Meat mixer
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If you are hand mixing your hands will be freezing cold, cramping, and You’ll feel Your forearms burning. That’s when your done. It will also stick together and when you stretch it, it will be very tacky and stretch like dough.
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It is not too bad if you are doing a small batch (<5lbs) but your hands will feel like meat clubs. My brothers and I would tag team, even with an insulation layer your hands will become numb, but you do get a pretty good upper body workout. A good mixer is a game changer.
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Depends on how well you work the meat block. As Parksider said, it will be very tacky and stretchy. There is a good video about protein extraction on Meatgistics. I can’t say I really ever timed it, just need to work the meat block to the appropriate protein extraction point. A bit of a learning curve, but you can tell by your end product.
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Thanks everyone, so mixing by hand, say a 5 lb batch, how long would that need to be mixed?
macminn18 Unless you are a hoss, you’re probably going to mix for a good 15-20 minutes by hand for a cured sausage. For a fresh sausage, you don’t need the same level of protein extraction and can get buy with more like 10 minutes, maybe even a little less (and you don’t really need a mixer for that).
The problem with a 5 pound batch is that the 20 pound mixer is a little too large to easily mix only 5 pounds. You end up doing a lot of scraping down to get the blades to properly mix, although that’s still a lot better than mixing by hand. If you are not against making a 10 pound batch, I advise that with the 20 pound mixer. Some have said that 7 or 8 pounds is enough. I trust them on that, but I just haven’t tried it.
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macminn18 Unless you are a hoss, you’re probably going to mix for a good 15-20 minutes by hand for a cured sausage. For a fresh sausage, you don’t need the same level of protein extraction and can get buy with more like 10 minutes, maybe even a little less (and you don’t really need a mixer for that).
The problem with a 5 pound batch is that the 20 pound mixer is a little too large to easily mix only 5 pounds. You end up doing a lot of scraping down to get the blades to properly mix, although that’s still a lot better than mixing by hand. If you are not against making a 10 pound batch, I advise that with the 20 pound mixer. Some have said that 7 or 8 pounds is enough. I trust them on that, but I just haven’t tried it.
TexLaw I mixed 25 lbs this morning by hand and had no issue getting protein extraction in less than 10 minutes but I was also using sure gel. Our cookshack smoker doesn’t do a great job of slow cook sessions as it tends to have a mind of it’s own. I run at 140 for the first hour and 190-200 and my sticks reach 160 in about 2 1/2 hours total time and I’ve yet to run into as issue with fat out. I’m just lucky I guess!
Better Living Through BBQ!
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TexLaw I mixed 25 lbs this morning by hand and had no issue getting protein extraction in less than 10 minutes but I was also using sure gel. Our cookshack smoker doesn’t do a great job of slow cook sessions as it tends to have a mind of it’s own. I run at 140 for the first hour and 190-200 and my sticks reach 160 in about 2 1/2 hours total time and I’ve yet to run into as issue with fat out. I’m just lucky I guess!
Joe Hell I think you’re just a hoss!
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Parksider LOL that would be a fun video to watch for sure!
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I like the 20 pound mixer very much, and I’m glad I got it. I was doing a fine job by hand, but it does a better job and in less time. Clean up is not difficult.
Half full is not a problem. It works very well for 10-11 pounds, and I might scrape a few times. I can tell you the 20 pound mixer does not work very well for a batch as small as 5 pounds. I had to stop too many times to scrape, so I may as well have been mixing by hand (or even done a better job mixing by hand. I haven’t done a batch right around 8 pounds, so I can’t speak to that.
TexLaw I forego the mixer by adding seasoning before the 1st grind. By the time I add the liquid just before stuffing and after the second grind, the seasoning is pretty much incorporated and have had no issues. Looks like it’s all personal selection. But, maybe if I made batches greater than 18 lbs, a mixer would ensure proper distribution.
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zbigjeff So you add the liquid before your second grind? Are we talking cured sausage or fresh here? If its fresh I can see that working, if it is cured then I would imagine it would still require a decent amount of hand mixing to get proper protein extraction?
Get more help with your processing questions and learn more about processing meat by subscribing to our waltonsinc.com youtube page at https://wltns.link/waltonstv I am a Gorilla, love yourself
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zbigjeff So you add the liquid before your second grind? Are we talking cured sausage or fresh here? If its fresh I can see that working, if it is cured then I would imagine it would still require a decent amount of hand mixing to get proper protein extraction?
Jonathon No, liquid is after the second grind. Sorry for letting you think that.
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zbigjeff No worries, I have misread other things this morning. I was supposed to be out playing golf but that got cancelled so I am here but it seems I am here in physical form only, mind is having problems staying on task! It’s an interesting idea though and I think something I am gonna test out. In general, I don’t like adding the seasoning between the grinds because I normally have to wait a while before I can get them washed and seasoned meat sets up A LOT harder/faster than fresh meat, so it makes cleaning a pain but if this was my main purpose for doing it that might not be an issue.
Get more help with your processing questions and learn more about processing meat by subscribing to our waltonsinc.com youtube page at https://wltns.link/waltonstv I am a Gorilla, love yourself
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zbigjeff So you add the liquid before your second grind? Are we talking cured sausage or fresh here? If its fresh I can see that working, if it is cured then I would imagine it would still require a decent amount of hand mixing to get proper protein extraction?
Jonathon Cure info: I totally blend all of the dry seasonings, cure (when smoking) and binder (if I’m using) in one bowl and evenly distribute it among the large pieces before the first grind. Then, do a second grind per recommendations from you guys (on the site), then add whatever liquid just prior to stuffing and hand mix in the liquid. Since I’m not doing the large batches that many of you accomplish, I see no need to use a mixer. If I did your size batches, then I would. BTW: I know my weights before the grinding and put whatever liquid in the freezer to get really cold before adding.
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zbigjeff No worries, I have misread other things this morning. I was supposed to be out playing golf but that got cancelled so I am here but it seems I am here in physical form only, mind is having problems staying on task! It’s an interesting idea though and I think something I am gonna test out. In general, I don’t like adding the seasoning between the grinds because I normally have to wait a while before I can get them washed and seasoned meat sets up A LOT harder/faster than fresh meat, so it makes cleaning a pain but if this was my main purpose for doing it that might not be an issue.
Jonathon No worries Jonathan. You guys are fantastic and love you being candid. You’re not dealing with a snowflake over here. I’ve learned my lesson on grinding awhile ago about meat being very cold. I now get the meat to almost crunchy cold before messing with it. Life is much better on the “making” process. Had to go to insulated rubber gloves when doing large batches because the fingers are numb after about 5 mins. I only use a size 8 grinder because I’m a small batch guy (usually less than 20 lbs for one kind of sausage). Unlike the beasts that you guys use. I cut up the meat the day before grinding, place it in one layer, keep each layer separated, let it sit in the fridge overnight and then stick it in the freezer for about 2.5 hours before grinding. Life is much better that way.
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