New to summer sausage making

RDavidP · Joined: 27 Nov 2008 Posts: 13

I bought a packet of summer sausage seasoning at an 18th Century Market Fair recently. The ingredients say salt and then list out the spices. I don't think this seasoning contains a curing ingredient. Since this seasoning already contains salt, if I was to put in Morton Tender Quick would it make it too salty?

Stan41 · Posted: Nov 27 2008 Post subject:

I think it probably would. I ruined some sausage one time by using both TQ and salt.
Stan

Harry Nutczak · Posted: Nov 28 2008 Post subject:

I can offer some important advice for summer sausage, Keep the meat chilled to the point of being stiff, almost frozen to keep the fat from smearing, You want small white chunks of fat visible in the finished product.

Fred usinger sausage company uses dry ice mixed in with the meat during grinding to obtain their excellent texture, But they also use a "Buffalo Chopper" to do their meats, not a worm drive grinder becuase the mechanicals create heat from friction.

Freeze your grinder head, make sure your meat is stiff from being near frozen, work fast and keep it cold as you can.

Does the ingredient list have any nitrites or nitrates listed in it? If so, that is your cure. By law they must be listed if they are in there. And since summer is a cured sausage, it should have them in there.
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RDavidP · Joined: 27 Nov 2008 Posts: 13

There are no nitrites or nitrates listed on the ingredients list, just salt and the spices. The instructions said just mix it with 3lbs of meat for spicy, 4lbs for mild, let sit in refrigerator for 24 hours then shape into loaves and throw in to the oven for a couple of hours.

Wednseday I was able to find some Tenderquick and made up my own spice blend. I used 4lbs of venison and one lb of beef. I didn't measure out any of my spices. I just mixed them in water and then mixed that into the meat and fried a bit up and adjusted until I liked the flavor. I then dissolved the tenderquick in some water and mixed that in and let sit overnight. I shaped them into loaves while the Thanksgiving turkey was smoking. Once the turkey was done, the smoker was at about the right temperature for the sausages, and they smoked for about 4 hours until they reached 165 degrees. I cooled them down quickly and then let them set out for a couple of hours before I sliced into one. It tastes good, but I think I will use more smoke the next time and maybe add just a little more fat.

nhdadx269 · Joined: 24 Mar 2007 Posts: 12 Location: nashua NH

cabela's has a great summer sausage kit that I've had great luck with and it's almost dummy proof ( make sure u read the directions first javascript:emoticon(' Embarassed

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ENJOY !!!!

Harry Nutczak · Posted: Feb 01 2009 Post subject:

I've always known a true Summer Sausage to be a fermented product instead of just cured. It should require a bacterial innoculation of some sort and that is what gives it a tangy flavor.
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Just remember that the toes you may step on during your climb to the top will also be attached to the a$$es you'll be forced to kiss on your way back down!