Meat Processing

@joeb said in Sous Vide questions: Also the tops are inter changeable. Only have to prep one top Perfect. Was hoping they were the same size so I could use this larger cooler for holding finished meats when necessary. Sometimes when butts are cheap I’ll load my Pitts & Spitts up and offer to friends/neighbors so cooking 9+ butts at a time isn’t uncommon.

I would make your usual sausage recipe then put it in your stuffer or jerky gun. As you press it out a small diameter tube, cut it off in small pieces with a knife or sharp scissors. This will make it like tiny meatballs. Just fry it up carefully without breaking it up.

Bear fat is pretty different stuff. It tends to render at very low temperatures. I would try mixing it with a decent percentage of lean pork. 50/50 maybe?

@vnmsupply The icon that is the 2nd to last on the right will take you to a link that has 1 and 5 lb batches split out for most seasonings. A few of the newest ones might not be on there yet. [image: 1624450363439-18a60d30-9cce-4c0a-a732-54219dec666d-image.png]

@saxman you are correct, can be used as a fresh bratwurst without the pink stuff (pink cure) or a cured bratwurst with the pink stuff (pink cure). You can even make snack sticks or summer sausage with it. The fresh bratwurst can not be smoked but the other items that you add the pink cure to can be smoked.

Nonfat dry milk added as a binder is generally used in amounts that are not detectable as a flavor. Its pretty common in processed foods of all kinds.

@jonathon Yup! I generally go with the largest stuffed horn I can get away with.

@benjamminn If it’s already in it I wouldn’t think you would need more?

@wdaly Yeah I’ve been doing sticks on my Pitts & Spitts Maverick 1250 pellet smoker but it only goes down to 180F. I ordered a PK 100 to fill that low temp niche my current grills/smokers don’t.

@smokinbubba Thank you, Sir. I completely agree with getting real cautious. But, with this information I will be running another batch very soon.

Oh! So it’s an even more diluted brine than is used when wet brining? I thought using a vacuum tumbler is supposed to reduce the amount of ingredients needed.

There is food grade and non-food grades of dry ice. Dry ice is approved for use in ground meat. https://www.burtekdryice.com/meat-processing/#:~:text=Food grade dry ice is,beyond what is legally allowed).

@kyle we are also on well water here, great water but just for being uniform I use distilled water. Not sure I can tell any difference.

@T-Jake If noone else has suggested it then go with the |High-Temp-Ghost-Pepper-Cheese

Mathew, I use 20-22 sheep casing for breakfast sausage, 30-32 for brats and Italian sausage and 32-35 for Kielbasa. Hope this helps

@jamieson22 looks like a nice batch of sticks. Yes, for the most part you get what you pay for.

@branson-tolliver Maybe try adding some maple sugar to your meat block for the flavor you are looking for

@BRYARRR_80 I’m also alerting commercial sales that you’ll be contacting them, you could also email cs@waltonsinc.com

@glen excellent description

When the machine failed to get to temperature, it was -6 degrees. It was outside in Bozeman Montana. The altitude here is 4800. I had ice from the machine to the concrete it was sitting on. I rent, and not able to put a hole through my garage for venting purposes. The machine setting was on high for 36 hours, never reaching temperature. The machine was 2 weeks old at the time of this event. I hope this helps.