Who makes the best sausage in Texas?

[bigwheel]

Well guess that makes us about equal cuz all I've ever tried from Fishers is their fresh sausage. Several bbq joints in this area peddle it. They run a small refer truck up here about once or twice a week making deliveries. Tell ya mooched some stuff off MW once upon a time which in the Chezk vernacular is called Intrinechka (sic) which is sorta the chezk version of boudan..got a little liver and rice in there. Dang that stuff was good and think made by some old boy who lives at West. Whut that fellas name MW?

bigwheel

I might add that my favorable impression of Fischers is based on their dried (fermented) sausage and I maintain it is excellent. I have not tried their fresh sausage.

[jerrykr]

IMHO --- ME!

I grew up around Muenster and Lindsay, TX. Lots of German relatives there. If you are talking about Fischers in Muenster, I agree, but I prefer the Superette's in Lindsay (actually made for them by Fischers now) to their own old recipe.

[bigwheel]

Bet thats right Jerry. In my view its about like bbq or most other food items. Hard for the storebought stuff to compete with ho made. Notice your avatar depicting a one man grinding and stuffing operation. What would be your general procedure on that? If you dont a person being nosey of course. Few times I tried stuffing with a grinder seems like I needed about 8 pairs of hands to git err done and the link string come out looking like scraggly wolf turds. Thanks.

bigwheel

[jerrykr]

bigwheel.

the first time you try doing the grind/stuff/twist in one fell swoop, you probably won't be very happy. But believe me it's not difficult at all once you get the hang of it.

a few thoughts:

Finese is the order of the day. this grinder (Northern Tool) is a lot more powerful than the Waring Pro I started with, and IMHO with power comes control, you don't have to "horse it" to get the meat grinding.

The STOP switch is your friend. Use it often.

Don't overstuff the casing. The casing will split on you, well h&ll, it will anyway, but just tie it off, put the meat back in the hopper and keep going, no biggie. If the casing is packed too tight, the meat will want to ooze out, and generally makes it difficult to twist into links. if the meat is not under pressure, it will stay put and be easier to twist and handle, and the casing will shrink down to the amount or meat anyway and look right, like you knew what you were doing.

Put a little bit of cooking oil on the stuff tube before you load the casings on. makes the casing slide off easier when you are stuffing.

"help" the casing slide off the stuff tube, don't completely depend on the grinder's pressure to push the casing off the tube.

don't push too much meat into the grinder with the stomper, so that the input gets the output out of control.

You'll quickly pick up the rhythm.

BTW: I have a LEM 5 lb stuffer, and it's better for larger summer sausage casings, and especially the little 22mm collegen casings for snack sticks. Those little things break so easy. but for hog casings, the grind/stuff in one pass works well for me.

I hate to do dishes, so if I can keep the stuffer clean and in the box, it's one less thing to have to clean up.

Any more questions, please ask.

[bigwheel]

Well thanks for them tips. I have the Nothern Tools 1 HP model but been too lazy to use it for the past year or so. It just a little too much work to be fun. I normally reserve the grinder for grinding and got a little 3 lb lever action stuffer for stuffing. Tried stuffing with the grinder a few times but it dont seem have enough foreceful expulsion using the same sized plate on a regrind and stuff. I'm guessing the key is to start with either large cubes or at least a real coarse grind then change to a smaller plate for the final grind/stuff. Talked to a yankee Hobart salesman who said the tolerances on the auger were too sloppy. Supposedly with a Hobart you can grind it all you want with the same sized plate and the auger will still pick it up and push it out hard enough to stuff without gettting corporal tunnell syndrone from mashing on the stomper so much. Went so far as to buy a 1/2" plate for it think to run it through there first then move to a smaller plate to do the final grind and stuff. Whutcha think?

bigwheel

[jerrykr]

I happen to like a coarse grind for my sausage links, so I only grind once. I do agree that it's a lot more trouble to get the meat thru the grinder on a second pass, whether you are stuffing, or grinding for summer sausage where you usually want a finer grind.

I haven't tried this yet, but I was thinking that it might work better to do the small holes first, and use the big holes for the second pass. I dunno! That's usually backwards thinking.

I'd like to have a Hobart, but that's above my budget/needs.

You just have to experiment some to find out what works for you.

[bigwheel]

Might work on that small grind through larger holes in the plate. Maybe a spacer plate is whut a person needs on this deal but I agree with ya..grinding once is too much grinding twice is crazy:) My old chum Big Jim down in Floriddidy made the sausage for a bbq joint he was running. He was using the slightly less than commercial Tor Rey (Allied Kenco used to peddle them for around 8 or 9 hundred bucks). He would cube the meat to fairly uniform sized chunks..season..grind and stuff all at once. Supposed to have come out with some purty good stuff.

bigwheel

[jerrykr]

bigwheel,

as you can see on my web site, me and Big Jim agree on the one pass way of making link sausages.

