa Toruńska is a popular and well known sausage named after the city of Toruń, the birth place of Nicholas Copernicus. It is a semi dry sausage with traditional ingredients, intended for a longer shelf life in an unrefrigerated environment. What is somewhat unusual about Kiełbasa Toruńska is the process. Standard practice is to first smoke the sausage and then bring it to a cooked temperature by poaching. Toruńska, on the other hand, is first poached and then warm smoked for an extended period of time. The result is a drier, harder texture with a stronger smoke and spice flavour. A very good kiełbasa that is hard to stop eating. The recipe that I used in this instance is based on the instructions in the 1959 compendium published for the Polish government run sausage plants and the book Wędliny Domowe by Robert Winckiewicz . The Marianskis also published recipes in their books and on their website: https://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausag ... h/torunska The only thing that I did different is that I did not link the sausage but, left it in a continuous coil.
Recipe
Meats
Pork, Class II, 80%
Pork, Class III, 20%
Ingredients for 1kg of meats
Non iodized salt – 18g
Cure #1 – 2g
Pepper – 2.5g
Garlic – 2g
Sugar – 1g
Iced water - 50-75ml
Instructions
Cube meats into 2cm chunks mix in the salt, curing salt and sugar. Pack into a container, cover with cellophane wrap and cure in fridge for 40 hours.
Grind the Class II semi-fat pork with the 6-8mm plate. Grind the Class III pork with the 2-3mm plate, add the pepper and garlic, approximately 20-25% water (relative to the Class III) and make an emulsion using a food processor or blender. Another option is to grind the Class III meat with the 3mm plate 3 times, chilling it for a time in the freezer between grinds.
Mix the emulsion with ground Class II, adding up to 5% of water, until you have a completely blended and glutinous batter.
Stuff firmly into pre-soaked and flushed 32-36mm hog casings, prick the stuffed sausages to release any air pockets.
Form 25-30 cm (12-14”) links (I did not do that)
Condition the sausage by hanging at room temperature for 1 – 2 hours
Poach in water at 72-75° C (160-167° F) until sausages reach 68-70° C (154-158° F) internal temperature.
After poaching cool the sausage with water for approximately 10 minutes.
Preheat the smoker to 40-50C(104-122F), load the sausage and allow enough time for to dry completely. Smoke in same temperature range continuously with heavy smoke for 12hours.
Hang the sausage in a cool room, with a temp of less than 15C(59F) For several hours.
The kiełbasa will have a weight loss of 15-20% and is ready to eat.
This recipe was first posted in the FB group, the Polish Sausage Club https://www.facebook.com/groups/564056007388967
