Textured Vegetable Protein

[Banjoe]

larry - I'm not getting to the sticky mass stage at all.

I've been working with the meat in a ground up state and expecting it to turn into sausage meat.

I've been reading dozens of postings searching for an answer and came across a reference about myosin and that process that turns ground meat into sausage meat - I think you are nailing the problem that will get us sorted out.

Can't get to the meat today to try things unfortunately but will report back on my quest for our first batch of real sausage.

I did order a stuffer as some have suggested a grinder is a grinder and a stuffer is a stuffer. I try to learn from the wisdom of others but there still seem to be a lot of mistakes I need to make on my own.

Joe

[captain wassname]

A bit more salt may help this tends to draw the water from the meat.and /or maybe some water.If you do add water then slowly and little by little is the way to go.

[kimgary]

Hi Banjoe

Are you using a grinder plate with your stuffing tube? if you are, you are just stuffing ground meat consistency into the casings, the stuffing funnel on a grinder should be used without a grinder plate so that it is the mixed mixture being pushed into the skins.

Grind 1st time on large holes, (easier on the gears and motor), mix your spices etc, regrind again and then mix well until its a sticky mass then put thru mincer without a plate just stuffing tube.

Mixing the salt with the liquid first will allow the salt to work quicker when mixing.

Regards Gazza.

[SausageBoy]

Looks like the biggest problem lies in the level of salt.
That's not much salt for 5 lbs. of meat and a cup of water, especially if a light Kosher salt such as Diamond Crystal is being used.
As has been mentioned, an adequate level of salt is required to extract the protein exudate that makes sausage come together.

Do you have an accurate kitchen gram scale?

[SausageBoy]

Okay, I found where the recipe came from, now I think it's safe for me to say "it sucks"! LOL
Compare the salt level of that recipe with the salt level of other recipes on that site, they vary widely.

I recommend starting with some better recipes and smaller batches and then tweaking them to your liking.

I also highly recommend accurately weighing at least the meat and the salt (as well as any cure where applicable), I personally don't usually bother with spice and herb weights because it's not as critical.

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/sausage-recipes

[Banjoe]

"Exudate"?

Man, the things I'm learning from you guys!

I haven't done enough recipes to know what sucks yet but I'm taking your comment to heart and going with your advised recipe for my next run.

The comments on grinding while stuffing is a light bulb moment. I'm producing sausage that tastes - not so much tastes as 'feels' just like ground meat. I do have a proper stuffer on order so I'll fix that process before I do another run.

Grind course on the first run, mix everything very well, then regrind.

Any suggestions on the plate to use for the second grind?

Should I leave the mixture for a bit before stuffing?

I do have a very accurate kitchen scale that reads to 1/2 gram (I used it to balance the critical parts for an MG engine rebuild) so I'll make sure to use it so that the ingredients are accurately measured.

This newbie stuff is really a challenge for an old dog but your comments are going to get me through this fascinating startup process. New stuffer, new recipe, new processes...I really appreciate the insights from you wise guys and will dedicate my first successful 'children' to each of you.

[SausageBoy]

Any suggestions on the plate to use for the second grind?

It's a matter of personal preference.
I use the 3/8" plate for most of my sausages, grinding just half of the meat through the same plate a second time.

Should I leave the mixture for a bit before stuffing?

It would help to combine and rest the meat, salt and other ingredients (giving the salt extra time to do it's work), before moving on to serious mixing.

[Banjoe]

I'm armed and ready to take on my next experiment. Hopefully this will get me up to the edible stage.

Thanks much guys!

[Banjoe]

After turning out our first real sausages, i offer a few thoughts.....

A grinder is not a stuffer. It just grinds up perfectly good sausage meat and turns it into inedible ground meat. Use a stuffer if you want to turn out fine sausage and not just ground meat in a tube.

The Grizzly 5 pound stuffer isn't pretty but it's pretty effective. A pleasure using this hand cranked unit over the electric grinder / stuffer that we started with.

Use a good sausage recipe if you want to turn out good eating sausage. The people on this site will happily provide well-tested recipes that suit every appetite - ask for help and make sure you follow it.

These are the latest observations of a brand new sausage maker that, for that past few months, has turned out nothing but inedible beginner products that didn't even interest the dog. I doff my hat to the folks that jumped in to help this sad case and get me up to a surprisingly good production run. Hope I get to be half as wise as some of you and be able to pass on your good works to future beginners.

Thanks very much for getting me on the right track!

[neildj]

A good emulsion to use would be Soya Isolate Concentrate: Chicken Skins/ Chicken Fat : Water
If you going non-vegetarian of course. You can use a 1:5:5 or a 1:6:6 ratio . I find a 50/50 blend of Chicken skins and chicken fats to give a full flavored emulsion. But if you want to be vegetarian you may use vegetable oils in place of the chicken, however with a 1:4:5 ratio. Olive Oil gives a much better flavor than Soy based oils.
Also you may infuse your olive oil with peppers, chilli, capers, cloves, bay leaves, mustard seed, star aniseed, basically any pickling spice . Infused olive oil emulsions are full bodied and impart wholesome flavours. Substituting infused balsamic vinegar over standard brown vinegar also adds to aroma and taste in the final sausage.

[neildj]

Try substituting 30% of your water weight with crushed ice cubes.
The leanness of your beef will play a pivotal role. Low grade economy cuts are particularly lean. You want your butcher to supply you with beef trimmings that have 20% fat content. If you have a lean block of meat with little to no fat, you may ask your block man for Body Fat trimmings. You do not want to use Kidney Fat or other Offal Fat if you are aiming for a high quality product. Substituting some of your beef with fatty pork trimmings, or sheep (70/30 protein:fat content) at a ratio of your choice though 6:4 (beef:Pork) is a good ratio, will certainly help with the binding. Personally I trim the fat from the lean, and then take them to below 5 degrees. Grind the lean separate from the fat, with a large whole plate (8mm), blend them together minimally,with the spices and pass them through the grinder again together. This forms a better bind between the fat and lean tissues and also incorporates your spices better. You may want experiment with your whole plate sizes. Grinding fine gives a heavy tightly bound sausage that sometimes struggles to cook through, whereas a too large a grind gives a far too chewy bite, and without substantial binders, your sausage will be too loose.