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Topic: Making summer sausage. . . . From: Kelly,
Subject: Re: Sausage

Thanks for the info, Smoky. Got quite a bit of venisen this year. How about you? I would like to try making summer sausage and will probably mix with beef fat first unless you suggest otherwise. How do I proceed?

Kelly

Hi Kelly,

First, get some venison.

Clean it well, trim all the sinew, silverskin, damaged meat, cartilage etc. and cut into 1" chunks. Weigh and mix with an equal amount of beef or pork fat (or a combination of the two) If you use beef fat, the best source is from around the kidneys. You can buy Morton's (the salt folk) seasonings already mixed or mix a recipe yourself. What kind of sausage you want to wind up with will greatly influence the recipe. Whether you want a breakfast sausage, a summer sausage or a smoked sausage will determine what you do hereafter. It will also determine the type and size of casing you will need. Any decent meat market ought to have sausage casings. If they do not have them in stock, they can quickly order them in. Specify what size and type that you want.

In any case, sprinkle the seasoning well and evenly over the meat and fat and mix well with your hands. (wear good rubber gloves) Run through the grinder using the coarse plate (large holes), prepare the casings, change to the fine plate (small holes), install the stuffing attachment. Grind the mixture again into the casings.

Next steps vary according to sausage/cure type. Otherwise, refrigerate, freeze or cold smoke at 90°F. for 8-24 hours or hot smoke 120-170°F for 4-6 hrs. Freeze or refrigerate thereafter.

Fun,
Smoky