On my last visit to Wisconsin, I found a Landjeager that had Cherries in it. I had never heard of this before, so of course I had to buy some. They were outstanding!! The sausage was made locally and the Cherries were "prise winning Cherries" from Door county, WI.
I am looking for ideas about how the home sausage maker can do this. First off, would this be safe and acceptable....or does it sound like a bad idea? Then, if it sounds do-able....how would you approach this? Should the cherries be fresh or dried? Diced and mixed in or ground with the meat?
I will be making a batch of Landjeagergers this week and am wondering if I should try adding cherries to some of it. Any input would be appreciated!!
Thanks.....AkBillyBow
I haven't done this but I would dice them and add them after grinding the meat as you would with jalapenos. I would also use dried cherries.
Thanks for your input Renoman!! I looked for cherries at the grocery store, and didn't find any...not in season in January I guess !! I will look for dried cherries, as that sounds like it is the better choice.
Thanks!!!
I like Renoman's logic. You use fresh peppers, why wouldn't you use fresh or dried fruit?
I use dried apples in my chicken sausage and they turn out great. I re hydrate them in brandy over night and mix them in after grinding the meat.
I say go for it with dried cherries.
BTW could you please share the Landjeager recipe ? :)
OK, I took renoman's suggestion and added dried cherries to my Landjeagers. I mixed and stuffed them tonight, but will not smoke them until tomorrow. I need to get my ring bologna done first.....they are still in the smoker.
Iceman, I used the Cabela's Landjaeger mix. I have no idea how it will taste, but I will let you know. Heck, if they turn out I will even let you try them for yourself!! I live in Palmer....so we are neighbors!!
I did not like the casing size that came with the Cabela's Landjaeger kit, though. They were 32-34 mm hog casing, which to me are best used for brats, Italian Sausages, etc. I am used to Landjaegers much smaller. A Landjaeger should be a snack stick; these things are so big 1 of them could be considered a meal.
My next attempt will be a mixed recipe, not a store bought premix. Unless of course, these turn out really good!! But, I will surely use a smaller casing next time.
AkBillyBow
AkBillyBow,
Cabella's "Beer Salami" is an excellent premix if you want to give it a try. Another excellent premix is Hi Mountain's "Pepper Blend" for jerky or snack sticks. The one thing I don't like about the premixes is how they stick so bad to everything. Not sure what they use for a binder but it's a bear to clean up. Cleanup of the grinder and stuffer is 3 times the work.
That casing size is correct for traditional landjaeger. It is stuffed loosely then pressed flat to about 1/2" thick. I use 29/32mm casings.
Enid, I think your choice of 29-32 mm would be better. Mine did turn out OK. I tried to stuff them very loosely, but it was a bit challenging. I felt like I was waisting alot of casing, and a bit smaller would have been better. But, they did shrink down enough that the smaller ones do look like the traditional size, but some of them are just too meaty.
I will need to start a picture hosting account so I can add pics. I really wish you could just load them directly to this site. I had many issues with Photo Bucket in the past, and am really not looking forward to using another web site for pictures. Guess I will have to bite the bullet!!
Thanks for all of your help and comments!!
AkBillyBow
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