Sous Vide Summer sausage help - round 2 update

[Rag Horn]

1 hour ago, mbiewer said:

what cheese do you guys use?

 

 I am using just a plain sharp cheddar because of the easily obtainable cheese options it has the highest tolerance for heat. The other cheeses melt at lower temps. There are a handful of "high temp cheeses" that have very high melting points but they all seem to be special order cheeses. 

[Couzer]

 

so this is the kit I purchased, after watching it I don’t think I let mine set up long enough for the glues to tighten up the meat. He talks about the proteins setting up and ect. I just used sharp cheddar like the OP did. I have lots more to do to perfect it. Having the meat setup correctly in the beginning stage I would say is the most important along with the correct fat to lean meat as shown in the video. It really is a art!!!! I just ordered a Sous Vide, hopefully I can use it for this. Thanks Raghorn for the info man!

nontyp, treats are the only thing I’m good at!!

[Rag Horn]

On 11/7/2018 at 11:14 AM, Roosevelt Mark said:

It doesn't look bad, I use a very lean mix.  The Temps seem ok, maybe even on the low side. Remember, you need an internal temp of 165 to kill the bacteria.

There are several explanations and charts out there about what is safe temps and how long to hold meat at a temp to keep meat safe. Does anyone think it would be be disastrous to try cooking my summer sausage at 135 degrees for an hours ish or more. keeping the temp that low will help both my cheese and my fat from rendering out? I have quite a bit of experience cooking Elk, Deer, Chicken, beef sous vide but i am over thinking this sausage project because for some reason or another it seems different and i had unexpected results the first try.  thoughts?

[dmoto]

2 minutes ago, Rag Horn said:

There are several explanations and charts out there about what is safe temps and how long to hold meat at a temp to keep meat safe. Does anyone think it would be be disastrous to try cooking my summer sausage at 135 degrees for an hours ish or more. keeping the temp that low will help both my cheese and my fat from rendering out? I have quite a bit of experience cooking Elk, Deer, Chicken, beef sous vide but i am over thinking this sausage project because for some reason or another it seems different and i had unexpected results the first try.  thoughts?

 

You are correct with being able to cook sous vide at a lower temperature while still being safe. It's all about pasteurization. Kenji Lopez has a pretty big write up about this (which you may have already read). For comparison, I have been cooking chicken via sous vide at 142* (2 hours) for years with zero issues. I wouldn't see any issues at going 135*, in fact I may even try this myself after reading this thread.

[Rag Horn]

46 minutes ago, dmoto said:

You are correct with being able to cook sous vide at a lower temperature while still being safe. It's all about pasteurization. Kenji Lopez has a pretty big write up about this (which you may have already read). For comparison, I have been cooking chicken via sous vide at 142* (2 hours) for years with zero issues. I wouldn't see any issues at going 135*, in fact I may even try this myself after reading this thread.

I love chicken cooked at 145. Then seared in a pan with a little bit of butter. It has all but ruined me for regular chicken. Lol. 

[dmoto]

2 minutes ago, Rag Horn said:

I love chicken cooked at 145. Then seared in a pan with a little bit of butter. It has all but ruined me for regular chicken. Lol. 

Yep. Really the only way I'll cook chicken breasts. Next time you do that, throw a sprig of thyme or rosemary in the bag before you seal it up for the bath.

[MULEPACKHUNTER]

Sounds to me like the cure was off. Also how you mix the meat and grind it makes a difference in texture and how it sets up. 

Cure time is important for summer sausage and mixing it before stuffing to the right consistency as well. 

I mix my grind in a kitchen aid mixer to get it good and smoother and sticky. Slowly adding ice water while mixing helps get you where you need to be. 

[MULEPACKHUNTER]

Sounds to me like the cure was off. Also how you mix the meat and grind it makes a difference in texture and how it sets up. 

Cure time is important for summer sausage and mixing it before stuffing to the right consistency as well. 

I mix my grind in a kitchen aid mixer to get it good and smoother and sticky. Slowly adding ice water while mixing helps get you where you need to be. 

[Curtis Reed]

I add 1 cup of powdered milk per 10 lbs of meat. That might help?  Here is my recipe I’ve used for years with my smoker:

 

SMOKED SAUSAGE:

80% Wild Game

20% Pork Trim / Bacon Ends

1 cup of dry milk per 10 lb batch

Add 10% extra water

Seasonings

Cure

Start smoking at 140* for 3 hrs

Increase temperature to 175* for 1 hr (no smoke)

Increase temperature to 225* for 1 hr (no smoke)

Increase temperature to 250* until reaches 158*

Put in fridge and cool overnight

[Rag Horn]

2 hours ago, Curtis Reed said:

I add 1 cup of powdered milk per 10 lbs of meat. That might help?  

Interesting I have never come across adding powdered milk. Is that used as a moisture retainer and binder? What does adding powdered milk contribute to the mixture?

[Curtis Reed]

Yes exactly. Binder and retains moisture. A trick I learned years ago.  It keeps your sausage from shrinking lol  when you lose volume the rendered fat takes up the empty space in the casing  The dried milk help prevent shrinkage.  If your meat mixture is fatty (which yours looks to be) I would use 1 cup of milk per 5lbs of meat

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/milk-powder-in-ss-what-purpose-does-it-serve.170934/#post-1249748

 

Although I’ve always used a smoker and never tried sous vide. Try it and let us know the results!

[Couzer]

I’m on round 2 tonight, a buddy just got back from Texas with 7 deer that he got. He gave me 2 of them. Wish I saw that powder milk tip yesterday. Ha ha

[Couzer]

Well I think I nailed it today on the sausage, it came out excellent. I followed the YouTube video that I posted earlier. It talks about getting the proteins to set up, and temp setting. 

I did not use their kit (hi country) this time, I visited my buddy at the pork shop in Queen Creek and he mixed a standard sausage mix for me that I used.

things that I did differently: 

mixed 15% fat to the venison

porkshop sausage mix

ground the meat more corse 

cooked for 130 degrees for 1.5 hours

then 150 degrees for 2 hours

then smoked at 180 degrees until internal ten hit 155 degrees

[Rag Horn]

1 hour ago, Vowell said:

Well that looks awesome! Well done. I have been meaning to go over to the pork shop and see what they were all about. 

[Curtis Reed]

looks good. Next time buy the bacon ends at the pork shop in QC and use that as your fat additive. oooooh baby