Venison Sausage

jaeger · January 13, 2005, 07:23:13 AM

Here is a picture of some venison sausage that I smoked in the Bradley a few days ago.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/SummerSausage.jpg

[:D][:D][:D]
Doug

BigSmoker · January 13, 2005, 01:46:05 PM

Doug,
Those look really good.
Did you use a Hi-Mtn. kit or use your own cure?
What was your cooking procedure and how long did the sausage take?
I've been doing some bologna recently and it takes a loooooong time.

Jeff
//www.bbqshopping.com

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Some say BBQ is in your blood, if thats true my blood must be BBQ sauce.

Ian · January 13, 2005, 03:16:28 PM

jaeger/doug: OUTSTANDING visual enjoyment[:D]. Just another shot to my mind that i really need to try my hand at this, and to compound the matter a goodfriend/neighber of mine who for the last couple of decades has been doing this every year at this time{ butts are running at 0.98 cents lb } is doing up a storm of varieties. Every time I stop over with a six pack of malted beverage I leave stuffed.[:D]

Ian ( GO STEELERS!!!!! )

whitetailfan · January 13, 2005, 04:31:50 PM

jaeger,
That looks top drawer[:D]
What size of casing is that? Is it tied off with string on each end, or some type of clip?
I can't see high up enough...can you post another pic of what are hanging with? Do you have some type of sausage holder built or are you using sticks?

"Nice Rack"
Lethbridge, AB

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 01:50:23 AM

I have been wanting to try a batch of sausage in the Bradley for a long time but I figured I better wait until deer season opened. No use in getting in to big of a hurry![:D]
I bought an electric grinder (3/4 H.P.) I kind of wish I would have gone one size larger with a #22 set of plates. This still worked good though I think it would be easier to feed the meat through the larger neck of the #22 grinder. I have a stuffer and was planning on using this for the first time but when I got to making everything I decided to stuff with the grinder. I also got into a bit of a hurry as I would have liked to have seasoned the meat and stuffed the next day or two later. I ground 8# of venison and 4# of Bnls. Chuck roast. I ground through the coarsed (chili) plate first and then ground through the fine plate second time. At this point I mixed all the meat together and then seasoned using a premix from Eastman Foods. I had good luck with their jerky seasonings and decided to give it a try. I also added a little garlic powder, onion powder and mustard seed. I added a small amount of water also. I used latex gloves and my paws still got very cold!!! I used 2 1/2" X 10" fibrous casings. They hold 1 LB. of meat. They are the clear casing and come with one end (the end that is hanging) already pre tied. I have all my equipment set up on a six foot table in the garage when I make sausage. I tied 4 strands of cotton twine to one of the legs of the table. I tie them to the leg that is in front of me on the other side of the table. This way, as I stuff one casing, I twist it and then lay it on the string and tie a knot. The next casing is tied just below the first until you run out of string. I think I had about 5 sausage per strand of string. I ended up with 12 sausage with 12# of meat. After cutting the string between each one I hung them on a length of wooden dowel rod from the string that is pre tied on the casings. By the way, one of the reasons I didn't want to stuff with the grinder is that I assumed that you had to leave the plate and knife in, essentially grinding and stuffing the last pass through. I'll admit I took a look at the instructions and realized that you take out the plate and knife out on the stuffing cycle. The meat actually went through the grinder 3 times. Twice to grind, third time with just the horn on the end of grinder. (Reason for regretting the smaller neck). The stuffing went very well. No air pockets to speak of and just as tight as I wanted it. (By the way, I soaked the casings in warm water as I prepared to stuff.)
I had the smoker warmed up (high) as I stuffed the sausage. As I loaded the dowels I knew the temp would escape. I had to leave for a couple hours so the wife watched for unusual large amounts of smoke from the vicinity of the garage while I would be gone. I left the smoker on high with hickory pucks starting half an hour into the process. Smoked with hichory the whole time. I came back 2 1/2 hours later and had to put the probe in to check the Internal Temp. I woulda shoulda put the probe in right away but I thought and planned on finishing in hot water because of time constraint I was in. I figured it would only be at about 120 degrees but to my suprise after 2 1/2 hours it was at 157 degrees. I decided to finish it in the smoker. It dropped all the way to 152 degrees before it started to climb again after I put in the probe. Total cook time (including loss due to opening door- 3 1/2 hours to an internal temp. of 170 degrees.
I was really suprised to the speed in this case. The sausage turned out very tasty and was very lean. No air pockets in the meat. I will post another message re: technical info (some may call it ramblings [:D])
Next time I make a sausage I will take more pictures to share and keep for my own reference.(So I can remember what the #@%^ I did)

Doug

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 01:59:46 AM

Whitetail,
Here is a better picture that shows sausage hanging in the smoker.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/P1010042.jpg

Hey Chez! Maybe I'll trade you a few sausage hangers for a new stainless jerky rack![:D]

Doug

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 02:09:55 AM

Big Smoker,
I have seen some of the pictures that you posted of the bologne that you make. It is very impressive. I have used that type of casing before and I don't think you are going to be able to speed up the time it takes to reach the temp that you need. I am trying to find some of the recipes that I used before. I recently purchased a digital scale so I feel comfortable trying to adjust to the smaller batch sizes that I will be making. All of the recipes that I have are for 100 pounds. If I can't find them in a timely matter I will try some that I have seen posted on this forum.[:)][:D][:)]
Doug

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 02:18:04 AM

Ian,
You really should give it a try. There is so much that you can do with a Bradley. My neighbor has a Little Chief. He uses it for what he can, which basically limits him to smoked cheese. Anything else he smokes, he has to finish off with a grill or the oven. Whenever I am smoking he almost always stops over and we have a good time. He was quite impressed the night that we made venison sausage. It really was a lot of fun. He cut up some crab apple branches that I use for bubba pucks.[:)][:D][:)]
Doug

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 02:31:34 AM

Technical information regarding venison summer sausage.

