Sausage help needed

[milesthemeat]

Just made a batch of sausages. I've not got the stuffing technique down yet and there are pockets of air in them. I tied and linked them anyway.

Should i be worried about this? Should i prick them with a pin or something?

Many thanks

Miles-the-Meat

[Paul Kribs]

milesthemeat

It does no real harm to prick the air pockets to release the air. I have seen a butcher doing this using the point of a boning knife... I accused him of cheating and told him he needs to take more care when filling his stuffer to remove the air before it gets anywhere near the casings.. His reply cannot be posted here, but we both had a good laugh about it.

Regards, Paul Kribs

[Wohoki]

I've found that it's best to let the air out with a pin, as it expands when the banger is heated and BANG. The tiny hole only lets out a tiny amount of the juices, but a split (in my opinion) can ruin the sausage.