Newbie trying a kit - seeking Guidance

[tengu1234]

Hello Everyone,

I have been looking at your forums and they are a wealth of knowledge. I did a quick search but didn't find my exact question so hopefully this isn't a repeat.

I purchased 2 home sausage making kits. 1 Hi Mountain Bratwurst and one Cabela's Italian Sausage kits while on a trip to the states for black Friday. I was reviewing the instructional sheet that was included and it shows a mixture of Beef or Venison to Pork. I had planned on making turkey sausages with these kits.

Is this possible?
Is there anything that I should be aware of?

Keep in mind, that this purchase was on a whim and I have no real experience in doing this.

Any help or suggestions you can provide would be great.

Thanks

[vagreys]

Were you going to grind the turkey yourself, or were you going to buy ground turkey?

[NCPaul]

Welcome to the forum. You can make turkey sausage with these kits but you may want to add some pork fat to the meat since turkey is very lean. As a starting point, try to get to an 80/20 ratio of lean meat to fat. What type of equipment do you have?

[tengu1234]

Thank you for all the reply's. As for the turkey, I will be grinding it myself.

As for equipment, and this is probably where i'm lacking stuff. I have 3 different meat grinders (don't ask... long story. LOL), one of them has a sausage stuffing attachment. and that's pretty much it.

I was thinking that I would do fresh and then freeze them. According to the directions if I plan on making fresh and freezing then I don't add any of the cure to them.

I'm currently at work and have been attempting to read the sticky for beginners in between calls but haven't had much success as of yet lol

[tengu1234]

Okay so I am going to grind my own turkey. What is the best way to do this?

Should I grind the skin as well as cut it off? I'm assuming since Turkey is so low in fat, I will keep most of the fat attached so that there will be some in the sausages. Is this correct?

Also according to the directions it says that if you are making fresh and then freezing you don't need to use any of the cure. Is this correct?

Any other helpful suggestions? Going to be attempting this on Sunday.

[NCPaul]

Okay so I am going to grind my own turkey. What is the best way to do this?

Remove any sinews and cut the meat into small pieces. Lay them out on a sheet pan. Place in freezer until almost frozen. They will feel dry and firm to the touch. This will help you get a clean grind.

Should I grind the skin as well as cut it off? I'm assuming since Turkey is so low in fat, I will keep most of the fat attached so that there will be some in the sausages. Is this correct?

I've seen recipes both with and without the skin. If you do not have any other fat, such as pork fatback, to add to the turkey meat, I would use the skin and fat that comes with the turkey. Get it nearly frozen before grinding as well. The main problem with poultry fat is that it has a lower melting point than other fats, so all of your equipment and processing will need to be kept very cold in order to prevent "smearing" the fat (which will lead to a poor texture).

Also according to the directions it says that if you are making fresh and then freezing you don't need to use any of the cure. Is this correct?

Correct.

Any other helpful suggestions?

Relax and have fun. Keep everything cold. Stop mixing the sausage when it forms a sticky mass. This should only take 3-4 minutes.
If you're going to stuff using your grinder, have someone help you. Maybe you can trade in a grinder for a stuffer. Good Luck.

[captain wassname]

Up to 3% of turkey weight will help with the lack of fat

Jim

[tengu1234]

well the deed is done, My first batch of sausages done and over with. I ended up using all the fat and skin from the turkey, and the kit from Cabela's. They are good, however a little on the salty side, this is because of the kit, next time will use my own spices

But I think they look good

http://www.flickr.com/photos/82238416@N03/

[crustyo44]

Tengu,
Your sausages look great although a bit on the lean side. Do have a fry up for testing and let us know the result.
For your first effort,
you have done very well. The more you make the better you get and keep on asking questions, that's the only way to steer around stuff -ups.
I speak from experience.
Good Luck,
Jan.

[tengu1234]

Jan,

Thanks for the kind words, It was a great experience, I think my next attempt will be to make the Chicken Feta and Spinach recipe.

I plan on frying up a couple tonight for supper, when I cooked the "Patties" they seemed to have enough fat so I didn't add any extra after that. I'll update you all tomorrow with the results.

[tengu1234]

I cooked up the sausages, and I did find them a little dry, Also I did boil them before cooking so not sure if that played into the dryness or not. My partner really enjoyed them and didn't find them to dry so all in all good results for my first attempt.

Does anyone know how to convert a recipe so that you can make them into sausages? In Atlantic Canada a big item are Donair's. They are similar to Gyros from what I am told but not really the same. Anyway I have a recipe for the meat which you cook in a loaf and then slice off pieces to place in the pita. I guess my question is this. Is there a ratio on Fat to meat? and how exactly do you measure the fat content? or is it all based on assumptions?