Rusk Substitute

[tristar]

Hi Everybody,

I hope you are all enjoying the holidays, and have not overdone it in any way!

I have been reading through the posts about rusk and it suddenly occured to me that perhaps supermarket own brand 'Cream Crackers' would make a cheap and simple substitute, the ingredients are pretty much the same as the recipes for home made rusk and you have the convenience of being able to buy them off the shelf of any local supermarket. I am all for making your own if that results in a superior product, but I also like to find simple and easy solutions if at all possible.

I am sure that someone on the forum must have tried this, can you let us know what the results were?

Regards,
Richard

[Lance Yeoh]

Tristar, why don't you try it with a small batch and tell us your findings. I can get the same thing here and if it works I'll try it as well. But don't you think it's a bit oily to be used?

[tristar]

Hi Lance,

I would love to give it a try but am presently on an assignment in Gabon, Central Africa. For sure it will be on my list of things to try when I get home!

How is the texture of your sausages coming along, the picture you posted looked really great!

Regards,
Richard

[Lance Yeoh]

Tristar, so far the texture has improved but still missing the juicy and springy texture that I like. Gonna try a batch after I get home from work today. I've already prepared the meat this morning so I just need to grind and stuff tonight. Hope it comes out ok.
Maybe I'll try the cream crackers when I have the time, I was actually thinking of making my own rusk earlier.

[aris]

You can also put some oatmeal in a food processor to get the particle size smaller and substitute that.

[hoodoobluesman]

Hi Everybody,

I hope you are all enjoying the holidays, and have not overdone it in any way!

I have been reading through the posts about rusk and it suddenly occured to me that perhaps supermarket own brand 'Cream Crackers' would make a cheap and simple substitute, the ingredients are pretty much the same as the recipes for home made rusk and you have the convenience of being able to buy them off the shelf of any local supermarket. I am all for making your own if that results in a superior product, but I also like to find simple and easy solutions if at all possible.


Regards,
Richard

I am sure that someone on the forum must have tried this, can you let us know what the results were

im in the U.S.
i would like to try bangers.
someone told me a zweiback craker is loaded with rusk.

can i use these.

any one know where to buy small amount of rusk in the states

[roseway]

I'm about to try using some bran.

Eric

[Paul Kribs]

Eric

There is a recipe for making rusk on this thread:
http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopic.php?t=1130&highlight=rusk

Regards, Paul Kribs

[roseway]

Thanks, Paul.

Eric

[tristar]

Hi Paul,

The original point of my post, was that it could be more convenient and time saving if it were possible to use cream crackers off the supermarket shelf as a substitute. To end up baking ones own rather kills that idea. Personally I can find the time for making sausages because I love sausages so much but I think I would be hard pressed to find the time to make rusk if a good workable alternative is available. Living in Indonesia I just cannot find rusk anywhere.

Regards,
Richard

[aris]

Like I said before - try oatmeal. Can you get oatmeal there? Just wizz it up in a food processor.

[Paul Kribs]

tristar

Have you considered using breadcrumbs. Bread is available almost anywhere and doesn't need much time for preperation, just slice it quite thin and leave it to go stale, then pound it into crumb of whatever size you require. It allows the fat and meat juices to run through it, giving it flavour and also give the sausage a finer texture. If it is allowed to dry right out, it also stores nicely in a sealed polythene bag.. it must be completely moistureless though. I use breadcrumbs as groundbait for fishing and it stores for well for ages because it is dry.

Regards, Paul Kribs

[Wohoki]

I almost always use breadcrumb: I've got five kids, so there is always the end of a loaf sitting around going stale. I've had better results (don't know why ) when I've dried the bread in the bottom of a warm oven than when I use stale.
Couscous is also quite good, depending on the recipe. It's great in mergez, but not so good in traditional bangers.

[aris]

Couscous sounds interesting - do you cook and/or grind it first, or do you just add it raw?

[Wohoki]

I just add it as it is (ca. 10%). Couscous cooks in only minutes as a grain, so it takes on the juices in the sausage in the time it takes to cook it, and you get a really nice texture in the banger, almost a nutty feel on the tongue, but with all the benefits of a good rusk. You do have to make sure that the mix has plenty of fat, tho', as it could dry the mix before cooking.