Charcuterie_ The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing - Michael Ruhlman [66]
3. Place the mixture in a bowl set in ice and fold in the blanched fat and pistachios.
4. Do a quenelle test to check the seasoning (keep the rest of the mixture refrigerated while you cook the quenelle), and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
5. Stuff into the beef middle (or use plastic wrap to form a cylinder 4 to 5 inches/10 to 12.5 centimeters in diameter, and twist and tie the ends to seal).
6. Poach the sausage in 170-degree-F./76-degree-C. water until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F./65 degrees C., then transfer to an ice bath to chill completely.
Yield: One 3-pound/1.5 kilogram sausage
[ NOTE: See pages 135–140 for a detailed description of the basic grinding, mixing, stuffing, and cooking techniques. ]
BOUDIN BLANC
Boudin blanc is a classic French sausage traditionally made at Christmastime. It’s rich with whole milk and lots of eggs, which give it a very delicate, mousseline-like texture. Boudin means pudding, and this is indeed similar in texture to a pudding. It’s flavored with the mixture of spices called quatre épices, a combination of pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, a good all-purpose seasoning for pâtés, game dishes, and stews.
It’s very important to keep the sausage mixture as cold as possible because it’s very loose and as it warms up, it can be difficult to work with, but otherwise it’s a sausage that’s easily made at home. Brian has served this at the Taste of the NFL Hunger Relief Benefit held during Super Bowl weekend in the host city, a perfect winter offering.
1 pound/450 grams boneless pork shoulder butt, cut into 1-inch/2.5-centimeter dice
1 pound/450 grams skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch/2.5-centimeter dice
3⁄4 ounce/20 grams kosher salt (11⁄2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon/3 grams ground white pepper
11⁄2 teaspoons/6 grams Quatre Epices (recipe follows)
8 large eggs
2 1⁄2 cups/600 milliliters whole milk
3 tablespoons/30 grams all-purpose flour
8 feet/2.5 meters hog casings, soaked in tepid water for at least 30 minutes and rinsed
1. Grind the meats together into a bowl set in ice (see Note below). Place in the freezer for 5 minutes.
2. Combine the ground meat, salt, pepper, and quatre épices in the processor and process to combine, about 30 seconds. With the processor running, add the eggs one or two at a time, followed by the milk, then the flour. You may need to stop occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Do a quenelle test to check the seasoning (keep the remaining mixture refrigerated while you do so), and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
4. Stuff the sausage into the hog casings.
5. Poach the sausages in 170-degree-F./76-degree-C. water to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F./71 degrees C. Transfer to an ice bath to chill.
6. Sauté the boudin gently in whole butter over medium-low heat until it’s appealingly browned and warmed through.
Yield: About 4 pounds/2 kilograms sausage; sixteen 6-inch/15-centimeter links
[ NOTE: See pages 135–140 for a detailed description of the basic grinding, mixing, stuffing, and cooking techniques. ]
Quatre Epices
3 tablespoons/30 grams black peppercorns
1 tablespoon/8 grams freshly grated nutmeg
2 teaspoons/6 grams ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons/6 grams whole cloves
Grind all the spices together in a spice or coffee mill. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.
Yield: 1⁄3 cup/50 grams
BOUDIN NOIR WITH APPLES AND ONIONS
This is an exciting recipe to do and very easy as long as you have access to pig’s blood (which is not so easy to obtain; see below). In fact, it’s probably the easiest emulsified sausage to make. The blood is mixed with sautéed onion and apple, then ladled into a funnel to which the casing has been attached. The stuffing is mainly onion and apple; the blood holds it together. You’ll need a