Charcuterie_ The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing - Michael Ruhlman [56]
3 pounds/1350 grams boneless pork shoulder butt, diced
1 pound/450 grams boneless lean veal shoulder, diced
1 pound/450 grams pork back fat
11⁄2 ounces/40 grams kosher salt (3 tablespoons)
1 cup/140 grams soy protein concentrate (optional)
2 teaspoons/6 grams ground white pepper
11⁄2 teaspoons/5 grams ground ginger
11⁄2 teaspoons/5 grams freshly grated nutmeg
2 large cold eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup/250 milliliters ice-cold heavy cream
10 feet/3 meters hog casings, soaked in tepid water for at least 30 minutes and rinsed
1. Combine all the ingredients except the eggs and cream and toss well to distribute the seasonings. Chill until ready to grind.
2. Grind the mixture through the small die into a bowl set in ice (see Note below).
3. Using the paddle attachment of a standing mixer (or a strong wooden spoon if mixing by hand), mix on low speed (or stir) for 1 minute. Add the eggs and cream, start the mixer on low, and then increase the speed to medium and mix until the cream and eggs are uniformly incorporated and the sausage appears sticky, about a minute longer. Sauté a small portion of the sausage and taste; adjust the seasoning if necessary. (Refrigerate the sausage mixture while you do this.)
4. Stuff the sausage into the hog casings. Twist into 6-inch/15-centimeter links. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to cook.
5. Gently sauté or roast the sausage to an internal temperature of 150 degrees F./65 degrees C.
Yield: About 5 pounds/2.25 kilograms sausage; about twenty 6-inch/15-centimeter links
[ NOTE: See pages 107–116 for a detailed description of the basic grinding, mixing, stuffing, and cooking techniques. ]
ITALIAN SAUSAGE, SPICY AND SWEET
Italian sausage is an everyday-style sausage, inexpensive ingredients simply combined and heavily seasoned. This is an excellent version of what is so-often pedestrian sausage, the kind the supermarket makes with its pork scraps. While the sausage does have roots in a sausage made in Italy, in the United States its name is more or less a generic term for a heavily seasoned pork sausage, usually including fennel or anise, seasonings associated with the early Italian immigrants or popularized by immigrants from the southern part of the country. Ours also includes paprika, oregano, and basil and is finished with red wine vinegar. If you like it very hot, increase the red pepper flakes in the first version by 50 percent; if you don’t like chile peppers, make the sweet version, “sweet” indicating not the presence of sweetness but rather the absence of heat. A powerfully seasoned sausage such as this one is often used as a component in a big minestrone. It does go well with pasta. Sautéed onions and peppers, with their sweetness, mix beautifully with these flavors.
FOR SPICY SAUSAGE
41⁄2 pounds/2 kilograms boneless pork shoulder butt, diced
8 ounces/225 grams pork back fat, diced
11⁄2 ounces/40 grams kosher salt (3 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons/32 grams granulated sugar
2 tablespoons/16 grams fennel seeds, toasted (see page 52)
1 tablespoon/8 grams coriander seeds, toasted (see page 52)
3 tablespoons/24 grams Hungarian paprika
1⁄2 teaspoon/1 gram cayenne pepper
4 tablespoons/24 grams fresh oregano leaves
4 tablespoons/24 grams fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons/12 grams hot red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons/6 grams coarsely ground black pepper
3⁄4 cup/185 milliliters ice water
1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters red wine vinegar, chilled
FOR SWEET SAUSAGE
4 pounds/1800 grams boneless pork shoulder butt, diced into 1-inch pieces
1 pound/450 grams pork back fat, diced into 1-inch pieces
11⁄2 ounces/40 grams kosher salt (3 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons/32 grams granulated sugar
2 teaspoons/12 grams minced garlic
2 tablespoons/16 grams fennel seeds, toasted (see page 52)
2 teaspoons/6 grams coarsely ground black pepper
2 tablespoons/16 grams sweet Spanish paprika
3⁄4 cup/185 milliliters ice