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Dried Sausage

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Law361
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2:25p, 11/8/24
AG
Anyone make their own dried sausage? I love the buck sticks from Granzins and have been looking for a similar recipe/technique.

Chudds BBQ just made the following video and seems eerily simple. Is he doing anything wrong? Pink salt #1, smoke, then dry.
Don't want to die of botulism…

TIA

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Dirty-8-thirty Ag
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3:06p, 11/8/24
AG
We make about 300# lbs of dried and another 800# lbs of link sausage every year. For our dried we just go heavier on salt and all the peppers (crushed red/cayenne/black). Don't stuff too thick and make sure it's all uniform size or it won't dry back correctly. You'll have parts that are done and parts that aren't if you don't do it all the same size.

Need to have the hanging area as cool and dry as possible. Humidity and heat is the number one enemy of dried sausage. Window unit ac's/oscillating fans/box fans need to be running constantly moving air around to dry as quick as possible.
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dr_boogs
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In reply to Dirty-8-thirty Ag • 5:15p, 11/8/24
AG
That...is.....awesome.
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Reel Aggies
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5:34p, 11/8/24
AG
I e made a couple batches. I waited till Jan/feb when it was a consistent temp in 60s and lower humidity (hill country) and hung up in garage (also hung up in guest bathroom one year, freaked the maid out) with fan going. I weighed the links and had a little tag on each and I think they were ready when they lost about 30% weight? Can't quite remember. Also could kinda feel when ready. They are pretty good and I didn't die lol. I think his method was
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BurnetAggie99
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5:59p, 11/8/24
We have a homemade smoke room, so when we do homemade sausage it goes to hang in the smoke room. Use a mix of Post Oak & Pecan wood.
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Dirty-8-thirty Ag
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In reply to dr_boogs • 6:01p, 11/8/24
AG
It is something I look forward to each New Year. We have a blast. Drink entirely too much bourbon and beer and piss our wives off as they come and pick us up to drive us home. It was my grandfathers favorite thing to do with his family. So we plan on continuing on with the tradition as long as we can all do it.
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tamu2017
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6:21p, 11/8/24
AG
I'm with you on what they make at Granzins. I'd pay a lot for that recioe
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southernboy1
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12:10a, 11/9/24
AG
Thinking about trying my hand at it this year. Anybody have recipes they want to share. Of course if it was paid for I understand. I have made sausage before just not dried.
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HTownAg98
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In reply to southernboy1 • 7:13a, 11/9/24
We use our regular sausage recipe. As long as it has pink salt (insta-cure #1, Prague powder, etc.) in it at the appropriate amount, and you total salt (salt plus curing salt) is between 2%-2.5% by weight, you're good to go.

We only dry about 20 links or so every year because we don't want to lose a bunch if it goes bad. Humidity isn't as big an issue as temperature and airflow. In fact, higher humidity is better, as that will ensure a slower and even drying. If it's too dry, you'll get case hardening, which is where the outside dries too fast, and the inside is still "raw." It is curable by vacuum sealing it and leaving it in a freezer for a month, but it's not ideal.

Also be in the lookout for mold. White powdery mold is fine; just wipe the sausage down with vodka. Black, green, slimy, or puffy mold is bad and the sausage should be thrown away.
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Doc Hayworth
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9:30a, 11/9/24
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.
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Deerdude
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10:05a, 11/9/24
Buddy and I made 400-500# together for many years. He died a few years ago and now the grinder sits idle and the smokehouse doesn't smoke. Hardest part is to get a very few willing souls to agree on spice and taste to make it.
Son and SIL both happy having it made for them and they not willing to enjoy the satisfaction of creating it yourself. Today's generation; PFFFT.
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southernboy1
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10:03p, 11/9/24
AG
Thanks for the info.
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HTownAg98
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In reply to Doc Hayworth • 6:41a, 11/10/24
Doc Hayworth said:
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.

