which cut?

[SimonSez]

Hi all,

I was wondering if there was any reason not to use pork loin to make sausages?? I appreciate that the fat content is somewhat low thus requiring the addition of fatback, but is there any reason taste/texture of otherwise not to use it (or any other cut for that matter)??

Thanks in advance.

[Dingo]

Hi Simonsez....The only reason i could think of would be the cost...i buy pork butt or shoulder for $1.98/lb and I dont have to add much fat....loin is well over $3.50lb and I'd have to add 25-30% fat. Personally my preference for loin would be Canadian bacon, lonzino or some other cured product...but that's just me.

As for other cuts.....sausage is just a casing for a concoction ..have a look through the various recipes on this site and others and you'll see everything from chicken lips to duck anus (i prefer a nice confit of duck lips) Joking aside, take for example this recipe from The Idiot;

http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=11515

It all depends on your taste and willingness to try new things. Exploring the world of charcaturie is lots of fun...enjoy

[yotmon]

Hi Simonsez, as Dingo quite rightly says, you can use any cut of pork as long as you get the correct fat/lean ratio. The sausage was probably invented to use up bits and pieces that didn't have much monetary value (or to hide its quality). Most butchers who buy in whole pigs would obviously use up the cheaper cuts that they couldn't sell as fresh pork to their customers, plus any trimmings from preparing the quality cuts. Lower shoulder (hand and spring or picnic) plus maybe a belly if it wasn't fit for the shop ( ie too fat or too lean) would be utilsed in the sausage meat. Same with pies/faggots/brawn etc.

Re' using loin, I've recently been finding a supply at around £2.00 a kilo but still couldn't bring myself to cut it up for sausage. Better to use it for good bacon any day !

[SimonSez]

Thanks for the replies, reason I asked is that my local grocery store has a special on at the moment.

I will eventually get round to curing meats, but at the moment I just plan on making some english bangers and some boerewors. I used shoulder on my last batch, but can get other 'cleaner' cuts at a good price now.

[Thewitt]

We are processng whole pigs into sausage now, and simply mix the cuts so we get the desired lean to fat ratio. It all works

[johngaltsmotor]

I typically buy whatever is on special - if it's loins for $1.79/lb then I just pick up a pound of bacon to mix in in order to up the fat content. Especially since the loins don't require any work as far as trimming off the shoulder, just cube and go.

[SimonSez]

Another question, as I am planning on making sausages and boerewors over Christmas. My local grocers only stocks salted fat back, my plan was to rinse and dry this off and then small dice freeze prior to using in my sausage mix. Is ther an issue with using this salted fat back???

Thanks for all the info on this site.

[Thewitt]

I ended up with 10kg of salted back fat and I don't know how to use it. Taste and texture are wrong...

[vagreys]

Another question, as I am planning on making sausages and boerewors over Christmas. My local grocers only stocks salted fat back, my plan was to rinse and dry this off and then small dice freeze prior to using in my sausage mix. Is ther an issue with using this salted fat back???

Thanks for all the info on this site.

Soaking will not be sufficient to remove the salt. Salt-cured fat is salty throughout, and because it is fat, the water only removes surface salt. You can use fatback, but you have to adjust the salt, and as already pointed out, the texture and flavor are different from fresh back fat. Cured fatback is more often used for flavoring various pottages, beans, and stews.