I've got 2 BIG briskets thawing now to make some German fresh links and a few Fatties for my one "customer" for their July 4 family gathering. She buys my supplies once in awhile and we give each other stuff. She's a fantastic baker, and she sent home a cake today that is positively DEADLY!

I'll be busy grinding about 30 lbs of brisket on Sunday. Com'on over and I'll put you to work!

[bigwheel]

Hmmm. You tried making sausage out of brisket before? It has a tendency not to hold together too well due to some type of missing constituent in the meat. Myosin maybe? At any rate me and a pal made a purty good wad of links using about half fairly well trimmed packer brisket and half chuck roast. It held together somewhut but was surely a bit on the crumbly side and plenty greasy despite the trimming efforts. May have had some bacon in there too I forget at the moment. He carried his half out to Terlingua and fed it to the drunks. Got some purty rave reviews he claims. Kindly keeps us posted on your adventures.

bigwheel

bigwheel,

as you can see on my web site, me and Big Jim agree on the one pass way of making link sausages.

I've got 2 BIG briskets thawing now to make some German fresh links and a few Fatties for my one "customer" for their July 4 family gathering. She buys my supplies once in awhile and we give each other stuff. She's a fantastic baker, and she sent home a cake today that is positively DEADLY!

I'll be busy grinding about 30 lbs of brisket on Sunday. Com'on over and I'll put you to work!

[jerrykr]

With Brisket you need about 30-35% fat. If you take an average Packer and seperate all of the fat, and all of the lean and cube them both, then weigh each, most of the time you find that the Packer had about 35% fat. Pretty convienent. I tried around 20-25% fat one time, and the sausage came out dry and crumbly. I spell this out on my web site.

[bigwheel]

Ahhh ok..your saying dont trim it and all will be well. Smart thinking. I have to try that one of these days. As greasy as it came out trimmed I woulda thunk it might hit the magic number anyway..but I guess not.

bigwheel

[jerrykr]

actually, I slice the Packer into steaks and trim it into chunks of lean, and chunks of fat. I put them in seperate piles.

I then weight each pile, and adjust the fat to lean to around 35% fat.

My point was that I hardly ever find that the 2 piles from a Packer are not 35-65. But, I can adjust fat% to my liking.

I think the part that may be throwing you is that I don't particularily care for cooking my fresh sausage links by low and slow smoking. I like to grill German sausage over lump charcoal indirect in my Okla. Joe's Horizontal, which gives me plenty of room to be off direct fire. I get plenty of smoke flavor from the oak lump and cooking the fat out.

Just my own preferred way to cook the links.

I've seen it all in that tiny German community that I used to live in.

[bigwheel]

Well thats a lot of good info..thanks. If I am hot smoking a large batch I will usually use mesquite flavored Kingsord briquettes and some type of flavoring wood or pee can shells direct in the upright using the optional water pan. Will use lump when I got some but it dont provide enough smoke flavor for my taste buds when used alone. In fact I dont think in a blind taste test a person could tell it from gas when both are used alone or with the same flavoring woods. Have to check out that proposition one day. I try to keep the heat low..170-180 so as to prevent tough cases. I hate tough cases on sausage and if the pit gets much above them figgers will guarahntee they be tough. The water helps a bunch on this angle in my view. If I'm just cooking a few links..maybe up to a dozen or so.. I like to wrap them in cheap bacon and secure with a tooth pick or two. Smoke or grill as desired till the bacon gets done..yum yum..also cures the old tough case blues. For the past few years I have a fairly standadized meat ration for anything I make (swiped it off Big Dave)...goes like this:

2 untrimmed Boston Butts
1 5 pound chub of pre ground 80/20 chuck (Bambi goes here if you got it)
1 3 lb box of bacon ends and pieces

I cut up what needs to be cut..season it...mix well..grind..mix well again and stuff. Chill overnight uncovered giving it an occasional shuffle so all the links get some air..if your using cure. Makes right at a 20lb batch on near each occasion so you know how much guts you need etc. Have tried 40 pound batches and that gets me overwhelmed cuz I am an old fat lazy boy who sweats a lot.

bigwheel

[bigtexman]

The Southside smokehouse in Elgin makes some good sausage that can be purchased all over the state. My personal favorite is Green's Saugage, in Zabcikville, Texas. I don't think it's a secret that this is real bohemian saugage.

[bigwheel]

Well I will join with you on Green's...fact is think I already did higher up in the thread. Welcome to the forum by the way.

bigwheel