Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat
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Well ended up turning the PK100 up to 215F which gave me a temp reading of 195-198F on my Thermoworks Smoke ambient probe. That seemed to push them through as 125F to 135F took hours. Pulled them at 155F IT and did a cold water bath. Final cook time was 11h20m for 25lb in 42-45mm casings. Currently sitting on counter for a bit before going in fridge.
Color is fantastic so twilliams think your advice of less water in dust made a diff. Have a few pale spots but that was due to overlapping .I did get a lot more case wrinkle than I’d like and imagine the higher temps had a lot to do with it. Guessing I got some fat out on a few in hotter spots in smoker. Not sure what to change next time for a better batch.


Jamieson22 did you use the 1250watt setting from start? Maybe next time try your ambient probe trick at the beginning and adjust smoker temp to hit the desired cabin temps. I think 195* was a bit much and pushed a bit of fat out. When you cook them they may plump up and not be wrinkled
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Well ended up turning the PK100 up to 215F which gave me a temp reading of 195-198F on my Thermoworks Smoke ambient probe. That seemed to push them through as 125F to 135F took hours. Pulled them at 155F IT and did a cold water bath. Final cook time was 11h20m for 25lb in 42-45mm casings. Currently sitting on counter for a bit before going in fridge.
Color is fantastic so twilliams think your advice of less water in dust made a diff. Have a few pale spots but that was due to overlapping .I did get a lot more case wrinkle than I’d like and imagine the higher temps had a lot to do with it. Guessing I got some fat out on a few in hotter spots in smoker. Not sure what to change next time for a better batch.


Jamieson22 good job by the way, practice and trying new things is good. I need to figure out my fresh bratwurst texture.
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Jamieson22 did you use the 1250watt setting from start? Maybe next time try your ambient probe trick at the beginning and adjust smoker temp to hit the desired cabin temps. I think 195* was a bit much and pushed a bit of fat out. When you cook them they may plump up and not be wrinkled
twilliams said in Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat:
Jamieson22 did you use the 1250watt setting from start? Maybe next time try your ambient probe trick at the beginning and adjust smoker temp to hit the desired cabin temps. I think 195* was a bit much and pushed a bit of fat out. When you cook them they may plump up and not be wrinkled
Yep 1250w the whole way. I was watching temps and things were in line until I went to 155F though didn’t adjust for a bit as was working and didn’t notice.
Definitely a good idea for next time to shoot for actual vs what is on the display. Also curious if other PK100 owners notice a big difference. I generally never monitor pit temps. I also left my sawdust pan in until well after it burned out. Maybe next time will pull it per smoke schedule as not cure if it sitting on burner makes a big diff. Imagine it can’t help. I’ll figure this damn thing out.
I’ve been turning out really good brats with a 4.5mm or 6mm single grind. Comes pretty close to Johnsonville texture (6mm is better). I try to avoid over emulsified.
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twilliams said in Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat:
Jamieson22 did you use the 1250watt setting from start? Maybe next time try your ambient probe trick at the beginning and adjust smoker temp to hit the desired cabin temps. I think 195* was a bit much and pushed a bit of fat out. When you cook them they may plump up and not be wrinkled
Yep 1250w the whole way. I was watching temps and things were in line until I went to 155F though didn’t adjust for a bit as was working and didn’t notice.
Definitely a good idea for next time to shoot for actual vs what is on the display. Also curious if other PK100 owners notice a big difference. I generally never monitor pit temps. I also left my sawdust pan in until well after it burned out. Maybe next time will pull it per smoke schedule as not cure if it sitting on burner makes a big diff. Imagine it can’t help. I’ll figure this damn thing out.
I’ve been turning out really good brats with a 4.5mm or 6mm single grind. Comes pretty close to Johnsonville texture (6mm is better). I try to avoid over emulsified.
Jamieson22 that’s a really good thought about the pan on burner absorbing the heat output.
Thanks for the brat suggestion, will see what I can do
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Well ended up turning the PK100 up to 215F which gave me a temp reading of 195-198F on my Thermoworks Smoke ambient probe. That seemed to push them through as 125F to 135F took hours. Pulled them at 155F IT and did a cold water bath. Final cook time was 11h20m for 25lb in 42-45mm casings. Currently sitting on counter for a bit before going in fridge.
Color is fantastic so twilliams think your advice of less water in dust made a diff. Have a few pale spots but that was due to overlapping .I did get a lot more case wrinkle than I’d like and imagine the higher temps had a lot to do with it. Guessing I got some fat out on a few in hotter spots in smoker. Not sure what to change next time for a better batch.


Jamieson22 they look great to me. Nice job. Hate that it took so long but looks like it was worth it

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Real nice sir!
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twilliams said in Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat:
PapaSop ND Mike the flavor is decent but my texture is way off and I’m not happy with it, so I think the flavor is getting a bad rep from my texture. For the life of me I can’t figure out how to make it like a Johnsonville
What plate are you using for final grind?
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twilliams said in Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat:
PapaSop ND Mike the flavor is decent but my texture is way off and I’m not happy with it, so I think the flavor is getting a bad rep from my texture. For the life of me I can’t figure out how to make it like a Johnsonville
What plate are you using for final grind?
PapaSop twice through 3/8, maybe step it back to one grind
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twilliams
I’ve been using 10mm first grind, 7mm second grind. Not sure the fractional equivalent. Must be close to your final grind. I like this much better than the 4.5mm I was using for final grind. -
twilliams
I’ve been using 10mm first grind, 7mm second grind. Not sure the fractional equivalent. Must be close to your final grind. I like this much better than the 4.5mm I was using for final grind.PapaSop so here is the equivalents ranging from largest to smallest.
10mm= 25/64” or .39”
3/8”= .38” or 9.53mm
7mm= 9/32” or .28”
3/16”= .19” or 4.76mm
1/8”= .13” or 3.18mmSo you are actually grinding a second time at a smaller diameter than I do.
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PapaSop so here is the equivalents ranging from largest to smallest.
10mm= 25/64” or .39”
3/8”= .38” or 9.53mm
7mm= 9/32” or .28”
3/16”= .19” or 4.76mm
1/8”= .13” or 3.18mmSo you are actually grinding a second time at a smaller diameter than I do.
twilliams said in Knocked out 50lb of sausage today - Andouille and Sheboygan Brat:
PapaSop so here is the equivalents ranging from largest to smallest.
10mm= 25/64” or .39”
3/8”= .38” or 9.53mm
7mm= 9/32” or .28”
3/16”= .19” or 4.76mm
1/8”= .13” or 3.18mmSo you are actually grinding a second time at a smaller diameter than I do.
Interesting. Yeah, I’m happy with that 7mm second grind and getting no complaints from anyone. As far as trying to copy a Johnsonville, it probably won’t happen. Tried myself.
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