Mastering the Craft of Making Sausage (8 page)

Store salt in a tightly sealed plastic bag to protect it from humidity. Pure salt may become lumpy even if it is stored in a plastic bag, but its quality will not be diminished. Storage time does not lessen the quality either; so don’t hesitate to by a large quantity if that is most economical.

If the salt becomes lumpy, break the lumps and use it. The best way to deal with lumpy salt, sugar, or spices is to put the seasoning into a strainer or a flour sifter, and then break the lumps. If the seasoning passes through the wire mesh, it is fine enough to use.

Spices and Herbs

For most of us, there is no clear distinction between the word
spice
and the word
herb,
especially when the subject is seasoning for food. Even the experts do not always agree, so let’s use the word
spices
to mean both
spices
and
herbs
.

The main reason why one kind of sausage tastes so different from another is because of the different spices and seasonings used in each. Of course, the varieties of meat used in each sausage contribute to the differences in taste, but the spices and seasonings determine their main character. Appendix 1 contains a list of spices and seasonings commonly used in sausage making.

The sausage formulas in this book will suggest certain spices. If you have experience with the suggested spices, and if you can imagine the resulting taste, you should make changes to match your preferences. If you can’t imagine the taste of the finished product, but you want to try the suggested seasonings, you should make a small batch of the product. In fact, it is wise to make a small batch anytime you make a sausage for the first time. For a small batch, it is suggested that the meat and all other ingredients be cut in half. The resulting taste will be the same as a full batch.

The spices used should be of good quality. However, as far as quality is concerned, we have little choice but to trust the reputation of the brand. Very few of us are qualified to judge the quality of a spice by peering through the glass or plastic container.

The freshness of dried spices is, to some extent, under our control. There is often an expiration date on the spice container. If you have some spices sitting around the house and the dates have expired, or if you have no idea how old they are, the best thing to do is to throw them out.

The company that processes and packs the spice decides the expiration date. The expertise of specialists in the company is used to determine the shelf life of the particular spice. They assume that the spice will be tightly sealed, struck by an average amount of light, and exposed to room temperature. If the actual storage conditions are worse than expected, the spice will go bad faster. If the actual storage conditions are better than they expected, the particular spice may be usable well past the expiration date.

In summary, the freshness and shelf life of the spices you use can be greatly extended by following these suggestions:

• Buy your spices at retail outlets that have a rapid turnover of goods. Dried spices sold at such stores are likely to be fresher than spices sold at mom-and-pop-type retailers.

• Buy spices in quantities that will be consumed in a reasonable amount of time, so that the length of storage time before consumption is minimized.

• Buy a brand name you trust, or get your spices from a distributor you trust.

• Check for the expiration date; some brands have that date stamped on the container. The expiration dates on the containers sitting on the same shelf of the grocery store may vary considerably, even if it is the same spice with the same brand name. The spices towards the back of the display may be fresher than the spices toward the front. The expiration date is sometimes stamped on the bottom of the container.

• Keep the spice in a container with a tight-fitting lid, preferably a screw-on lid, even if this necessitates transferring the spice to a different container. This will help to protect the spices from humidity, and it will help to retard the evaporation and deterioration of aromatic oils.

• If there is space available, store spices in the refrigerator or freezer. This will help to protect them from the other two enemies of spices: heat and light.

Sweeteners

Some kind of sweetener is used in many varieties of sausages. Sweeteners help to mellow the harsh taste of salt, and some of them act as a binder.

WHITE SUGAR

Whenever the word
sugar
is used in this book, please understand it to refer to the common granulated white sugar made from either sugar cane or sugar beets. In some countries—though not in the United States—non-granulated white sugar is more common than the granulated type. If the non-granulated type is used, and if you measure by volume, pack it in the measuring cup or measuring spoon. Use about 10 percent more to achieve the same degree of sweetness.

BROWN SUGAR

Dark brown sugar has a stronger taste than light brown sugar because of a thicker film of molasses on the surface of the crystals. Using brown sugar to flavor sausage is not common, but each one of these sugars can impart a slightly different nuance of flavor to your sausage. Brown sugar is usually not granulated. The common ungranulated brown sugar should be packed firmly in the measuring spoon so that the measurements will be consistent from batch to batch.

HONEY

If you have ever tasted honey-cured ham or bacon, you already know the special flavor that only honey can impart. Use honey as a sweetener for seasoning sausage if you think it will help to achieve your flavor goal. Keep in mind, however, that honey is the sweetest of the sweeteners; a one-to-one substitution for another sweetener might make your product a little too sweet. If honey is substituted for granulated sugar, reduce the amount by 20 percent.

If honey has crystallized, liquefy it by putting the honey jar in a pan of hot water for a few hours. If you need to liquefy it faster than that, use a microwave oven at full power, and zap it for 15 seconds at a time until the honey is clear. Of course, if the honey jar is not made of glass, you will need to use a microwave-proof dish.

