snack sticks/ dehydrator
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Chefbjorn Just in case Parksider doesn’t see this for a while (he has been busy with a major relocation) I happen to know this answer very well as he and I went back and forth on it a number of times! The answer is he puts them directly into the water with no bag surrounding this. I always pushed back against this without having a really good reason, I guess I thought it might waterlog the sausage and leech out the smoke flavor. I then tried it with no bag and neither of these things happened.
Then one day I thought hey, if you have a sous vide cooker there is the chance that fat or particles of casing might clog up your filter. Well then PapaSop broke his Weston Sous Vide cooker down a little (took the bottom off basically) and proved that with those models that wouldn’t be a problem. SO here I am with very little stable ground to stand on saying that unless you have a sous vide cooker that draws water in and then heats it up and shoots it back out you can feel free to not use a bag. As long as the sausage reaches 130° in the smoker or oven first.
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Chefbjorn Just in case Parksider doesn’t see this for a while (he has been busy with a major relocation) I happen to know this answer very well as he and I went back and forth on it a number of times! The answer is he puts them directly into the water with no bag surrounding this. I always pushed back against this without having a really good reason, I guess I thought it might waterlog the sausage and leech out the smoke flavor. I then tried it with no bag and neither of these things happened.
Then one day I thought hey, if you have a sous vide cooker there is the chance that fat or particles of casing might clog up your filter. Well then PapaSop broke his Weston Sous Vide cooker down a little (took the bottom off basically) and proved that with those models that wouldn’t be a problem. SO here I am with very little stable ground to stand on saying that unless you have a sous vide cooker that draws water in and then heats it up and shoots it back out you can feel free to not use a bag. As long as the sausage reaches 130° in the smoker or oven first.
Jonathon thanks for the info… I recently did a batch in the smoker (wood smoker- reverse flow) and monitored the temp regularly up to internal of 150 then iced them. My end product was really flavorful but a touch dry. My ratio was 80% venison/10% deer fat/ 10% beef fat. I did also use curing salt in my season mix. I’m thinking I can either add a bit more fat and/or cook only to 140-145 internal temp to get a juicier finished stick. Or smoke for 1-2 hours then finish in oven or water bath when I get myself a water circulator.
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Jonathon thanks for the info… I recently did a batch in the smoker (wood smoker- reverse flow) and monitored the temp regularly up to internal of 150 then iced them. My end product was really flavorful but a touch dry. My ratio was 80% venison/10% deer fat/ 10% beef fat. I did also use curing salt in my season mix. I’m thinking I can either add a bit more fat and/or cook only to 140-145 internal temp to get a juicier finished stick. Or smoke for 1-2 hours then finish in oven or water bath when I get myself a water circulator.
Chefbjorn
80% venison will give a fairly dry finish. Have done that many times. I like it but some don’t. Usually 70/30 until doing some learning here. 10% deer fat? Typically trim all deer fat away. Not great tasting. Beef fat works but pork fat makes a much better finished product. Now do venison sausage and sticks 50/50, venison and pork butts.Absolutely finish in hot water… the new norm.
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I thought about pork fat. But pork has to be cooked to 160 - 165 degrees and beef only needs to be cooked above 140 and as well pork fat renders out to liquid at a much lower temperature than beef. I appreciate the thought looks like I’m going to have to save some money and get a water circulator. Although they are a touch dry they will be great snack sticks in the field when I’m going out next year hunting
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to finish in a water bath which is the best time saver you can use. A turkey roaster works fine or a large pot of water on the stove
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Chefbjorn Yeah, I’d 2nd what PapaSop said. We did a bunch of venison summer sausage yesterday and the difference between 20% pork fat and 25 and 30% was amazing. Also, using deer fat and beef fat is going to limit the creaminess you can get, which does effect more than just the phrase which shall not be named (mouth feel…ugh I’m gonna need therapy just typing it) so I’d look at switching to pork fat.
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not only does deer tallow taste bad, but you need to be careful because it goes rancid a lot faster then beef or pork fat. I also do 50/50 venison/pork butts
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I get the mouth feel thought. But I always thought that the nutritional value of deer fat was greater than beef or pork fat so thats why I was persistent in eating it. Same idea of organ meats vs. Muscle meats and nutritional value - taste is less desirable for most but incredibly beneficial. Not too worried about spoilage, 30 degrees outside and in my work area. Now all meat is in freezer unless I plan on eating it withing 24 hours. I will definitely experiment with pork fat next year when I get another deer, and get a water circulator… Thanks for all the input!
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I get the mouth feel thought. But I always thought that the nutritional value of deer fat was greater than beef or pork fat so thats why I was persistent in eating it. Same idea of organ meats vs. Muscle meats and nutritional value - taste is less desirable for most but incredibly beneficial. Not too worried about spoilage, 30 degrees outside and in my work area. Now all meat is in freezer unless I plan on eating it withing 24 hours. I will definitely experiment with pork fat next year when I get another deer, and get a water circulator… Thanks for all the input!
Chefbjorn
I use a roaster and it works great and saves so much time. -
I finished this batch in a shallow pan on the stove top last night after 2 hours in the smoker with cherry wood. They ended up a bit more juicy than the last batch!
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I finished this batch in a shallow pan on the stove top last night after 2 hours in the smoker with cherry wood. They ended up a bit more juicy than the last batch!
Chefbjorn man those look great. I don’t think you need any help in that department.
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