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By Root 350 0

“‘Knacken’ means to crack, in the literal sense. Knackwurst thus means that when you bite into it, it gives you a good crunchy sound, an explosion of flavor and juices. If you see a woman with a nice firm butt, we say she has a knackiger Asch. Ha-ha! Does that give you the feel of the word? It’s a specific kind of sausage that is always boiled or steamed, never fried, and it’s often larger in diameter than your basic sausage.”

This version of knackwurst uses the same variety of meats used in a German bratwurst but it has a higher ratio of veal; it also uses paprika in its seasonings, in addition to being smoked. The paprika and black pepper give it a peppery-hot finish. Because the fat content of today’s commercial pork shoulder butt is variable, to ensure a juicy succulent sausage, you may want to replace 1 pound/450 grams of the pork with 1 pound/450 grams back fat.

These sausages can be eaten immediately out of the smoke box, or cooled down in an ice bath and refrigerated for a week to ten days or frozen for up to three months. They can be eaten cold or gently reheated and eaten hot.

3 pounds/1350 grams boneless lean veal shoulder, diced

2 pounds/900 grams boneless well-marbled pork shoulder butt

11⁄2 ounces/40 grams kosher salt (3 tablespoons)

1 teaspoon/6 grams pink salt

11⁄2 tablespoons/15 grams coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon/4 grams ground mace

1 tablespoon/8 grams Hungarian paprika

1⁄2 teaspoon/2 grams ground coriander

1⁄4 teaspoon/1 gram ground allspice

1 cup/140 grams nonfat dry milk powder (optional)

1 cup/250 milliliters ice water

10 feet/3 meters hog casings, soaked in tepid water for at least 30 minutes and rinsed

1. Combine all the ingredients except the water and toss until thoroughly mixed. Chill until ready to grind.

2. Grind the mixture through the small die into a bowl set in ice (see Note below).

3. Add the water to the meat mixture and mix with the paddle attachment (or sturdy spoon) until the water is incorporated and the meat has developed a uniform, sticky appearance, about 1 minute on medium speed.

4. Cook a bite-sized portion of the sausage, taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

5. Stuff the sausage into the hog casings and twist into 6-inch/15-centimeter links. Hang on smoke sticks and let dry for 1 to 2 hours at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

6. Hot-smoke the sausages (see page 77) at a temperature of 180 degrees F./82 degrees C to an internal temperature of 150 degrees F./65 degrees C., about 2 hours. Transfer to an ice bath to chill thoroughly, then refrigerate.

Yield: About 5 pounds/2.25 kilograms sausage; about twenty 6-inch/15-centimeter links

[ NOTE: See pages 135–140 for a detailed description of the basic grinding, mixing, stuffing, and cooking techniques. ]

HUNTER SAUSAGE (JAGERWURST)

Another sausage with German roots, jagerwurst is a pork sausage with a chunky country-style grain. A hunter or outdoorsman could easily carry this sausage with him for sustenance, the aggressive seasonings of mustard, coriander, garlic, nutmeg, and ginger making it delicious to eat cold. This is an excellent hors d’oeuvre sausage for that same reason, but it’s also superb grilled, sautéed, or gently roasted just till warmed through.

The chunky texture is the result of two different grinds. All the meat is passed through the large die, then half of it through the small die. The result is large chunks of meat in distinct shades of pink punctuated here and there by satiny white fat; these qualities are called the sausage’s “definition” in the sausage world.

5 pounds/2.25 kilograms boneless pork shoulder butt, diced

11⁄2 ounces/40 grams kosher salt (about 3 tablespoons)

1 teaspoon/6 grams pink salt

11⁄2 teaspoons/5 grams coarsely ground black pepper

1⁄2 teaspoon/2 grams ground coriander seeds, toasted (see Note page 52)

2 teaspoons/12 grams minced garlic

2 tablespoons/16 grams yellow mustard seeds, toasted (see Note page 52)

1 teaspoon/4 grams freshly grated nutmeg