I'm new to the forum, and also just bought my Bradley smoker today. Wondering about some tips on doing up some sausage. I have some fresh (uncooked) brawts and mild italian sausage in the freezer. Wondering about trying to smoke them. Would they have to be cooked afterwards or would they be ready to eat when they are done in the smoker? What sort of temp should they be done at, and for how long? I'm sure there are likely dos and don'ts when smoking meat.
Thanks.
Duk Dog,
Welcome to the forum. You do not want to smoke fresh sausages; they need to be cured. The problem is that smoking puts them in the danger zone (temperature wise) for too long. In order to not render out the fat, smoking sausages is done at about 160 degrees until an internal temperature of 152 is reached (the book by Rytek Kutas is the reference on sausage making). This will take quite some time.
Arcs_n_Sparks
Thanks for the feedback and the welcome. I've got lots to learn, lots of different lingo and such. Just started browsing around the site and boy there are some awesome looking recipes!!
Duk Dog,
Search the forum and ask a lot of questions; there are a lot of helpful people on the boards. Start with something simple and figure on refining it over the next 20 years while moving between the BS and the adult beverage refrigerator. :D
At some point, post some pictures on what you have been experimenting with........
Arcs_n_Sparks
Welcome Duk Dog,
I have hot smoked some fresh sausage (stuffed by Iowa Meat Farms) for 20 minutes then tossed them on the grill. You don't get the deep smoke flavor but they tasted great.
Welcome to the forum Dog!
I know that you are probably anxious to smoke something in your new smoker. Sometimes when I am in a hurry or just want one meal of smoked sausage, I will buy some fully cooked, smoked sausage from the grocer or butcher. I would recommend using the best quality you can find or else try a couple different brands until you find a brand that you prefer. I have used smoked rope, smoked links and my favorite-natural casing wieners.
All I do is turn the BS to high with the vent 1/3 open, start the smoke and once the box is hot, throw the sausage on a rack on the middle shelf. I reheat to an internal temp of 160. They are usually done in about 40 minutes depending on how thick and how many pieces I am smoking.
There is NO better way to reheat smoked sausage IMO.
Every fourth of July we host a party. No matter what we are serving, I always have some Wimmers or Schweigert natural casing wieners in the BS. They are a huge hit. Also, any food coming off the grill can be held in the BS for a little while and it does a nice job of keeping food warm until everyone has had time to go back for "another hotdog" or two.
If you want to try something simple and tastie, give this a try.
Doug
Welcome to the forum! I am sure you are going to love the BS and you will find that with the help of others here, you will be producing masterpieces in short order. Just remember to not rush the BS and she will come through for you.
Hi and welcome Duk Dog, congrats on getting your BS ;)
The BS will turn out some real lovely food, and being a member here is the best addition you could have with you new smoker.
Regards..........LilSmoker (http://www.emotipad.com/newemoticons/Tip-Hat.gif)
Thanks everyone. For the internal temps have you just bought a thermometer that sits on top of the BS then drop the temp element through the top vent and stick it into the meat you are smoking?
I think tonight we might just smoke some burger then make hamburgers and BBQ them for my first attempt with the BS. I'm going to head out this morning and see if I can find a tighter meshed screen so the burger doesn't fall through the racks as well as a book.
Many here use a maverick which is a dual temp (one for the meat and one for the cabinet temperature) with a remote monitor. Makes it nice so you don't have to go out to the box and can set an alarm and hear it inside the house. The range is not good and does not meet it's 50 foot advertised range. Several have modified theirs with an antenna to improve the range (a project I will need to do). I must say that my results of poor range may be due to so many wireless devices interfearing with the remote (cell phones, WiFi, weather station sensors, house phones). My first use was monitoring some chicken in the convection oven and I was less than 30 feet away with no walls and did not get the signal. Since the display was still on the remote, I hadn't realized the unit wasn't receiving. I fortunatly was keeping an eye on the time and when I walked back up to the oven, the readout quickly jumped from 140 to 175. Just in time, "no harm to the fowl".
http://www.thegadgetsource.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Session_ID=7843b833d134a9feb8d043228eb3b6a6&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=011502013733&Category_Code=BBQTHERMOMETERS&Product_Count=10
or if you are in an area with a Bed Bath and Beyond - they are a source as well as BBQ equipment dealers.
Welcome Duk Dog , This forum (
CHARACTERS ALLOWED
) is one of the best features of
my BS...Have fun,
Coyote :)