This is my first attempt at smoking 'cured' sausage—'polish kielbasa'— after spending the past few weekends creating piles of 'fresh' sausages for the troops. This is no small feat as the standard was set by my wife's polish grandmother year's ago. Her 'polska wędzona kiełbasa' is what I'll try to replicate. Although the recipe is pretty basic (salt, pepper, garlic, marjoram), there are expectations to be met!
First, as grandma did, I cubed a portion of the lean into 1/2" cubes (about 3.5lbs):
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/35lbs_diced.jpg)
I added a third of the total cure to the cubes & refrigerated this overnight:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/35lbs_cured.jpg)
This morning, I ground the rest of the pork (about 7.5lbs) through a 4.5mm plate:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/kielbasa_grind.jpg)
Like I said, the recipe is pretty straight-forward. Ingredients ready:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Ingredients.jpg)
Friday night, FedEx dropped off a package containing this: Kirby's solution to mixing larger quantities of sausage: The Kirby Mixer!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_mxer01.jpg)
Looking down the spindle, you can see the mixing blade:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_mxer_blade.jpg)
Both meats loaded (cubed & ground)— about 11 lbs total:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_mxer_meatload.jpg)
All spices, garlic & water added:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_mxer_spices_added.jpg)
Lid snapped on, power drill attached & ready to go. I sat on a chair with my feet on the board on both sides of the bucket:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_mxer_drill_ready.jpg)
This is the result after only 30-40 seconds of mixing (raising & plunging the drill as one does in mixing mortar, thinset, etc). Very thorough & well-mixed. Pretty amazing for 10+ pounds!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kirby_meat_mixed.jpg)
ON TO THE STUFFING:
Nice morning to be outside, so got the kirby cannon set up for action. The lazy susan comes in very handy for long ropes.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/KCannon_lazySus.jpg)
11+pounds loaded!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/KCannon_loaded.jpg)
Phase One Done: I've now two large plate-loads of fresh kielbasa. Next step is to prep the smoker. These will sit in the fridge overnight.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_fresh.jpg)
More to come.....
Kevin
WOW... Kevin that looks like something out of a professional handbook on how to make kielbasa..and the pictures and the ID of the spices are awesome...well done my friend...
SWEET!!!!! I was jujst doing the same thing with my KC. Gotta love it!!! Have fun Kevin.
Im very very impressed and so glad that drill motor said "dewalt" on it instead of ryobi ;D Not only did you do a awesome tutorial but the pictures kicked butt. I'd eat some of that any day of the week. Good Job Kevin!!!!
Hey Kevin, GREAT idea using the lazy susan.
Great looking sausage Kevin. I think the fun part is in using the Kirby cannon don't you?
Quote from: devo on May 29, 2011, 05:18:29 AMI think the fun part is in using the Kirby cannon don't you?
I do enjoy using the KC. Of of the nicest features I like about it is, once I set the right flow speed, I have two hands free with which I can manipulate the casing/tube end and support the links as they are formed. Had no blow-outs this time! :)
Nice looking kielbasa. It looks like the mixer worked very well.
NICE post! Looking forward to the end results..
Nice snausages ;D
looking forward to the final pictures. I think your family will be pleasantly supprised with the results.
KC
What every one said
HR
This morning I took the kielbasa from the fridge & hung them up to air-dry & come to room temp while I got the smoker prepped.
Simple wood dowel between chairs:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_hangdry.jpg)
Since my new electric hasn't yet arrived, I'll be using my old weber smokey mountain (WSM) to do the smoking. This unit tends to run hot (200°) so I needed a plan of attack...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/WeberSM.jpg)
I discovered that I can keep the temp in the 135-160° range by adding about a dozen briquettes. I also placed an old pizza stone above the coals to help absorb & distribute the heat:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/pizza_stone.jpg)
Since I'm using only a few coals, hickory wood chunks wouldn't be ideal, so I opted for the smaller chips:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/HickoryChips.jpg)
Ideally I wanted to hang the kielbasa but decided to use a 3-tier rack arrangement. The three racks are approximately 3" apart:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_stacked.jpg)
Once the WSM's temp got up to about 135,° on went the kielbasa....
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/NuTemp.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_onSmoker.jpg)
I heavily smoked the kielbasas for just under 90 minutes, keeping the temp around 155-160° for the last 30 minutes or so.
Smoke rollin'.......
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_Smoke.jpg)
Time to pull 'em off....
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_smoked.jpg)
After the smoke, my plan was to hot-water bath the load in this bad boy: a 1950 Westinghouse turkey roaster...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/TurkeyRoaster.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_Bath.jpg)
Kept the kielbasas in their hot tub at around 160° for about 30 minutes until the IT reached 155°
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_BathTemp.jpg)
Dropped them into an ice bath to quick-cool 'em down & then hang dry to bloom:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_bloom.jpg)
Money shot:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_moneyShot.jpg)
Overall I thought the end results do justice to what my wife (& family's) expectations are for 'good' kielbasa—garlicky, smokey with a touch of saltiness, plump & firm, with a good 'snap' when you bite into them. They certainly taste better than anything you find at the local grocery store.
Thanks to you guys here on this forum who helped me quite a bit & giving me the initiative to try this. Good fun!
Kevin
Those look perfect, That old turkey fryer was a score!!! I bet it's so old it probably has one of those cloth wrapped cords with no ground plug, I searched on craigslist for one but I think you got the last one in existance in that condition.
