greg tried your recipe first time and my venison sticks were very dry,not nice consistent color and texture like most are posting here.7lbs venison 3lbs pork ,mix and temps according to recipe and gauge on bradley and bradleymeat gaugefor IT.any ideas how to fix ,thanx
4blade
What was the fat content of the pork you used?
The reason I ask is you made a 10 lb batch... 7 lbs was venison which is pretty much 100% lean... you want to have a final mix of around 80% meat and 20% fat... some use up to 30% fat... based on your mix the pork would have to be 2/3's fat to have a final mix of 80/20... If you used pork butt it is approximately 80/20 on it's own.
I suspect you didn't have enough fat in it.
Mike
thanx mike ,yes we did use pork butt ,so i guess we need more of the pork fat than the meat of the butt? will try again thanx
Just seen this post.
Have to go with Mike on it too.
Another thing, you didnt grind the ECA did you?
Yep Mike got you steered in the right direction. I have only used this recipe with 80/20 ground beef. But there is no reason you cannot use venison but you need fat to keep it moist.
I did 10 pounds of venison with this recipe. Mixed 80/20, turned out great
thanx guys ,i think i have a longer learning curve,thats why this forum is great,frustrating though to see all the pics of you r sticks and mine still look like crap,nepa what is ECA , isee lots of abbreviations on the site but for us rookies ? i need an abbrev cheat sheet for all the posts.will definately up the fat content ,
ECA = Encapsulated citric acid (optional) It give the sticks that little tangy taste.
Here is Gregs spicy sticks. I didnt chop the red pepper flakes, like em whole ;D
This is the mix for the 5lb batch i am doing today.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5752.jpg)
Stuffed and going in fridge for awhile.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5753.jpg)
nepas
NePas that ring of sticks is sure prety. ;D
Got the 5lbs of pens recipe hanging now with pecan smoke.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5769.jpg)
And when i turn around i have the cold smoker going with cheese ;D Apple smoke for this one.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5768.jpg)
nepas
Starting to get some color in the new six rack I see. Still pretty shiny though. :)
Quote from: pensrock on January 06, 2010, 07:52:18 AM
Starting to get some color in the new six rack I see. Still pretty shiny though. :)
Yeah it is.
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
Quote from: NePaSmoKer on January 06, 2010, 08:14:48 AM
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
Ah, but when it's cold you can smoke cheese without it turning into a scary halloween decoration!
This is in my album of first attempts.
(http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad30/jpcohan/weblinks/Cheesy.jpg)
It's done. ;D
Quote from: jcohan on January 06, 2010, 11:50:10 AM
Quote from: NePaSmoKer on January 06, 2010, 08:14:48 AM
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
Ah, but when it's cold you can smoke cheese without it turning into a scary halloween decoration!
This is in my album of first attempts.
(http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad30/jpcohan/weblinks/Cheesy.jpg)
Thats what ya call too much heat.
My OBS is hooked to the cold smoker so i dont have the heat to deal with. The cheese i did today didnt even move the dial on the door.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5275.jpg)
I got pens recipe done and hanging. I really need a good drying rack ;D
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5777.jpg)
nepas
Quote from: jcohan on January 06, 2010, 11:50:10 AM
Quote from: NePaSmoKer on January 06, 2010, 08:14:48 AM
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
Ah, but when it's cold you can smoke cheese without it turning into a scary halloween decoration!
This is in my album of first attempts.
(http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad30/jpcohan/weblinks/Cheesy.jpg)
You do understand you are allowed to open the door once in a while to make sure its going ok, also its a pretty good idea to check the temperature. ;D ;D ;D
Quote from: pensrock on January 06, 2010, 02:03:14 PM
Quote from: jcohan on January 06, 2010, 11:50:10 AM
Quote from: NePaSmoKer on January 06, 2010, 08:14:48 AM
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
Ah, but when it's cold you can smoke cheese without it turning into a scary halloween decoration!
This is in my album of first attempts.
(http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad30/jpcohan/weblinks/Cheesy.jpg)
You do understand you are allowed to open the door once in a while to make sure its going ok, also its a pretty good idea to check the temperature. ;D ;D ;D
That was done on a warm summer day and it took less than 10 minutes. Caught me completely by surprise. I had planned modifications for cold smoking as seen in the picture posted by NePaSmoKer but haven't got to it yet. When it's between -20C and -30C, (which seems like 10 months of the year up here) my Bradley operates just fine as a cold smoker. ;D
I let these bloom longer than normal. They got a little darker.
Greg your recipe is really good.
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5781.jpg)
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5783.jpg)
(http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o290/stlthy1/DSCF5784.jpg)
QuoteGreg your recipe is really good.
Thanks Rick, I hope to make another batch this weekend myself.
On my next batch i'm going to go hotter and use 1 1/2 Tblsps of chipotle pwdr
Quote from: jcohan on January 06, 2010, 11:50:10 AM
Quote from: NePaSmoKer on January 06, 2010, 08:14:48 AM
If it wasnt so freakin cold i would load it up with a couple butts.
This is in my album of first attempts.
Does that album double as the "What not to do Album" as well? ;D ;D
QuoteOn my next batch i'm going to go hotter and use 1 1/2 Tblsps of chipotle pwdr
You looking at the five or ten pound recipe?
I did kick my last batch up by increasing the cayenne some.
Ok I seem to have missed something here. I don't have Pen's recipe for snack sticks. All I find is sticks by some Nepas guy!! ;D ;D Can I get a copy of Pens?
QuoteCan I get a copy of Pens?
No problem, its on the recipe site.
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?t=648
Just liek everything else it is in the one place you didn't look for it. Thanks Pens
No problem, I'm making a batch this morning. :)
Pens,
Your recipe looks pretty good. I had to order some ingredients after reading it......hope to try it next week ;D
I got my latest batch mixed and stuffed this morning. Kicked up the chipotle and cayenne this time, I would suggest you try it as is first before kicking it up more. I hope to smoke them tomorrow or Sat.
I do 5 at a time. So going to increase the chip pwdr.
Rick, The reason I asked if you were doing 5 or 10 pounds is because you posted earlier you were going to use 1-1/2 Tbls. of chip powder instead of tsp.
Pens,
I received my ingredients last night and I am going to stuff them this morning ;D I usually leave them sit in the fridge overnight to cure before smoking.....Can I add the ECA now and still do that or do you have to smoke right away?
I mix everything except the ECA into the meat, then mix in the ECA. Then stuff. Allow to sit overnight. Then smoke.
One time I mixed everything then got lazy and waited till the next day to stuff. Stuffing was very difficult. So mix, stuff, rest, smoke.
pens,
Aaaahhhh OK.....I'll have to do that next time. Wasn't sure if the eca would adversely effect the sticks if I didn't smoke them right away....so I left it out this time. Gonna smoke them in the morning ;D
The ECA is like little caplets, when the outer starts to dissolve it releases the CA. I have mixed and stuffed the next day with no problems. But it is easier to mix, stuff then fridge the sticks overnight.