You don't have to use Prague powder #2 for dried sausage and probably shouldn't, especially if it's going to be done within two weeks. The fear would be that you're not going to get the nitrate>nitrite>nitric oxide conversion completed before the sausage is ready. Plus, you need bacteria from a starter culture to convert the nitrates and get that cycle started.

Anything that will be done within 30 days is fine with #1. Longer than that, for things like ham, salami, and other dry-cured products that will take a while, you have to use #2 and a starter culture.
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tsuag10
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In reply to Dirty-8-thirty Ag • 7:46a, 11/10/24
AG
Do you use cure or no?
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tsuag10
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 7:56a, 11/10/24
AG
HTownAg98 said:
Doc Hayworth said:
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.

You don't have to use Prague powder #2 for dried sausage and probably shouldn't, especially if it's going to be done within two weeks. The fear would be that you're not going to get the nitrate>nitrite>nitric oxide conversion completed before the sausage is ready. Plus, you need bacteria from a starter culture to convert the nitrates and get that cycle started.

Anything that will be done within 30 days is fine with #1. Longer than that, for things like ham, salami, and other dry-cured products that will take a while, you have to use #2 and a starter culture.


If you use sodium erythorbate, you can technically use either one.
But You're right about cure #1 (6.25% nitrite) being the one to use here. Personally I would recommend using cure #1 and sodium erythorbate. The erythorbate helps with complete conversion from nitrite to nitric oxide, and there's some literature out of either U Wisc or ISU that suggests a slightly higher level of protection against C. bot when you use both. Also, erythorbate is such an inexpensive ingredient and you use so little, there's no good reason not to use it, IMO

Usage rates:
Cure #1 (6.25% Sodium Nitrite) = 0.25% or 0.25 lb per 100 lbs of meat

Sodium Erythorbate = 0.05% or 0.05 lb per 100 lb of meat
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Rattler12
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8:35a, 11/10/24
Us old folks down here in German country use this recipe and it make for a great tasting sausage. For 40 pounds of meat/fat mixture use

1 C canning salt
1/2 c #32 black pepper
1/3 c sugar
1/4 c garlic powder
1/8 c cayenne pepper
8 tsp Pink salt #1

They also chunk the meat and fat to about golf ball size chunks, season it, mix and let it rest in the fridge overnight, then grind with a quarter inch plate, mix again and stuff the next day. Smoke it for 6 -8 hours or so with live oak bark then dry. Grind some up and taste it to check on the seasonings. Yes it's raw but it won't kill you.

Now yall got me wanting to make some. If you use deer and pork fine. I don't care for deer meat so I use beef/pork mixture. If you use beef and pork do not use any beef fat........it will go rancid. Lean beef, lean pork and fatback.
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Deerdude
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9:38a, 11/10/24
This is pretty close to our recipe. It came from some Alsatians from Castroville country. We modified for taste and a little more spice.
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Dirty-8-thirty Ag
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In reply to tsuag10 • 10:50a, 11/10/24
AG
tsuag10 said:
Do you use cure or no?


We use Morton's table salt and a little pink salt. Unsure of exact ratio. Written down on the wall in smokehouse.
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tsuag10
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In reply to Dirty-8-thirty Ag • 10:53a, 11/10/24
AG
Dirty-8-thirty Ag said:
tsuag10 said:
Do you use cure or no?


We use Morton's table salt and a little pink salt. Unsure of exact ratio. Written down on the wall in smokehouse.
Good deal. 0.25% of meat weight is USDA limit for cure #1. Combine that with at least 1.5-1.7% salt and you should be good. Also see my earlier post about sodium erythorbate if you want to try that in the future.
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tsuag10
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10:59a, 11/10/24
AG
FYI, for anyone who isn't familiar with this type of dried sausage. USDA/State inspected facilities can't make this type of dried sausage for sale except at their own store fronts (AKA: retail exempt). It's because there isn't a lethality step during the process to reduce pathogens to an acceptable level.

I eat this stuff all the time and don't have an issue with it personally, but you do have to make sure you have a clean process, use cure and enough salt, and dry it out without too much delay.