Well done Kevin, just plain excellent job, Oh !!! the other roaster like that is in the Smithsonian.. :D
The roaster was a $25 garage sale find locally. The seller's aunt had it in her garage for 50+ years & never used it. It works great—and yes, it has the old cloth-wrapped non-grounded plug that gets hot to the touch... :o
Kevin
Those are great looking sausages. I was expecting to see larger chunks of meat showing considering the cubed meat that was part of the mix, it might just be the pics. That sausage looks very professional. Was your family happy with the results??
KC
Quote from: pikeman_95 on May 29, 2011, 09:13:57 PM
Kevin
Those are great looking sausages. I was expecting to see larger chunks of meat showing considering the cubed meat that was part of the mix, it might just be the pics. That sausage looks very professional. Was your family happy with the results??
KC
Thanks, Kirby.
I must have chosen an oddball kielbasa for the initial slice shot as the majority eaten so far have visible 'ham hunks' nestled within.
Boys & the wife are very happy with the results. They had some for breakfast AND for lunch... ;)
Close-up in the pan showing some of the soft 'cubes':
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Stuffer%20Stuff/Kielbasa_coins_revised.jpg)
Kevin if your looking for a ham like texture in a deli style sausage. Try the Biershinken here http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=11689.0 Just DO NOT submerge your probe in the ice water like the bonehead that made the post!!!! It fried and he had to get another probe.
Quote from: Tenpoint5 on May 30, 2011, 07:56:22 PM
Kevin if your looking for a ham like texture in a deli style sausage. Try the Biershinken here http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=11689.0 Just DO NOT submerge your probe in the ice water like the bonehead that made the post!!!! It fried and he had to get another probe.
These were 1/2" cubes as I was afraid of making them too big for the 32mm links. In hindsight, I could have made them more prominent (larger), but overall I was pleased with how they came out.
My bonehead move: testing the water temp in the poacher/roaster with........
my hand! Thought it was around 150°—turns out it was closer to 200°. I used a temperature gauge the next time.... ::)
Nice wright up Kevin.
I do a ham loaf useing chunks like that, good stuff.
Love that roaster.
Great job on the sausage and the pics, Kevin!!!
My wonderful wife tonight made "kapustą i kiełbasą"— kielbasa cooked with sauerkraut, apples & onion with a bit of caraway.
Didnt get a chance to snap some photos before most of it was demolished— not that it LOOKS that great, but it tastes wonderful!
....AND she cooked it in the Retro-roaster... :D
That kielbasa will be gone in no time!
Kevin
I think sauerkraut was made for us sausage lovers. I had my wife's uncle over for German frankfurters and kraut the other night then we had shishkabob with pork chunks and sliced summer sausage this evening. He loved it. Like you said that kielbasa ain't going to last long. I bet your nest batch is an even larger batch. This is why I hardly ever do less then 30 pounds. I like to put some away so I can enjoy it when ever we want. With your new fridge and freezer you are in business.
Kevin,
Is there any difference between the cubed meat and the ground meat as far as fat content etc?
Quote from: GusRobin on June 02, 2011, 09:47:06 AM
Kevin,
Is there any difference between the cubed meat and the ground meat as far as fat content etc?
Gus— the "cubes" (1/3 of the total) are 98.7% lean (taken from the butt). ;)
The grind is the rest of the butt (anywhere from 25-30% fat content)—so, mixed together, I venture to guess with my feeble math skills* the overall mix is about 30% 'leaner' than a standard sausage mix.
*"I'm a media director, not a mathematician" ;D
Hi Kevin,
Your kielbasa looks "the Ducks Guts" Australian slang for the best of the best. You made me hungry jusy looking and reading about it and worst of all you gave a hell of an inferiority complex.
Best Wishes from an Ozzie novice.
Jan.
Brisbane.
Very Nice! I so want to try this. But for now I will just have to wipe the drool off my face. The little chunks makes it look very different. Good job!
Quote from: crusty044 on June 06, 2011, 05:39:56 PM
Hi Kevin,
Your kielbasa looks "the Ducks Guts" Australian slang for the best of the best. You made me hungry jusy looking and reading about it and worst of all you gave a hell of an inferiority complex.
Best Wishes from an Ozzie novice.
Jan.
Brisbane.
Jan no need for a inferiority complex. We have all been there at one time or another. Now you have a worldwide support system at your disposal, This Forum and its members.
Quote from: Tenpoint5 on June 07, 2011, 06:16:22 AM
Quote from: crusty044 on June 06, 2011, 05:39:56 PM
Hi Kevin,
Your kielbasa looks "the Ducks Guts" Australian slang for the best of the best. You made me hungry jusy looking and reading about it and worst of all you gave a hell of an inferiority complex.
Best Wishes from an Ozzie novice.
Jan.
Brisbane.
Jan no need for a inferiority complex. We have all been there at one time or another. Now you have a worldwide support system at your disposal, This Forum and its members.
What he said. ;D
You guys you need to remember Kevin is kind of a newbee at this sausage making thing. Yet he keeps hitting it out of the park. From his first batches he has made very professional sausage. Way to go Kevin. For you not sure about making sausage?? Jump in like Kevin has. Do your research and take the plunge.
Thanks, kirby!
I also want to encourage those who haven't yet taken the 'sausage plunge' to give it a go!
You really dont need every piece of sausage-making equipment to get started and get decent results.
Plenty of good advice given here by folks who have been doing it for years and all it takes is a willingness to try something new & the wisdom to heed the advice given.
I'm already planning my next attack....snack sticks, frankfurters, merguez, ring bologna :)