The main problem that I had with this batch of summer sausage was something that I have not had before. The casing on all of the sausage pulled away from the meat after I cooled the sausage. I think this is for about at least 3 reasons.
First: I had the temp turned up to high to early for how cold the meat was. I should have let the sausage heat up slower and not have had the meat so cold when I put it in the smoker. (The venison was still almost frozen solid when I ground it.)

Second: I should have allowed the casing to dry a little more before I started the smoke.

Third: When I reached 170 Internal temp I cooled off in cold water for about 20 minutes before I refrigerated the sausage.

With the next batch I will allow more cook time so that I can still smoke for 3 hours and still have time to finish off with the damper open to help dry things during the final cook period.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. [:D][:)][:D]

Thanks
Doug

SMOKEHOUSE ROB · January 15, 2005, 02:43:25 AM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by jaeger
 Whitetail,
Here is a better picture that shows sausage hanging in the smoker.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/xcelsmoke/P1010042.jpg

Hey Chez! Maybe I'll trade you a few sausage hangers for a new stainless jerky rack![:D]

Doug
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
jaeger,,this is a stainless sausage rack that Chez and i sell, check it out.

MAKE SURE TO SIGN UP FOR THE FREE GIVEAWAY!! GO HERE.http://www.bradleysmoker.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=991

Cold Smoke · January 15, 2005, 04:31:46 AM

Go, sausage makers go!!!

It's going to hit -52 Celcius tonite with the windchill- now that is friggin' cold!!![xx(][xx(][V][:(]

My smokin' days are over until this weather turns- like in a couple of months at this rate. Glad to see others are still chuggin along.

I'm glad that some of you out there are sausage makers- don't forget to give Olds a copy of any really good successful recipes for his new project. There are a few of us wanna-be expert sausage-making guys out here....

Cold Smoke

whitetailfan · January 15, 2005, 04:02:02 PM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by jaeger
 Technical information regarding venison summer sausage.

The main problem that I had with this batch of summer sausage was something that I have not had before. The casing on all of the sausage pulled away from the meat after I cooled the sausage. I think this is for about at least 3 reasons.
First: I had the temp turned up to high to early for how cold the meat was. I should have let the sausage heat up slower and not have had the meat so cold when I put it in the smoker. (The venison was still almost frozen solid when I ground it.) 

Second: I should have allowed the casing to dry a little more before I started the smoke.

Third: When I reached 170 Internal temp I cooled off in cold water for about 20 minutes before I refrigerated the sausage.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Why do you feel that this caused you seperation problem? I would believe it could contribute, for instance the outside meat heating up fast and then taking on the excess moisture that is still in the frozen meat in the centre. This could have created a seperation area of moisture between the casing and the meat[?][?][?]

Yes you should have dried the casing, but it has been my observation that a moist casing will attract smudge/scmag from the smoking process. If the casing is dry it will be the preferred red color, not black from smoke combining with the moisture on the outside.

I have read several recipes that call for a cold water bath after you take out of the smokehouse. Do you think that you did it too long or does that even matter? The purpose is to drop the temp quickly but I wonder if soaking it too long may have caused the seperation. This is maybe your most likely source??? I have never seen sausage taken up to 170. Do you do this regularly, or could this be the problem?

"Nice Rack"
Lethbridge, AB

whitetailfan · January 15, 2005, 04:10:22 PM

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Cold Smoke
 Go, sausage makers go!!!

It's going to hit -52 Celcius tonite with the windchill- now that is friggin' cold!!![xx(][xx(][V][:(]

My smokin' days are over until this weather turns- like in a couple of months at this rate. Glad to see others are still chuggin along.

I'm glad that some of you out there are sausage makers- don't forget to give Olds a copy of any really good successful recipes for his new project. There are a few of us wanna-be expert sausage-making guys out here....

Cold Smoke
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I feel for you Cold. It has been in that -50C at night here as well. We have had some -40C with W.C. during the day. I don't know if I'm not used to it yet because when I grew up all we had was a thermometer, or if being on the forum has adjusted my attitude, but I really get sick of the weather people talking temp only with wind chill.[}:)] I don't care if it's 8000deg below with the wind, if it's only -16C ambient like it's supposed to be today, then I'll pull out some meat to smoke like the butt I'm doing today.

Our cold snap is supposed to subside this weekend, but I know you don't get the swings in temp out in Toba land like we do here, so your cold is settled in for awhile. I'll be thinking of you when I'm biting into a pulled pork sandwich tonight between the Jets game and the Rams game[:D][:D][:D]

"Nice Rack"
Lethbridge, AB

JJC · January 15, 2005, 05:50:34 PM

Hey Rob,

Just put 2 + 2 together--so you're the one I got the sausage rack from! I think I mentioned on an earlier post (too many whiskeys since then to be sure[;)]) that I was planning to try it for hanging ribs. My thought was to get a heavier gauge set of hooks from my local hardware store to lessen the chance of the ribs falling off. The rack is a very nice design and well made, too.

John
Newton MA

jaeger · January 15, 2005, 10:21:14 PM

Rob,
I have been considering the sausage rack that you posted. I really am more interested in the drying rack because every time that I make jerky I seem to run out of room to set all eight screens. I like to load them all at the same time. I'm going to wait though because 280 is the winning number and I have it!!![:D]

Doug