Ok all you sausage makers...

[OOBuck]

I'm currently thawing about 20 Lbs of meat to make sausages from. I have the meat in three seperate bags that have been frosen for a while.

I'm thawing it in a fridge but its still rock solid after 24 hours, should I attempt to speed it up in water or????

[BowHunter England]

put on the counter away from dogs etc and cover it with something so the flies don't get it and put it in the fridge at night

[dime]

We do not completely thaw our meat when making sausage. I would leave it in the fridge until you can just start to feel it give when you press on it with your finger. If you leave it on the counter until it is thawed, the bits on the outside will be starting to breed bacteria, so thawing in the fridge is preferred. The partially frozen chunks of meat go through the grinder more smoothly and do not get heated up by friction as you are running a lot of meat through which heats up the grinding mechanism. We add pig fat (about 20% by weight) which makes for a nice flavorful and not too dry mix, it is nice to use a binder like toasted bread crumbs as well as they will stop some of the rendered fat from running out when the sausages are cooking.
Good luck
Dime

[Bow Walker]

If you're not in a hurry let it thaw slowly in the fridge. If you're cramped for time, use the tepid/cool water-thaw method and process as soon as it is workable - while still containing some ice/frozen bits.

Do not leave it on the counter over night!






........30+ years of meatcutting

[BowHunter England]

I didn't think it'd start growin bacteria good to know
after 10 years of makin sausage you'de think I'd know guess not but we usually made sausage as soon as the rest of our butchering was done (we just ground the trimmings up added some pork fat and spices mixed it up and stuffed our sausages
ps. if you "hot" smoke it ( in other words bring the internal temp up to usual roasting temp) there is less risk of bacteria

[Sitkaspruce]

We do not completely thaw our meat when making sausage. I would leave it in the fridge until you can just start to feel it give when you press on it with your finger. If you leave it on the counter until it is thawed, the bits on the outside will be starting to breed bacteria, so thawing in the fridge is preferred. The partially frozen chunks of meat go through the grinder more smoothly and do not get heated up by friction as you are running a lot of meat through which heats up the grinding mechanism. We add pig fat (about 20% by weight) which makes for a nice flavorful and not too dry mix, it is nice to use a binder like toasted bread crumbs as well as they will stop some of the rendered fat from running out when the sausages are cooking.
Good luck
Dime

Ditto for the unthawing.

I might have to try the bread crumbs. How much for 5lbs of meat would you suggest????

Cheers

SS

[Steeleco]

When I'm defrosting a block, I peal off the outside stuff as I can, it all stays in the fridge till it's all done. If your making frying sausage and it's to be re-frozen, I read that it's best not to let the raw meat reach room temp?
If you going to smoke it then freeze you should be OK

[ElectricDyck]

http://lpoli.50webs.com/

I stumbled onto this site lots of good sausage info and recipes.

[newhunterette]

TYPES OF VENISON SAUSAGE

Fresh Venison Sausage
Fresh sausage is not cooked, contains no curing salt and is meant to be eaten soon after it's made. Salt and seasonings are mixed with the ground venison, which is sometimes combined with beef or pork.
Some fresh sausage types, like Polish sausage or breakfast links are stuffed into casings. Italian sausage and breakfast sausage can be left in bulk form and shaped into patties, or cooked and crumbled for adding to sauces and gravies.
Cured Venison Sausage
Cured sausages contain a curing mixture or curing salt in addition to the salt and other seasonings. The ground meat is combined with the curing salt and allowed to rest for a period of time before the other ingredients are added.
Some styles of cured sausage are fermented, which gives a tangy taste to the meat. The acidity from the fermentation adds a tart bite and also helps to prevent spoilage.
After curing, the seasonings are added and the meat is stuffed into casings. There are different procedures for making semi-dry and dry cured sausage.
Semi-Dry Venison Sausage
Semi-dry cured sausage is slowly cooked over a period of several hours, with the final temperature reaching 150 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on the recipe. Some varieties of semi dry sausage are smoked.
Dry Venison Sausage
Dry sausage is not cooked, but is hung and dried at a controlled temperature and humidity level. The drying process can take several weeks.

EASY DEER SALAMI RECIPE
Venison and five ingredients is all it takes to make this recipe


5 pounds ground venison
4 tablespoons Morton tender quick
2 tablespoons of cracked black peppercorns
1 tablespoon mustard seed
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons liquid smoke

Mix all of the ingredients together thoroughly for at least 5 minutes. The mixing action stirs in the spices, but more importantly it improves the texture of the salami. Keep it cold in the refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours to cure.

Shape the meat into rolls, about 3 inches in diameter. Place the rolls on a cookie sheet or broiler pan and bake at 175 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 hours. Drain and cool. Refrigerate for 24 hours before serving.

HOT VENISON ITALIAN SAUSAGE RECIPE
When it's hot, it's hot, and this one is as hot as you want it to be. The amount of crushed red pepper can be adjusted to suit your taste to a "T".


3 pounds ground venison
1 pound ground pork
1/2 c. water
4 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoons basil


Combine all of the ingredients. This recipe is best if it is kept refrigerated for 24 hours for the flavors to blend and the spices to soften and mellow.

Form the meat into patties and pan fry over medium heat until lightly browned. It can also be fried to use as a pizza topping or in sauces.
Makes great meatballs, too. A few breadcrumbs and an egg, chopped onion and garlic, and wow. You'll have some great spaghetti sauce

DEER BREAKFAST SAUSAGE
This is a really nice recipe for breakfast sausage. Very simple and really tasty. It's best if you trim all the fat off of the venison before its ground. Some venison suet has a strong flavor that just doesn't agree with some
people.

1 pound ground deer meat
1 pound ground pork
2 teaspoons ground sage
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper


Put the pork and the venison into a large bowl and mix it up. Combine the spices and seasonings, and then sprinkle the mixture over the meat. Work the seasonings into the meat with your hands. Fun, isn't it?
Form the meat into a roll, wrap in foil or plastic, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. Now you will be ready to slice the roll and fry as needed for breakfast

LOW FAT VENISON BREAKFAST SAUSAGE
Not a bit of pork fat in this sausage. It's all lean venison, seasoned with spice and a little something that tastes like butter, but it ain’t

1 pound ground venison
2 teaspoons sage
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon “I can’t believe it’s not Butter”
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon red pepper (or to taste)


Combine all ingredients, form into patties and fry, using non-stick skillet and just a touch of oil. If you're a low fat kind of eater, this sausage recipe is a good one for you. And it's a great way to make use of that tasty venison.

[OOBuck]

Hey all, thanks for all the advise.

I ground the meat last night with my new Cabelas grinder, let me tell you this thing made short work out of 33 pounds of meat ODDBuck & myself couldn't keep up to it. The meat was still frozen and this didn't matter either.
I also bought a Cabelas ground bagging kit it comes with bags and a little machine that wraps tape around the bag and seals it, worked like a hot dam!

We did 10 pounds of ground and seeing how smooth that went we started on sausages at 10:00PM about 1:00AM we were done! The Cabelas grinder came with all the attachments, we had bought a sausage kit from cabelas that had casing & spice and cure if you wanted to smoke them, we decided on fresh. After soaking the casings for about 20-30 minutes in warm water & a bit of vineger we started stuffing with the high speed augar that comes with the grinder. It made quick work out of the meat and we had at least 100 sausages, sorta lost count running back & forth to the freezer and cooking a batch up..

I don't know why I didn't do this sooner!!!