[Sca-cooks] Sausage question?

[Maggie MacDonald]

At 09:20 AM 5/8/02,jenne at fiedlerfamily.net said something like:

>Ok. Thank you. That's a big help.
>I don't suppose someone on the list can describe how to stuff sausage
>with a KitchenAid sausagestuffing attachment? Or how to stuff sausage
>period? I know I've made polish sausage but I was less than 12 at the time
>and I think we did it by hand. There is, as the prospective sausage-making
>person/assistant said, always the 'try it and see if it works' method but
>the potential for messy comedy is a bit much for me. :)
>
>-- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa
>jenne at fiedlerfamily.net OR jenne at tulgey.browser.net OR jahb at lehigh.edu
>"Are you finished? If you're finished, you'll have to put down the spoon."

I've done this for our Canton A&S night, in preparation for the Talanque
Feast in June.

First off, thread your casing onto the sausage squirter piece. I use the
italian sausage size hog casing, and use the larger sized .. .. uh,
squirter piece. Yes, there will be comments regarding condoms and other
things, but just keep going.

Fill your hopper with meat, and have a helper to refill and push more meat
into it.

Pull the casing about 2 inches past the end of the squirter piece, hold it
there. Turn on the kitchenaid.  The meat will come out, pinch the end of
the casing shut, and let it fill a bit. If you can do it (an interesting
juggling act every time) twist the end shut a few times. The alternative is
to knot the casing, let it fill with the giant air bubble at the head of
the meat, and then pop the bubble with a pin.

Continue to let the casing fill, letting it plump out a bit in the casing
but not let it get tight (this stuff expands a bit as it cooks).  Have a
plate/platter for the sausage to wind itself on as it comes out. If you
have another helper right there, you twist the casing to form individual
sausages. Four twists left, the next one is four twists right.  The
twisting to make individuals can also be done at another table while you
are filling the next sausage.  If you get tired of watching this really
really big sausage fill, or have to take a break for the moment, just let
the hopper empty out into the casing, turn off the kitchen aid, pull out
the casing so it is empty for a couple of inches, clip it with scissors and
knot that end.

We tried natural hog casings and the collagen casings.  The collagen
casings not only cost much more, but they are really hard to manipulate. I
wasn't too terribly impressed.  I ordered my casings online at Heinsohn's
Country store (www.heinsohns.com) . Their 50 feet of natural hog casing is
$1.99 .  (But 200 feet of the same thing is $14, how odd).

Good luck, and enjoy!

Maggie MacD.