Chicken VS pork

[Reaper]

The price of Pork in the states has been through the roof and the price of chicken thighs, with skin on, is the same price as pork was 1 year ago and I am wanting to make sausage but not break the bank!
I make a a seedless Italian sausage and love my recipe and am not here to argue fennel vs no fennel.

My recipe is per 10 lb:
6 Tbsp salt
4 Tbsp course ground black pepper
4 Tbsp crushed red pepper

My questions are:

How much chicken skin VS meat
Will I have use less salt, because all grocery store bought chicken in the states has a 12% chicken broth solution injected into it??? Who the hell knows what is in the solution?
Will I need to adjust the other spices with chicken vs pork?

I apologize for no metric conversions.

Edited: per the OP, in a post below, measurements are in tablespoons, not ounces. - vagreys

[wheels]

I'm not US based, so I'll leave others to reply regarding the chicken. I'm also confused as to what 'seedless' sausage is?

I assume that by Italian sausage, you're referring to a fresh sausage, in which case 6oz salt to 10lb meat (3.6% salt) seems very high?

Phil

[johngaltsmotor]

I'm assuming due to his comment about fennel vs no-fennel that seedless means no fennel seeds.

[NCPaul]

The measurements must be in volume. When I make chicken sausage I use the chicken fat but not the skin. I make chicken stock with the skin and bones and add that to the sausage. I add breadcrumbs in equal weight to absorb the concentrated stock. This gives the sausage a more chicken taste and improves the texture. Chicken is more mild so I do use less spice than I would for pork.

[wheels]

You've lost me NCPaul.

How can lb and oz be volume?

Phil

[NCPaul]

If you take a liquid measuring cup and fill it to the 6 oz mark with salt you would be using a volume measure. I have some pickling recipes that do this; johnfb couldn't believe it when I explained it to him.

[wheels]

Ah, we know those as Fluid Ounces, there's 20 in a pint as against 16oz in 1lb.

I'm with it now!

Phil

[Reaper]

Sorry about my measurements 6tbls, my measurements are in tbls, sorry for the confusion.

[Reaper]

Thanks NCPaul !

[vagreys]

Original measures edited to reflect tablespoons.

I use skin-on chicken thighs and grind the skin in with the meat, just using whatever skin and fat are there. Chicken thighs have a fair amoutn of fat in them, too, so my chicken sausages have always come out with good flavor and enough fat without being too fatty.

I grind whole fennel seed to season my Sweet Italian, so it is seedless with a Neapolitan flavor. I don't like whole fennel/caraway/anise/cumin seeds in my sausage because they stick between my teeth. Whole seeds that don't stick in my teeth aren't a problem.

[Reaper]

Thanks!

[Reaper]

My Uncle on the south east side of Chicago made a big living on seedless Italian sausage, with black pepper as the dominant flavor, sausages flavors are regional and that is why we are on the best international forum in the world, to learn from each other and find our own little piece of heaven!

Thanks, vagreys

[Thewitt]

I don't find that the fat in the thigh and skin is enough to keep my chicken sausage texture and fat content what I want. I end up adding chicken stock and rusk as well, but the amount varies for small or large sausages. I find I can get away with less rusk for a small lamb casing, and need more for a larger hog casing.

I also have a chicken recipe where I add pork back fat, which should still be fairly cheap from a butcher compared to pork shoulder.

It's not an all chicken sausage, but neither is a chicken sausage packed in a hog casing, so it depends on why you are making what you are making...

[RodinBangkok]

Using phosphates in comminuted sausage can be another avenue to retention of moisture and texture/binding improvement. With meat prices thru the roof some compromise with respect to additives is becoming an easier decision to make. One example supplier:

https://www.innophos.com/__sitedocs/bro ... -final.pdf

[BriCan]

With meat prices thru the roof some compromise with respect to additives is becoming an easier decision to make.

With all due respect; meat prices have been artificially low for the last ten years (maybe more). Granted they do the swing where they raise and also fall.

If we take a look at the rise of inflation (never goes down, always up ) and if we base the cost of meat/food the same prices would be a lot higher now.

I have prices going back to when I fist started my original business in 87, fresh turkeys right off the farm (we had to clean) $0.85 per pound -- today I can get (cleaned) off the farm $2.69 per pound -- a rise in price of 68% in 27 years. Pork bellies used to cost $0.98 per pound and up until a few months ago $1.69 per pound -- now over $3.00 per pound

Compromise with respect to additives becoming an easier decision to make will in fact put a burden on the health system due to health problems as people are/will not be living a healthy lifestyle

We have a saying in the (old school) trade and it is as true today as when it was taught to me some fifty odd years ago. Quality in equals quality out, shite in equals shite out. The other part of that is; We are what we eat

I am sorry if I have ruffled anyone's feathers as this was/is not my intention

I will take my soapbox and leave now