I only point this out so that anyone who is trying this for the first time is fully aware of the risks.
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DoubleC_96Ag
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In reply to tsuag10 • 12:32p, 11/10/24
AG
Also, if using Morton's table salt make sure it is Non-Iodized. That is what the old timers taught me. That is why canning/pickling salt is good. It does not have anything like Iodine added to it.
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HTownAg98
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In reply to tsuag10 • 3:57p, 11/10/24
tsuag10 said:
HTownAg98 said:
Doc Hayworth said:
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.

You don't have to use Prague powder #2 for dried sausage and probably shouldn't, especially if it's going to be done within two weeks. The fear would be that you're not going to get the nitrate>nitrite>nitric oxide conversion completed before the sausage is ready. Plus, you need bacteria from a starter culture to convert the nitrates and get that cycle started.

Anything that will be done within 30 days is fine with #1. Longer than that, for things like ham, salami, and other dry-cured products that will take a while, you have to use #2 and a starter culture.


If you use sodium erythorbate, you can technically use either one.
But You're right about cure #1 (6.25% nitrite) being the one to use here. Personally I would recommend using cure #1 and sodium erythorbate. The erythorbate helps with complete conversion from nitrite to nitric oxide, and there's some literature out of either U Wisc or ISU that suggests a slightly higher level of protection against C. bot when you use both. Also, erythorbate is such an inexpensive ingredient and you use so little, there's no good reason not to use it, IMO

Usage rates:
Cure #1 (6.25% Sodium Nitrite) = 0.25% or 0.25 lb per 100 lbs of meat

Sodium Erythorbate = 0.05% or 0.05 lb per 100 lb of meat

I've thought about adding a cure accelerator, but our recipe is pretty consistent because everything is weighed (if you're using volume to measure ingredients for your sausage, stop it. Convert everything to weight. You'll get more consistent results, it's easier to adjust a recipe when you have different weights of meat, and fractions suck ass.)
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tsuag10
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 4:12p, 11/10/24
AG
Amen
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Rattler12
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 4:12p, 11/10/24
HTownAg98 said:
tsuag10 said:
HTownAg98 said:
Doc Hayworth said:
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.

You don't have to use Prague powder #2 for dried sausage and probably shouldn't, especially if it's going to be done within two weeks. The fear would be that you're not going to get the nitrate>nitrite>nitric oxide conversion completed before the sausage is ready. Plus, you need bacteria from a starter culture to convert the nitrates and get that cycle started.

Anything that will be done within 30 days is fine with #1. Longer than that, for things like ham, salami, and other dry-cured products that will take a while, you have to use #2 and a starter culture.


If you use sodium erythorbate, you can technically use either one.
But You're right about cure #1 (6.25% nitrite) being the one to use here. Personally I would recommend using cure #1 and sodium erythorbate. The erythorbate helps with complete conversion from nitrite to nitric oxide, and there's some literature out of either U Wisc or ISU that suggests a slightly higher level of protection against C. bot when you use both. Also, erythorbate is such an inexpensive ingredient and you use so little, there's no good reason not to use it, IMO

Usage rates:
Cure #1 (6.25% Sodium Nitrite) = 0.25% or 0.25 lb per 100 lbs of meat

Sodium Erythorbate = 0.05% or 0.05 lb per 100 lb of meat

I've thought about adding a cure accelerator, but our recipe is pretty consistent because everything is weighed (if you're using volume to measure ingredients for your sausage, stop it. Convert everything to weight. You'll get more consistent results, it's easier to adjust a recipe when you have different weights of meat, and fractions suck ass.)
Are you, any chance, an engineer by profession?
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HTownAg98
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In reply to Rattler12 • 7:28a, 11/11/24
Rattler12 said:
HTownAg98 said:
tsuag10 said:
HTownAg98 said:
Doc Hayworth said:
Make sure to use the correct cure with dried sausage.
Prague powder No. 1 is the pink cure to use when smoking sausage.
Prague powder No. 2 is the cure to use when making dried sausage.

