Equipment:
I recommend a KitchenAid blender with a meat grinder and sausage stuffer attachments. If you are going to make different types of sausage or just make Italian sausage a lot, you will need to have durable equipment. You should also have coarse and fine dies to grind the meat (comes with the meat grinder attachment).
Ingredients (about 15 to 20 links depending on the width):
5 pounds - boneless Boston butt (pork shoulder - in this case butt refers to the shoulder) 5 cloves - garlic, minced 1 cup - fresh Italian parsley, chopped 5 teaspoons - salt 1 tablespoon - black pepper 5 tablespoons - fennel seed 1 teaspoon - red pepper flakes 1 tablespoon - fresh rosemary, diced 1/2 tablespoon - fresh oregano, diced 1 tablespoon - fresh basil, diced 1 cup - dry white wine (e.g., chardonnay), very cold 12 to 16 feet (approximately) - hog casing (cleaned pig intestine)
One of the secrets to cooking fine Italian sausage is making sure you use fresh spices. It is also crucial not to make the sausage too lean. The butt is perfect, because it will contain a fair percentage of fat necessary for genuine Italian sausage. However, I like to trim away large chunks of fat that may exist in the meat (for my health).
It is also important to get the meat cold before you put it in the grinder (it helps it move through the grinder better). Cut the pork up into 1 to 2 inch cubes and then place them in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Set up the grinder with the coarse die.
When the meat is cold, begin running it through the grinder (medium setting - I use setting 4 on my Kitchen Aid). Let the grinder do the work - in other words, don't force the meat through. Gristle may clog the grinder, but don't get dismayed. Simply clean the die and blade and finish grinding the rest of the meat.
Add the spices and wine to the ground meat. It is crucial to get the wine very cold before using it. I suggest you put the wine in the freezer for at least 15 minutes prior to adding it to the sausage mixture. Mix the ingredients thoroughly with your hands.
Place the mixture in the freezer for another 30 minutes while you prepare the grinder with the fine die. Once the mixture of spices and meat is cold, begin grinding it again. This helps to mix the spices and meat. Once you have completed the final grinding, it is best if you let the mixture sit in the refrigerator over night to absorb the spices.
Prepare the sausage stuffer.
Find the end of one of the hog casings (the longest casing if you can) and put a little water in the end. This will let it slip onto the cone.
Thread the casing all the way on the cone so that meat can come freely out of the cone. Let some meat come through and then pull the end of the casing off the cone and tie it this keeps air from going into the casing.
The rest is just allowing the meat to run through the cone until you fill the casing.
It takes some practice, because air bubbles can form or the casing can break. If you get an air bubble just puncture it with a toothpick and force the air out. If the casing breaks you can tie off the end and start a new casing. I like wide sausage but you can make them thinner if you prefer.
Once the casings are filled, you can go about every 6 inches and form each link by twisting the casing.
You can freeze the sausage for months if you wish to store them.
Enjoy!
Jack Botticelli
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HOW TO MAKE PORK SAUSAGE
4 lb lean pork
2 lb pork fat (from the butcher)
3-1/2 tsp salt
6 tsp sage
3 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 tsp white sugar
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2/3 cup cold water
1/4 cup hot sauce (or to taste)
Thoroughly chill meat and fat. Using a 1/2 inch cutting blade, run the pork and pork fat separately through the meat grinder and chill again.
Combine all seasonings. Mix the seasonings into the chilled meat and then put through the grinder with a 1/8 inch cutting plate. Mix meat and fat in a bowl and add just enough water to make a soft "dough." Stuff into casings and take care to avoid air bubbles.
ANDOUILLE SAUSAGE RECIPE
1-1/2 yards large sausage casing
4 lbs lean fresh pork
3 lb pork fat (from the butcher)
3 TBS garlic, minced
2 TBS kosher salt
1 TBS paprika
5 tsp hickory Liquid Smoke
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground bay leaf
1/4 tsp sage
1/8 tsp homemade cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/8 tsp chili powder
1/8 tsp mace
1/8 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp thyme
Soak the sausage casing in cold water for about 1 hour to soften and loosen the salt. (Casings are packaged with LOTS of salt).
After an hour, remove from water and cut into 3 pieces then place the narrow end of sausage stuffer into casing. Place wide end against faucet and run cold water through casing to remove any salt.
Cut the pork and fat into chunks about 1/2" across and pass once through meat grinder.
In a large bowl, combine the pork & fat with all other ingredients and mix well. (Use a wooden spoon or your clean hands). Cut the casings into 26" pieces and stuff.
HOW TO STUFF A SAUSAGE:
Tie a knot in each casing about 2 inches from end. Put the open end on sausage stuffer and slide to about 1" from wide end. Push the remainder of casing onto the stuffer until the top touches the knot. (It should look like an accordion) Fit the stuffer onto meat grinder and follow instructions that came with the appliance. Stop filling about 1-1/4 inches from end and take the casing off. Smooth out any bumps with your fingers; be careful not to push the filling out in the process. Tie off the open end of the casing with a piece of string, or tie the casing itself. Repeat this process with remainder of mixture and casings.
To cook the andouille sausage, fry in a hot skillet for about 12 minutes on each side until crisp at the edges.
The first one of my venison sausage recipes is this excellent venison bulk sausage recipe. Perfect for breakfast.
BEST VENISON SAUSAGE
6 lbs venison, ground
2 lbs pork, ground
1/2 cup homemade Tender Quick
1/4 cup homemade brown sugar, packed
3 TBS sage
1 TBS homemade garlic powder
1 TBS homemade onion powder
1 TBS fennel
1 TBS freshly ground black pepper
1 TBS crushed homemade crushed red pepper, or to taste
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Patty out a piece of sausage and fry it. Taste this to be sure it's seasoned enough. Divide into 1 lb packages and freeze.
This is great fried and served with gravy and biscuits. Yum.
Homemade venison sausage The next one of my homemade venison sausage recipes is this one for Summer Sausage. The taste is outstanding and the texture is perfect. You may also use this recipe for ground beef. Finish this off in a smoker with hickory wood; it really is worth it. You can purchase summer sausage casings at Cabelas.
BEST VENISON SUMMER SAUSAGE RECIPE
3 lbs venison, ground
3 TBS homemade Tender Quick
1 cup cold water
2 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp homemade garlic powder
1 tsp homemade onion powder
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp Liquid Smoke
2 jalapeno peppers (or to taste), seeded and minced
1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
Mix the tender quick, water, mustard seed, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper and Liquid Smoke together in a large bowl until the tender quick is dissolved. Add the ground venison, jalapeno peppers and cheese; mix well. Divide in half and roll into logs. Wrap tightly with foil and refrigerate overnight.
PREHEAT oven to 170 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil. Unwrap the sausage logs and place on the prepared baking pan.
Bake for a few hours or until the internal temperature reads 165 degrees. Cool to room temperature and dab excess oil. Slice and serve.
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