Hot Water Bath

[pfowl01]

I just discovered the world of hot water bathing for finishing sausage( Thanks to Mike & Kirby )......WOW awesome, I LOVE IT!!! I was just wondering if anyone has done this to snack sticks? Maybe not on collagen, but I bet you could on natural casings.

[NePaSmoKer]

Yes you can hot water bath collagen casings.

[pikeman_95]

You probably can use it on collagen casings but they need to be smoked right after stuffing and you need to keep and eye on them and don't over do it. If they spend the night in the fridge after stuffing the collagen casings start to soften.

[Mr Walleye]

Did you give it a shot Paul?

Kirby (Pikeman_95) gets the credit on this. At least he's the one that passed this process onto me. I had played with injecting steam into my big smoker to bring the sausage up to temp quicker after the smoke process but it was much more complicated than the hot water bath method.

I don't use collagen casings. My only experiences with them wasn't very good. I'm not sure if it's the casings that are available here or what.

Mike

[pikeman_95]

I think for the more assured results in the water bath I would stick with natural casings and I have used fibrous casings with good results but I do not have much experience with the collagen casings. We might just need to establish a system for this. There is a large desire to use the collagen casings for meat sticks and it might work best if we make sure that the ends are tied so that water does not get between the meat and the casing. From what I have read before on guys that have tried it I think they either left in the water too long or have left the ends exposed to the water. just my two bits but if anyone has any ideas lets work on it and come up with the answer.

[pfowl01]

Did you give it a shot Paul?

Yes I did....works beautifully ;D I love it...gonna do all my sausage this way! I was just wondering if anyone does it with snack sticks. Thanks again for all the help!!!

[Mr Walleye]

That's an excellent idea Kirby.

Anybody who tries collagen snack sticks and finishes in a hot water bath it would be really nice if they kept all the details and post them. That way, piece by piece, maybe we can come up with a process.

Mike

[NePaSmoKer]

Ok like a cross dresser i'm forced to come outta the closet  :D

Yes you can hot water bath 17-19mm collagen sticks. Here is proof.






Oh i feel so much better now  :D  :D

CRAPPERS

The lid is off the receipt vault.

[pfowl01]

AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH   HHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAA another secret revealed :D :D ;D ;)

[pfowl01]

Say Kirby,
Why is you take the sausage IT to 155? Isn't 152 safe....why 155?

[Mr Walleye]

Excellent Rick!

So....

Did you allow the sticks to rest in the fridge over night after stuffing or was it straight to the smoker?

About how much time or at what temp did you pull them from the smoker and drop them in the water bath?

What temp was the water bath at and at what IT did you pull the sticks at?

Did you cold water shower them or just hang and bloom?

I probably have more questions once I think a little longer.  ;D

Mike

[Mr Walleye]

Paul

From everything I have read 152 degrees is the number. The main reason (my belief) to take them to 155 degrees is because of the swift rise in IT during this process (hot water bath). Kinda of a safety margin so to speak.

At least that's my take on it.

Mike

[pikeman_95]

Say Kirby,
Why is you take the sausage IT to 155? Isn't 152 safe....why 155?

the sausage maker used to use that temperature all the time and I like to be safe. Old story but my family had a friend die of botulism poisoning when I was a kid. It was not nice. you do not suffer any fat out issues at 155 but go to 160-165 and beyond and the fat starts to melt and drain away. That is why I add the cold water to my bath when the IT reaches 155. I do not want it to go any higher.

[NePaSmoKer]

Excellent Rick!

So....

Did you allow the sticks to rest in the fridge over night after stuffing or was it straight to the smoker?

About how much time or at what temp did you pull them from the smoker and drop them in the water bath?

What temp was the water bath at and at what IT did you pull the sticks at?

Did you cold water shower them or just hang and bloom?

I probably have more questions once I think a little longer.  ;D

Mike

If i need to fridge them i either just mix, fridge and stuff the next day or if i do mix, stuff and fridge i dont cover the sticks so the casings dont get wet or sit on top of each other, this can bleed the color of the casings.

I stuffed and smoked right away. Took the sticks to 140 in the smoker, took right to the hot water 180* and took the sticks to 149 then hung to bloom. I hardly ever take the sticks to the target IT. Blooming w/out cold water will get the IT there itself.

I dont do this all the time.

[Mr Walleye]

Thanks Rick!

They look excellent!  8)

Mike