Sausage Making (5 page)

In a medium nonreactive bowl, nested in a larger bowl filled with ice, pour the ingredients over the ground meat.

With your hands, mix the spice-water slurry into the meat, using a motion like kneading bread dough, until the spices and meat are well incorporated, about 5 minutes. If you're doing a large batch you can do this step in a mixer, but be conscious of the speed of the mixer and time; you don't want to overmix the farce, which will make it too warm and break the emulsification.

STEP 6:
The heat from your hands will warm the mixture slightly, causing the fat to get sticky, and kneading helps release the protein in the meat, which also aids in the emulsification process.

When properly mixed, the meat and fat will be uniformly combined, forming a homogenous paste, and will begin sticking to the bowl.

To check that the meat is properly mixed, spread some on the palm of your hand and turn your hand upside down. If the meat sticks to your palm, it is sufficiently mixed.

At this point you can fold in cheese or other “textured garnish” ingredients such as bacon, nuts, or dried fruit that you want to suspend throughout the sausage.

STEP 7:
In a small nonstick frying pan, spread 2 tbsp of the meat mixture into a thin patty using the back of a spoon.

Fry over low heat until cooked through but not browned (because browning changes the flavor profile). If the patty is crumbly and rendering fat, it's a sign that is has not been mixed thoroughly enough.

Slice the patty into strips and squeeze one of the strips between your fingers; some grease may bubble to the surface, but there should not be any foamy bubbles. Foamy bubbles occur when the farce has been overmixed or has become too warm, which damages the cell structure of the meat so that it can no longer absorb the added liquid and fat. There is no fix for a broken farce; you can use it to make meatballs or a pot of chili, but it's not going to make good sausage.

Taste the patty for seasoning and adjust as necessary, frying a second test patty if needed.

You have made sausage! Next, you will stuff the sausage into casings
(see page 31)
or form it into crepinettes
(see page 69)
.

Press a sheet of parchment paper or plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the meat to help prevent oxidation, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight. Even if the farce oxidizes slightly, it won't affect the quality of your finished sausage. (If you have a vacuum-sealer, you can also vacuum-seal the farce.)

Making smooth-textured sausages
(see page 112)
requires a slightly different method than the Master Technique. Follow the grinding method (steps 1 to 4) as described. Mix the dry ingredients into the meat, but keep the liquid separate. Place the liquid in the freezer until very cold but not frozen.

Working in small batches, transfer the sausage farce to a food processor (keep the remaining meat in the freezer while you work).

If you're using a standard-capacity food processor, each batch should be about 1
¹
/
₂
lb/680 g. Add some of the ice water or semi-frozen liquid and process until the farce is smooth.

Continue adding the cold liquid, which will help keep the farce cool, counteracting the warming effects of the machine and friction.