retaining weight in sausage

[alwayslearning]

Hi guys im brand new at this and i make Thai sausages basically with pork and fresh herbs - on cooking i get at least a 25% weight loss. I need to retain the weight of the sausage - what filler, binder or any good suggestion to keep the weight in the sausage and not effect taste
thanks in advance

[wheels]

Before you go down the road of adding fillers, are you sure that your sausage-making technique is OK? Are you keeping everything cold? Are you mixing the meat and seasonings until they become a really sticky mass? (If you don't this is often the reason for excess weight loss). It may take 3 - 5 minutes of mixing by hand (and frozen hands!) to achieve this.

Try those things but don't hesitate to post here again if that doesn't solve it.

Phil

[BriCan]

Before you go down the road of adding fillers, are you sure that your sausage-making technique is OK? Are you keeping everything cold? Are you mixing the meat and seasonings until they become a really sticky mass? (If you don't this is often the reason for excess weight loss). It may take 3 - 5 minutes of mixing by hand (and frozen hands!) to achieve this.

I think thee and me will be aving a long debate over a few pints when I come home

The thing that jumps out at me is for that type of loss a few things need to be answered 1.) How long are they being cooked?? 2.) Ow much water has been added??

Recipe would be helpful

[wheels]

Recipe would be helpful

It would! As well as that, the level of fat in the meat would be of interest.

When I wrote my reply I nearly put a tenner on at the bookies that you'd be along!

I think thee and me will be aving a long debate over a few pints when I come home

For everone else's benefit, I'll explain: my forum mate BriCan uses a different system to some of the rest of us when it comes to mixing his meat (proving that there's more than one way to skin a cat). Both mixing methods can be found in more detail here:

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/sausage-making/mixing-meat

Phil

[NCPaul]

alwayslearning, what can you tell us about the texture of the cooked sausage?

I would buy the first pints to learn about sausage from you two.

[BriCan]

I would buy the first pints to learn about sausage from you two.

You ever out this neck of the woods drop in if you are back in the UK next may/june we can both bug Phil

[BriCan]

Recipe would be helpful

It would! As well as that, the level of fat in the meat would be of interest.

When I wrote my reply I nearly put a tenner on at the bookies that you'd be along!

Bu**er, I supose that's another on my slate.

[wheels]

Great posts, but poor Alwayslearning must wonder what's hit him!

Alwayslearning, I'm sure we can put you on the right track. The guys that have replied may be 'nutcases' but they do know about making good sausage.

(Our banter will hopefully grow on you in due course! We get a bit boisterous at times)

Phil

[captain wassname]

I suspect that neither Phil nor Robert are in the habit of weighing their cooked sausages.
A 25% weight loss is not unusual when cooking raw meat.
Adding filler eg rusk or breadcrumbs would mean you would have to add water which would have two effects.Firstly it may change the recipe for the worst and secondly the the water may well evaporate during cooking,leaving you back where you started.
Paul will not be buying the beer merely handing round the homebrew.

Jim

[wheels]

Jim

Ever wise. I boobed!

Phil

[BriCan]

I suspect that neither Phil nor Robert are in the habit of weighing their cooked sausages.

I cannot speak for Phil, but for myself I have quit weighing my fresh sausage after I cook them. I just seem to get the same numbers

A 25% weight loss is not unusual when cooking raw meat.

I totally agree with you on this, especially when 'most' people tend to overcook there meat. My weight loss on cooked fresh sausage is approximately 12% maybe less.

Adding filler eg rusk or breadcrumbs would mean you would have to add water which would have two effects.Firstly it may change the recipe for the worst and secondly the the water may well evaporate during cooking,leaving you back where you started.

Even though I was trained to make sausage like most of you at home [minus the mixing methods]. I use a lot less Rusk and waters, I have found that using larger amount of Rusk [any other filler] and water will and dose alter the taste spectrum of the sausage. I find that using less gives a more robust flavoured sausage.

I will agree that if the water content is higher than it should be then you will have cook off [evaporation and shrinkage] the same is if too much fat is added/used within the recipe

Paul will not be buying the beer merely handing round the homebrew.

Oh crap; I'll be legless on the first smell.

[captain wassname]

Must admit Ive never weighed my sausage before or after cooking but I may be wrong about the water in that its possible that the casing (esp natural )may keep the liquid in
Ive never thought about casings too much but it is true they do let fat out.
Im with BriCan regarding rusk the less the better.
alwayslearning Why do you seek to avoid weight loss?
If you are getting a decent final product I wouldnt worry.If you need a specific cooked weight just increase the size of pre cooked sausage.

[BriCan]

Must admit Ive never weighed my sausage before or after cooking but I may be wrong about the water in that its possible that the casing (esp natural )may keep the liquid in

My problem [if it is a problem] stems from my college/university days as a young lad being thought the fundamentals of the trade, if one hopes to make a profit as well as a living one has to know the absolute cost at the bottom line. Hence I have always [with new products] run the numbers from start to finish [pork coming in to the kitchen table].

Ive never thought about casings too much but it is true they do let fat out.

Natural casings will not let any liquid [fat, water or juices] so long as one dose not prick them, once you poke any type of hole [pin prick and up] you will get moisture loss. The other thing is the way people cook, I have had to re educate my customers and once re-educated we was selling 1200 - 1500 lbs of sausage a week and this from a 875 sq. ft. shop. Cook at a higher temperature and more than nine minuets there will be a significant shrinkage

Just my observations

[snagman]

The only post cooking weighing I do involves curiosity about how much weight I have put on as a result of what I have just loaded in.....
Thus, the bathroom scales used for the purpose have been adjusted to show less than the actual .... easy !