Salmonmaster, Bocephus, thank you for taking the time to delve into this. I appreciate your insights. I’m not easily frustrated and did not for a moment think that any of the questions directed at me were criticisms — far from it. I’ll keep at it and will incorporate what I’ve learned. My guess is that something in my smoking process was at fault.
I should add that my mix was 6 pounds of venison and 2 pounds of back fat; that’s a 25 percent ratio. Too much fat?
You guys are either really bored or really great. I’ll go with great. Thanks for taking an interest in my problem. I went by the smoke schedule Walton’s recommends (130 dry, 140 smoke, 150 smoke, then into the water (I had a tray in the smoker with water and the damper full open, then half open). I kept everything quite cold. In fact, I did my grinding and mixing (with a “MEAT” mixing machine) outside. After the first grind I put the meat mix back in the freezer for a few hours. I used an L*M, 5 pound manual vertical stuffer. I mixed for eight minutes (timed it). Meat was very sticky. I did add about a cup of water so it wouldn’t be like cement going through the stuffer.
Guys, thanks for the greetings and advice. I took the sausage out of my smoker at about 140 and put them into the sous vide tub. Because I hadn’t preheated the water, the sausage temperature dropped to about 130 before it started to climb. I pulled the sausage out at 155 and into an ice bath, yet, as you can see from the photo, I still had fat seep out. Any idea what may have caused this? I have to say, when I first started making summer sausage without a clue - stick in the smoker then frige - I never experienced fat out. Dumb luck, I guess. Summer sausage is a lot of work, but it makes a great gift for property owners who let me hunt and cannot be trusted to cook a backstrap steak without destroying it.
Salmonmaster, Bocephus, thank you for taking the time to delve into this. I appreciate your insights. I’m not easily frustrated and did not for a moment think that any of the questions directed at me were criticisms — far from it. I’ll keep at it and will incorporate what I’ve learned. My guess is that something in my smoking process was at fault.
salmonmaster It was in the Masterbuilt smoker from about 10 am until 3 pm when it went into the sous vide. The only lag was the time it took the sous vide water temperature to get up to 155.
salmonmaster I removed the sausage from the smoker when the meat was about 140 and put it in the sous vide which I set at 155, so I thought I’d be safe. My temp probe works well, and I assume the sous vide temp control was accurate. But clearly, there was a misstep somewhere.
It’s a mystery, but I’ll keep at it. Thanks.
And yes, I used the Walton’s summer sausage seasoning and cure.
You guys are either really bored or really great. I’ll go with great. Thanks for taking an interest in my problem. I went by the smoke schedule Walton’s recommends (130 dry, 140 smoke, 150 smoke, then into the water (I had a tray in the smoker with water and the damper full open, then half open). I kept everything quite cold. In fact, I did my grinding and mixing (with a “MEAT” mixing machine) outside. After the first grind I put the meat mix back in the freezer for a few hours. I used an L*M, 5 pound manual vertical stuffer. I mixed for eight minutes (timed it). Meat was very sticky. I did add about a cup of water so it wouldn’t be like cement going through the stuffer.
I should add that my mix was 6 pounds of venison and 2 pounds of back fat; that’s a 25 percent ratio. Too much fat?
Guys, thanks for the greetings and advice. I took the sausage out of my smoker at about 140 and put them into the sous vide tub. Because I hadn’t preheated the water, the sausage temperature dropped to about 130 before it started to climb. I pulled the sausage out at 155 and into an ice bath, yet, as you can see from the photo, I still had fat seep out. Any idea what may have caused this? I have to say, when I first started making summer sausage without a clue - stick in the smoker then frige - I never experienced fat out. Dumb luck, I guess. Summer sausage is a lot of work, but it makes a great gift for property owners who let me hunt and cannot be trusted to cook a backstrap steak without destroying it.
I’m new posting to this forum, but I certainly appreciate all the great suggestions for making summer sausage. Today, I ground six pounds of venison and two pounds of back fat (1/4 plate - back into freezer - 3/16 plate), added cure and seasonings, then mixed for eight minutes and stuffed seven casings. I plan to smoke in my Masterbuilt tomorrow. It’ll be about 50 degrees, warm for Massachusetts in January. After experiencing fat-out the last time I made summer sausage, I’m going to borrow my friend’s sous vide machine. My plan is to smoke to a temperature of 140 in my Masterbuilt with water in the bottom pan (good idea?) and the vent partially open (good idea?), then remove the sausage and vacuum seal (or freezer bag?) and put in water at 170-degrees. What’s the best way to tell when my sausage has reached the magic 160-degree mark? I have a remote meat thermometer I could stick through one of the bags. Thanks for any tips.