New to sausage making...sugestions?

[Hawg35]

I've had my Bradley OBS since last summer and love it, really can't get enough of it.  I've added the extra element which is controlled by a PID and it amazes me how great it works.

Last night my wife surprised me with a LEM 5# sausage stuffer and meat grinder attachment for our Kitchen Aid.  I have never made sausage before and would welcome any suggestions on the best kits to start with.  Eventually I would like to start making some from scratch using the recipies I have seen on this forum but to start think it will be best to try out the kits.  I am interested in doing both fresh and smoked sausage, can't wait to try snack sticks and summer sausage as well as brats and breakfast.

Anyway this forum is awesome.  I enjoy it almost as much as I enjoy my smoker.  I welcome any advice from all of you of how to best get started.

Thanks

[Sailor]

I would suggest that you try to make some stixs.  But remember once you start you will never be able to stop.  Order some collagen 17-19 casings for the stixs.    Leggs Snack Stick Seasoning Blend #116 is a very good mix for stixs.  If you want a great snack stix that is not from a kit you should try to make some of Greg's spicy sticks.  They are very good.  http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?648-Greg-s-Spicy-Beef-Sticks  Once you start you cannot stop so please thing about this before you jump in........ ;D  You will have a grand time making sausage.  Good luck to you.

[Keymaster]

I started with a few cabelas kits and Lem has some kits with everything you need, I got the Snack stix kit and it a basic sausage  that you could add anything to or its great by itself  http://www.lemproducts.com/category/seasoning_kits . Like sailor said "But remember once you start you will never be able to stop" You will be sitting their thinking that you have to go to the store because you have to get some kind of meat to make into sausage and smoke.

[Habanero Smoker]

I can't help you with sausage kits, but I can give you a time saving tip for the grinder attachment. Instead of cubing the meat like many recipes call for, the KitchenAid grinder works better if you cut the meat into strips. Make sure the strips are cut small enough to feed through the tube without or very little pushing; it doesn't matter how long the strips are. When grinding set the mixer on the 4 or 5 position.

[watchdog56]

Also keep your strips very cold when grinding,almost slightly frozen works well.

[cobra6223]

Hey Hawg ,
So far everyone is dead on !!  ;D Once you start you can't stop and you won't want to . As I have found out you came to the right place , these ladies and gentlemen have been a great help to me . Tell your wife to stand way back as this is very catchy and my wife I think has been bitten harder than me as she wants to know when we're going to try something else . I have things on the way to make OU Jersey pork roll and the ones I have tried are a savory summer sausage from the Bradley recipes and Caribus Hunter sausage and a skinless version of it that Pike_man also showed on here . The summersausage needed no casing and turned out awesome , The first time we did hunter sausage we just bagged it in 1# bags and 50/50 venison/pork , this time we did it all pork and made like little sizzlers from the store , out of the 8 # we had 142 links plus what we ate when done . We also did Nepas Pastrami but with out the casing and it got rave reviews . As some one else mentioned it won't be long and you can't wait to get more meat to try something . So good luck and I hope you enjoy it as much as we do !! ;D

[Hawg35]

Thanks for the great advice, this forum is awesome!  I ordered the snack sticks and summer sausage kits from LEM and will start with those. 

I am already totally hooked on smoking meat in the OBS so I guess a sausage making addiction is just the next step...

Can't wait for next weekend to see how everything turns out!

I've seen pics of people hanging the snack sticks and pics of the sticks cut up and lying in racks.  Any advantages or disadvantages to either? 

Again, appreciate the input!

[Keymaster]

I've seen pics of people hanging the snack sticks and pics of the sticks cut up and lying in racks.  Any advantages or disadvantages to either? 

You don't want your sausages touching in the smoker or the color wont be even where they touch  and laying flat it might be a arguement but one side will get more smoke than the other unless you flip them. I prefer to hang my sausage and rarely have to do any moving them around once I do the initial hanging. I did one batch laying in the racks once and I was constantly checking them and moving top to bottom front to back etc.. I am still a newbie myself but learned enough here to make a darn good stick ;D

[La Quinta]

My Advice is.....CALL NePas!!!!  ;D

[drano]

Hawg35,
Yep, its addicting.  I started w/ a KitchenAid grinder and did several batches before I upgraded to a Cabelas professional 1/2 hp.   Make sure your locking collar is on real tight.  If not, connective tissue gets built up between the cutter and the plate.  I just used one size plate, and I only grind once. 
I agree with the above, throw the meat in the freezer for a couple hours before grinding. 
I also mix the spice into the cut up meat--let the grinder mix spice in as it grinds. 
Strips work great.  I get pork blade steak (butt cut into steaks) when I can find it at a good price.  Remove bone, cut the long way and done.  Mix spice and water to make it slimy, in freezer for about 2 hours and grind. 
Others gave good suggestions for mixes.  I like this company, and their casings are very reasonable too.
http://www.friscospices.com/category/SAUS/Sausage-Seasonings/1.html
Make brats first so you don't have to worry about smoking.  Once you have that experience, do a batch of sticks--being thin, they get up to temp quicker than summer sausage and thicker stuff.  After a couple batches, you'll have it all figured out. 
Of course, if smoking the product, make sure the kit or recipe has cure in it. 

get smokin
drano

[NePaSmoKer]

See the various ways members do things....So diverse.

I myself do not freeze the meat, it adds extra moisture that in most cases is not needed. Instead i use one of them freezer neoprene sports wrap things and wrap in around the grinder neck if its needed.