Make sure your cheese is cold - in fact I partially freeze mine when I do that. Usually when I’m out of the hi-temp.

I also use a 20# electric. It doesn’t hold 20 lbs, more accurately about 18. Same with my manual 5#. It holds 4. The extra time and room needed to clean a 30# size, plus to store the extra height, would be something to consider too. If I’m doing a larger batch, I usually split it (25-30 lb meat block). I don’t think I would use the 30# that much to justify the extra room/cleaning hassle. If you do large batches often, that may be your huckleberry.

Never heard of those - but what a unique and fun bunch of tasty looking morsels! I might just have to give guise a try. Thanks for the recipe and idea!

Austin I have a 20lb. Electric and love it. But I’d be REALLY happy to purchase and 11 pounder if/when they are available for smaller batches! So much easier when you’re a one man show!

Wow. Not a drinker myself, but my neighbor likes vodka and has two lemon trees… I’m going to try this, and if he likes it, I’ll have some swapping ammunition!

X2 on the Two Guys and a Cooler You Tube channel. Eric is very knowledgeable and I’ve made more than one of his recipes. I believe he has one for pepperoni as well.

Deepwoodsbutcher that’s going to be great!

If you have the room, I’d go with a 30x60 or a 36x60. You could probably get by with the 48 inch, but why crowd things if you don’t have to. Better to have some extra space on the table, rather than cramping things in. Just my opinion, and worth what you paid for it. Sounds like you’re going to have quite the setup! Post pictures when you’re done!

Agree with above. Cure not mixed in properly, or as T Williams said, something in the cheese affected it. I mix all my spices and cure (except ECA when I use it) with the water before adding to the meat. I’ve used the cheese on occasion, and never had an issue like that. Are you mixing by hand, or with a mixer of some type?

My guess - it was the collagen casings. I’ve used collagen sheets for dry curing, and they stick. Never had that happen on summer sausage with fibrous casings. Protein lined casings stick to the meat as well.

Awesome score! That’s the only thing I need to complete my toys! That is a clean one.

I use cloth/textile casings a lot. I’ve done both - wet and dry. I’ve found no difference in taste or smoke ability either way. I’m stuffing dry now. There is usually enough moisture in the meat that they are slightly damp after stuffing. Not as much drying time in the smoker initially, before adding smoke. I do get a more pronounced smoke flavor with the cloth/textile casings vs. the fibrous casings. Slightly more expensive that fibrous casings, but I like the finished product better. Never had any complaints. Unfortunately there aren’t many sizes or suppliers of these casings. Walton’s carries the larger size, which I use for Lebanon Bologna.

DarrellT
I found that 10% by weight seemed to be best for my taste. I did make a batch with 20%, which was way to sweet for me, but the friend I made it for likes that percentage, and I’ve made it twice for them. The white sugar tends to have a sweeter taste, I use dark brown sugar, for what that’s worth. I may try Turbinado sugar - the larger granular type used on top of pastries to see what difference that makes. Part of the fun is experimenting with new things. Hope you find what makes your taste buds happy!

I have both a 12” Hobart 2812 and a 9” by another manufacturer. Doesn’t matter which one I use, but slicing soft meats will leave a bit of a tail a few slices in if I don’t rotate front to back. As others above have stated, partially freezing them almost always solves that problem.

DarrellT Darrell - did you make that sweet sausage/bologna? How did it turn out for you? Curious. PM me or post. I’m sure others are curious too.

Good hack Doc - but that was the main reason I bought a chamber vac. That’d save a lot of $$!

I worked up to that 10% dark brown sugar for the sweet bologna. It gave the taste I remembered eating as a kid. I’m now making it using a different process using F-LC fermentation and dextrose, then 48-60 hours of continuous smoke at no more than 75 degrees. It also requires the use of an accurate pH meter to ensure the levels are safe. But that process is a lot more detailed and temperatures are more critical, not to mention the time it takes to make a batch. Making the summer sausage version with cure, sugar and ECA get close to the same flavor as the fermented version, but with a lot less involved in time and equipment. Leave the ECA out if you don’t want the tang, and only the sweetness.

When I make sweet summer sausage (beef meat block) I use 1 lb dark brown sugar to 10 lbs meat.

I don’t think the flavor profile would be what you’re looking for in Italian sausage. Agree with the others. If you want some tang or acidity, stick with wine or maybe a bit of vinegar. But not citric acid.

Are you using cure? What is the temperature of your dehydrator?if the heat in the dehydrator is sufficient and you are using cure in you liquid, you shouldn’t need the oven step.