Last weekend me and the fellas made some sausage with basil, feta, fennel, and roasted garlic. Along with some sticks, one batch mild and one hot with ghost peppers from my garden and cheddar cheese…WOW they were HOT!!!
@Jonathan and yes we smoked the sticks and simmered them to finish!

@cll_2012 @Jonathon is going to laugh but try simmering them in water or sous vide cooker then a quick turn or two in a cast iron skillet and see if the fat is rendered out. I’ve had this happen in the fast and wondered if it was an old piece of meat and even does that matter. Water is a very gentle way to cook, the grill and direct heat can do this sometimes too.

Very similar process. Try dividing the spice into 1/3’s. Rub 1/3 on each day for 3 days. Yes it’s very thin, doesn’t take much. Local hardware store had crocks on sale so i got 2. I rub, and rotate each day.
After day 3, rotate each day for 5 more days. If it’s cold out i leave on the floor in my garage, if not it goes in the fridge-great either way just depends on weather.
Hang one day-i never rinse. Cold smoke (100F) for 6 hours. rest overnight, cold smoke for 6 more hours. Rest overnight.
I like mine to be a deep cherry color, that’s how i determine when to stop smoking. If it’s not that rich cherry color, smoke it more! Then rest it for 3 days and slice. We slice it on a slicer so i get super thin slices. Uncle Cecil said slice it thin enough that you can read the paper through it!
One tip-Walton’s has the little drying pouch that’s in the store bought jerky, They are cheap and make it last forever in the fridge or freezer. I also vacuum seal to 98% with the chamber vac or it get too hard. Here is a pic of what I’m looking for. The fellas have named this George Washington Jerky. It was the only way i could explain it to them before i made it. Told them we were going VERY old school, and now they love it!

@scottwaltner I’m assuming that your using natural casings otherwise you shouldn’t be soaking them. What size are you using? And my first thought is that your not getting enough protein extraction, or cooking too long and some of the fat is liquefying and coming to the surface. As soon as you rinse it the fat stiffens separates the casing. Can you share some more details about your process maybe we can narrow it down a bit for you.

@ewspears @Joe-Hell and I apply the same method in different ways. The key is keeping the water close to 170F and no fatting out the sausage. If you have a biotherm with a long cord them just put it in a sausage so you can see the temp without having to pull it out and check it. I’m a multi-purpose guy, so i have a few BBQ thermometers so i can monitor temp remotely and that’s what i use in the sausage while in the water bath. I also just use my turkey fryer pot with the basket so i can remove them quickly and shower in cold water-works great!

@1GRINDER
I typically use 50% venison to 50% pork butt. great flavor and texture for sticks and breakfast sausage.
If you want to go a little leaner then 60/40 venison to pork butt is fine, our original bologna recipe calls for this mix.

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Just want to send a shout out to Walton’s crew for the Swiss Army knife I won posting pics of their products on instagram. Check them out at Black_run_bbq. Thank you!!!

@kevine might want to try a liquid butter to keep the creamy texture and use a apple pie spice blend.

I’ve never seen that either, they just get smashed down with the vacuum hits especially in the chamber vacs.

@demmerich Yes I do a dry brine, cured and cold smoked. I’ve never done any needling though. Here’s a pic. This has been a favorite over decades, shelf stable, we always kept it in the cold cellar. No we vacuum seal with the moisture wicks and keep in the freezer for long term storage. These just came out of the smoker and need to rest a few days before they hit the slicer.