Zen and the Art of Sausage Making

Katherine today-just so you know.

Yesterday we spent the whole afternoon making various types of sausage. We got into sausage making last Christmas because each year we treat ourselves to some new cooking technique. We learn something and it fills the time between familial extravaganzas and keeps me from having less-than-merciful thoughts about the dark Republicans who litter my family tree. We've taken up pasta-making, tamale-making, cheese-making--lots of stuff like that. Last year it was sausage-making.

This was our fourth foray into sausage making, filling our freezer so we can have an array of choices whenever we want. Last winter whenever the weather people indicated we'd be snowed in, we'd rush out to Tony's and get the meats and sausage casings and spend the wintery day this way.

We started with one little Mario Batali recipe and just made Italian sausage. By the third outing, we'd figured out what we needed to do and we started improvising. Those improvised sausages were so good that we began playing around with all sorts of possibilities and yesterday we cranked out three miraculous batches.

Since I am a sweetheart (well, most of the time), I decided to share the process for any adventurous cooks who might be reading out there.

Equipment:

You need a meat grinder and a sausage stuffer. If you have a Kitchen Aid mixer you're halfway there because they have the right attachments available. We bought them for ourselves for Christmas last year--not real pricey either.

Ingredients:

You need meat, fat, filler (breadcrumbs, potatoes, etc.), liquid (wine, brandy, stock, etc.), and seasonings. The trick is learning to trust your instincts and be playful. You also need sausage casings which you can get at gourmet food shops that make their own sausage (we get ours at Tony's).

Basic Procedure:

You need to get the meat and fat really cold, but not frozen because it will grind up better. We usually just put it in the freezer as we start setting up. Cut the meat and fat into one inch cubes so it can make it through the grinder. Then you grind up the meat and fat. You need about one fourth of the quantity to be good fat (pancetta, pork belly, bacon). Add filler and appropriate seasonings. Add the liquid last until you get a texture that is tighter than meatloaf, but not too tight (that took some time to figure out). Then you need to try the sausage before you stuff the casings. Just fry up a small portion and give it a whirl. It's a nice break in the process too, especially if the sausage is yummy.

The next part is a bit yucky, but you get over it quickly. You need to clean the casings. Put a length in a bowl of water and then get it out and trap it between your fingers and pull it through to get rid of excess water. It's slimy--what would you expect for pig intestines? Attach the casings to the sausage stuffer, run the sausage mix through the machine until it appears at the end of the tube, tie a knot in the casing, and then start pushing the meat filling through the attachment (follow the Kitchen Aid directions). Make one long sausage and when it's done, pinch it and twist it into the serving sizes you want. Put the little beauties in the freezer and then they're ready when you want them.

Yesterday's Recipes:

Duck Sausage (makes 12 smallish sausages). This one is costly and you only share it when you know someone understands how special it is.

2 whole duck breasts
1/4 pound pancetta
fresh homemade bread crumbs--maybe a cup
zest of two oranges
salt to taste
white pepper to taste
red pepper flakes to taste
sage to taste
French chervil to taste
1/4 cup Citronge liqueur
orange juice as needed to get the moisture level correct

Breakfast Sausage (makes 28-32 large sausages)

4 pounds pork butt/shoulder (same stuff, but stores call it by different names)
1 pound pork belly
fresh homemade bread crumbs--maybe two cups (sheer guess here because I just throw it in until it looks right)
salt to taste
white pepper to taste
lots of red pepper flakes (we like it spicy)
onion powder
sage to taste
French chervil to taste
beef stock as needed to get the correct moisture level

Italian Sausage (makes 28-32 large sausages)

4 pounds pork butt/shoulder
1 pound pork belly or pancetta depending on how rich you feel
fresh homemade bread crumbs--maybe two cups
salt and white pepper to taste
red pepper flakes to taste
lots of marjoram, basil, oregano, fennel seeds
white wine as needed to get the correct moisture level

You can do anything. Our last round included a veal sausage where we added cooked mushrooms with partially cooked and diced potatoes as the fillers--that was pretty darned expensive, but heavenly. Strangely, the finished sausages are somehow beautiful although that's hard to imagine before you actually go through the process.

It was a great day and our freezer is filled to the brim with wonderful sausage goodies. I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving when I can start my stuffing by pulling out some of the breakfast sausage for my original recipe.