CORN SYRUP

In this book, corn syrup is often used as a sweetener and a binder in sausage making. Corn syrup also helps to retain moisture in sausage. The major sweetening component of corn syrup is dextrose (dextrose is also called glucose), but it contains maltose, as well. The colorless variety known as
light
corn syrup is preferred.

MAPLE SYRUP

Natural or artificially flavored maple syrup is occasionally used in sausage making.

To retard mold formation on either natural maple syrup or homemade maple-flavored syrup, store it in the refrigerator or freezer. If it crystallizes, liquefy it as you would liquefy honey (see above).

POWDERED DEXTROSE

Powdered dextrose is made from the starch of corn or, sometimes, of potatoes. Consequently, powdered dextrose is also called corn sugar. It is not as sweet as common sugar. In fresh sausages or in ordinary cured sausages, it is sometimes used in place of common sugar because it helps to prevent the sausage from losing moisture as well as reducing the harsh taste of salt. For such types of sausages, corn syrup may be substituted for dextrose; use 1.5 units of corn syrup for every unit of dextrose specified.

In fermented sausages, dextrose is the best sugar to use to feed the bacteria that produces the lactic acid responsible for the desired tartness.

The easiest way to obtain powdered dextrose is to order it from one of the suppliers mentioned in Appendix 5.

Twine

Cotton twine of the type used to tie rolled roasts is known as butcher’s twine. You will find it useful for making ring sausages, tying links, and tying the ends of sausage ropes. It is particularly useful when stuffing fibrous casings or collagen casings.

The diameter of the twine need not be large; I use 1 mm (0.04 inch— between
2 and
inch) twine for everything. You can get butcher’s twine at a culinary supply shop, but you might discover that a large spool of cotton twine is cheaper at a hardware store—that is where I buy my twine.

Vitamin C and Related Chemicals

Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and two chemicals related to this acid are permitted by the USDA for use in meat processing. All of these substances function to
accelerate the color development
. They also
stabilize the color
during storage. These two effects can be very important for commercial processors. Rapid color development may lead to reduced processing time. Greater color stability can result in a product remaining attractive, even after days of storage in refrigerated display cases that are struck with artificial light. Without the use of one of these chemicals, the color may fade rapidly, and the product will not be marketable.

The chemicals referred to above that are related to vitamin C are sodium erythorbate and sodium ascorbate. You will often see vitamin C or one of these two chemicals listed as an ingredient on packages of cured sausage and meat.

A person who makes sausage as a hobby has little need for these chemicals, so they are not specified for use in this book. Nevertheless, their mention is deserved because some people have the mistaken impression that vitamin C (ascorbic acid) will function as a color developer (color fixer) in place of nitrites or nitrates. There is at least one book on sausage making and one book on food smoking that says ¼ teaspoon of vitamin C per 5 pounds of ground pork or ground beef will cause the pink or reddish color of the meat to be fixed. It won’t; I’ve tried it.

Apparently, someone in the past thought that a color accelerator was the same thing as a color developer. It is not. None of these chemicals will function as a color developer (color fixer). Furthermore, it must be emphasized that neither vitamin C nor the two related chemicals will provide protection against botulism.

If you need accelerated color development or improved color stability, you may, of course, use one of these three chemicals along with Cure #1. Vitamin C is the least desirable because it can cause depletion of nitrite. Either sodium erythorbate or sodium ascorbate is most often used.

Your pharmacist, or a chemical supply company, may be able to order some for you. Also, you are likely to find sodium erythorbate in the PS Seasoning & Spices catalogue (see Appendix 5). If you must use vitamin C, be sure to use pure crystalline powder. Regardless of which one of the three is used, you should add ⅛ teaspoon (0.625 ml) to 2½ pounds (1.135 kg) of meat. The ⅛ teaspoon of the chemical should not be added directly to the meat. It should be thoroughly mixed with the seasoning ingredients first; this will result in a uniform distribution of the chemical.

CHAPTER 4

Health Matters

I
n this age, the average adult in any modern country is aware of germs and the most common diseases related to food. We are aware that sanitation prevents the spread of disease, and we know that refrigeration retards spoilage. We are also aware that it is dangerous to eat raw or undercooked pork. This level of knowledge helps to keep us healthy.

The amateur sausage maker, however, needs to have a bit more knowledge about such matters than the average person does. This is because sausage making and sausage smoking involves subjecting the food to conditions that come close to the limits of safe food handling. For example:

• When fresh meat is ground to make sausage, the microbes that are normally on the surface of all meat become mixed with the particles of ground meat.

• Sausage is often smoked in a warm smoker for several hours.

• Some sausage, including some pork sausage, is eaten raw.