You don't have to use Prague powder #2 for dried sausage and probably shouldn't, especially if it's going to be done within two weeks. The fear would be that you're not going to get the nitrate>nitrite>nitric oxide conversion completed before the sausage is ready. Plus, you need bacteria from a starter culture to convert the nitrates and get that cycle started.

Anything that will be done within 30 days is fine with #1. Longer than that, for things like ham, salami, and other dry-cured products that will take a while, you have to use #2 and a starter culture.


If you use sodium erythorbate, you can technically use either one.
But You're right about cure #1 (6.25% nitrite) being the one to use here. Personally I would recommend using cure #1 and sodium erythorbate. The erythorbate helps with complete conversion from nitrite to nitric oxide, and there's some literature out of either U Wisc or ISU that suggests a slightly higher level of protection against C. bot when you use both. Also, erythorbate is such an inexpensive ingredient and you use so little, there's no good reason not to use it, IMO

Usage rates:
Cure #1 (6.25% Sodium Nitrite) = 0.25% or 0.25 lb per 100 lbs of meat

Sodium Erythorbate = 0.05% or 0.05 lb per 100 lb of meat

I've thought about adding a cure accelerator, but our recipe is pretty consistent because everything is weighed (if you're using volume to measure ingredients for your sausage, stop it. Convert everything to weight. You'll get more consistent results, it's easier to adjust a recipe when you have different weights of meat, and fractions suck ass.)
Are you, any chance, an engineer by profession?

No, I've just been making sausage and dried sausage with my family for as long as I can remember, I think we've only lost two batches of dried sausage, and people ask us all the time for our sausage recipe. I just tend to be a little persnickety about this because it's a lot of work and it sauces to screw it up because the seasoning is off. But what do I know.

Measuring by weight for your ingredients will give you a consistent end result every single time. It saves time, there's fewer dishes to clean up, and the math is easier.
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SoTxAg
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8:01a, 11/11/24
AG
I'm lazy, so i'll just take some of my regular venison sausage, cut it up and put it in oven at 170' for about two hours. Dries it well enough for on the go snacking.
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normaleagle05
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In reply to HTownAg98 • 8:42a, 11/11/24
AG
HTownAg98 said:
(if you're using volume to measure ingredients for your sausage, stop it. Convert everything to weight. You'll get more consistent results, it's easier to adjust a recipe when you have different weights of meat, and fractions suck ass.)

Encouraging TexAgs to reverse engineer the metric system is a bold maneuver.
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Dirty-8-thirty Ag
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In reply to SoTxAg • 8:48a, 11/11/24
AG
SoTxAg said:
I'm lazy, so i'll just take some of my regular venison sausage, cut it up and put it in oven at 170' for about two hours. Dries it well enough for on the go snacking.


Why is your oven 170 feet up in the air? Weird place for it, most people keep their oven in their kitchen, unless you have really tall ceilings!
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Deerdude
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In reply to Dirty-8-thirty Ag • 9:20a, 11/11/24
Dirty-8-thirty Ag said:
SoTxAg said:
I'm lazy, so i'll just take some of my regular venison sausage, cut it up and put it in oven at 170' for about two hours. Dries it well enough for on the go snacking.


Why is your oven 170 feet up in the air? Weird place for it, most people keep their oven in their kitchen, unless you have really tall ceilings!


It's his kitchen, he can design it as he wants.
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Dirty-8-thirty Ag
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In reply to Deerdude • 9:22a, 11/11/24
AG
Says he's lazy but getting an oven that high up in the air to make dried sausage doesn't seem lazy to me at all. Seems like a lot of effort.
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Rattler12
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9:26a, 11/11/24
I just hope it's not 169' 11 7/8 " s. If it is it won't be fit to eat........
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SoTxAg
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9:31a, 11/11/24
AG
Blame apple for not making the little degrees circle easier to find on the iphone keyboard, had to improvise the lazy man way.
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Deerdude
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10:09a, 11/11/24
I hang jerky out in the sun on wire stretched atop 8' Tposts to keep critters off, but this really ups the game.
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