Does anyone make/smoke their own sausage?

FOMOGO

FOMOGO

#1
#1
I have been craving Summer Sausage lately and want to make some...I have been reading about "cold smoking" sausage and it seems the more I read the more difficult it gets. It seems that it should be pretty straight forward. An enclosed box to hold smoke. A smoke generator. And something to generate a small amount of heat. I have an old upright smoker that would serve as the smoke box. Still trying to figure out the simplest/best way to make a constant source of heat. Anybody have any experience with cold smoking? Smoking BBQ is not a problem and an entirely different subject. I have been smoking BBQ for 25 years but have never tried cold smoking.

I did find a website with lots of recipes. They have some strange stuff. Fish sausage??? Vegan sausage??? I believe it is European based judging by some of the combinations

Sausage Recipes (meatsandsausages.com)
 
Tom S.

Tom S.

#2
#2
I make fresh sausage but have never tried smoking to preserve it. Mine goes straight into the freezer. Good luck with your project and please post updates. From what I've read you need to be really careful because it's all about controlling the bacteria that preserve the meat and give it that slightly sour flavor. I do make smoked bacon and pastrami, but that's a whole different deal.

 
superflea

superflea

#4
#4
Once you have all your sausage stuffed into casings you need to hang it in the kitchen. Here is the important part. After hanging it you need to light a cigar and strip down to your skivies. It must be frigid outside and you need to go outside to smoke your cigar. This is the critical part. You stay outside in the "Cold" and keep "Smoking" until your sausage is almost but not quite frozen. A minute too long and it freezes and becomes useless. Once you've come back inside and your sausage is back to room temperature it should be ready for serving.
 
Studeman68

Studeman68

#5
#5
superflea said:
Once you have all your sausage stuffed into casings you need to hang it in the kitchen. Here is the important part. After hanging it you need to light a cigar and strip down to your skivies. It must be frigid outside and you need to go outside to smoke your cigar. This is the critical part. You stay outside in the "Cold" and keep "Smoking" until your sausage is almost but not quite frozen. A minute too long and it freezes and becomes useless. Once you've come back inside and your sausage is back to room temperature it should be ready for serving.
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I'm doubled over right now LOL...

@FOMOGO .. I have a really cool guy who works for me.. He's Romanian... He does this all the time as this is how he grew up and is really good at it..
We have a morning meeting every day so I'll ask him for pointers and relay what he says..
He does his own bacon and pickles and other stuff too, brings me food in all the time.
 
Studeman68

Studeman68

#6
#6
FOMOGO said:
I have been craving Summer Sausage lately and want to make some...I have been reading about "cold smoking" sausage and it seems the more I read the more difficult it gets. It seems that it should be pretty straight forward. An enclosed box to hold smoke. A smoke generator. And something to generate a small amount of heat. I have an old upright smoker that would serve as the smoke box. Still trying to figure out the simplest/best way to make a constant source of heat. Anybody have any experience with cold smoking? Smoking BBQ is not a problem and an entirely different subject. I have been smoking BBQ for 25 years but have never tried cold smoking.

I did find a website with lots of recipes. They have some strange stuff. Fish sausage??? Vegan sausage??? I believe it is European based judging by some of the combinations

Sausage Recipes (meatsandsausages.com)
Click to expand...
Hey Doug, I read your question to him today and he actually sent me a pic of his heat generator.. This is a guy who will go buy 100 plus pounds of the meats required and makes enough to get him through the year..Below is his heat/smoke source
He pipes this into an old soda cooler like what was used in a store with some holes drilled into the top. He said to get the coals going and then regulate them down some and then add your wood. He uses apple wood. He said just keep the smoke warm, not hot, and smoke for a whole day (24 hours). He usually takes a vacation day to make a long weekend when he does his annual sausage smoke lol. Once smoked he hangs them up to dry out.. Looks pretty darned simple..

IMG_3502.jpeg
 
FOMOGO

FOMOGO

#7
#7
@Studeman68 Thanks for that. I had seen this in my searching around... I have a couple of the little Weber's and a good upright cabinet off a 25 year old smoker. Glad to hear that it is an actual working combination. looks like something I can do with what I have lying around.

1608387558691.png
 
Studeman68

Studeman68

#9
#9
FOMOGO said:
@Studeman68 Thanks for that. I had seen this in my searching around... I have a couple of the little Weber's and a good upright cabinet off a 25 year old smoker. Glad to hear that it is an actual working combination. looks like something I can do with what I have lying around.

View attachment 272590
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Welcome Doug.. he actually called me today and told me to tell you that he has a lever type valve installed on the cabinet where that pipe hooks up so he can regulate the amount of smoke..
 
FOMOGO

FOMOGO

#12
#12
Tom S. said:
When I was a kid, I was kind of amazed how my parents' friends had repurposed an old refrigerator as a smoker.
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Back then "Old refrigerators" had metal interiors in them. I have a clapped out old upright freezer that is all plastic inside. It can be relined with metal and then will be safe to use for smoking either cold or hot. The plastic interiors give off crap that you don't want in or on your food.

Sadly when I moved in 2006 I threw out an old all metal General Electric refrigerator that I had held onto for this very purpose.
 
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