Pepperoni & Cheese Slim Jims

[Thompsoncentre]

So what are you guys using to hang your pepperoni in the smoker? Are they just homemade or something you purchase?

[Keymaster]

So what are you guys using to hang your pepperoni in the smoker? Are they just homemade or something you purchase?

You can make your own out of hickory dowel or I use 1/2" Stainless tube from a commercial door down rod. You can buy the bell v rods which work well to keep the sausages from touching at butcher packer HERE

[tskeeter]

Thompson, people use a variety of home made and commercial smoke sticks to hang things for smoking.  Simple hardwood dowels are very common.  To keep them from rolling, a person might want to make some flat surfaces on either end.  In the photos at the beginning of this post you can see NePa's stainless steel smoke sticks.  I got mine like NePa's from Allied Kenco.  They are shaped kind of like angle iron and you cut them down to fit you smoker.  There is also a stainless style that is shaped more like a star.  I don't know of any reason why you couldn't use aluminum angle from some place like Home Depot, if you wanted.  I chose stainless because you can throw it in the dishwasher to clean and sanitize it.  Dishwasher soap is caustic enough to cause a fair amount of oxidation on aluminum, so I don't like to put aluminum in the dishwasher.  If you wanted stainless, you might be able to get some scrap stainless angle from a scrap metal recycler.

[Skishy]

Looks Awesome Nepa. Question though, when you make those sticks, do you use the high temp cheese or just the regular stuff?

[NePaSmoKer]

Looks Awesome Nepa. Question though, when you make those sticks, do you use the high temp cheese or just the regular stuff?

I use regular cheese. High temp cheese is coated in food grade creamed phosphate (not bad i just dont like it)
I use a 1/4x1/4" or 1/8x1/8 chopper to cube my cheese.

My 1/8" chopper


If you follow the low to high temps the regular cheese wont melt.
130
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Here some sausage making in my RV
http://s868.photobucket.com/user/nepas1/slideshow/2013%20sausage?sort=3