and let the casing slide off the horn as it fills with sausage paste. Take care that air pockets are not trapped inside. When the fibrous casing is almost full, twist the top closed, and seal it with a hog ring or butcher’s twine. (Of course, butcher’s twine must be used if a thermometer probe has been inserted into the top of the casing.)
Using a funnel with a very large diameter spout is another way to stuff fibrous casings—and it is very efficient. (I usually use a funnel because it is faster than using a sausage stuffer and—more importantly—cleanup is very easy.) Slide the casing on the funnel spout in the same way as described above, and pack the sausage into the casing with a large diameter dowel while the casing is held tightly around the spout with the left hand. Suitable funnels are difficult to find, however. Some kitchenware specialty shops stock them. Such funnels are probably intended for loading a container with solid foodstuffs such as dry beans or whole grain.
CHAPTER 6
Cooking Sausage
T he last step in making a great sausage is cooking it properly. It is just as important as carefully grinding, seasoning, and mixing it.
Most sausage is cooked (dry-cured sausage is the main exception), and if the cooking is done improperly, it can ruin an otherwise perfect sausage. Sausage is delicate, and no matter what method of cooking is used, it must be slow and gentle if the best result is desired. Overcooking is the most common mistreatment of sausage; it must be avoided.
Any method of cooking will accomplish the primary goals: to change the raw meat to cooked meat, to prevent parasitic diseases, and to kill pathogenic microbes. However, in addition to the primary goals, we want to prevent, to the extent possible, the escape of juices and melted fats. These fluids make the sausage delicious and succulent, and careful cooking helps to keep them in the sausage.
Important Note: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), together with the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), recommends that ground beef, pork, mutton, and similar ground meats be cooked until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 160° F (71° C).
For ground poultry, 165° F (74° C) is the recommended minimum internal temperature. In April 2006, the recommended minimum internal temperature for ground poultry was changed from 160° F (71° C) to 165° F (74° C) because of the high risk of salmonella contamination and because of salmonella’s acquisition of some resistance to being killed by heat.
If these recommended temperatures are reached for even one second, there is no risk of food poisoning. Actually, the temperatures could be 155° F (68° C) and 158° F (69° C), respectively, and there still would be no risk of food poisoning. (The recommended minimum temperatures have a safety factor of a few degrees for several reasons: thermometers are not always accurately calibrated; temperature measurements of one or two samples are not always representative of the entire lot; the thermometer is often not placed in the coolest part—usually the exact center—of the sausage.)
The recommended temperatures mentioned above are for the benefit of the average consumer like you and me. If we have a reasonably accurate thermometer and exercise care when measuring the internal temperature, the sausage should be safe to eat if heated to the recommended temperature.
Actually, the same level of pathogen kill can be accomplished at a lower temperature if that temperature is maintained for sufficient time; the microbes are not killed by temperature alone—they are killed by time and temperature working together. For example, the same level of safety can be accomplished by maintaining the internal temperature of the sausage at 145° F (63° C) for 4 minutes. The sausage will be just as safe to eat as sausage that has reached an internal temperature of 160° F (71° C). (The time that a certain temperature is maintained is called
Using a funnel with a very large diameter spout is another way to stuff fibrous casings—and it is very efficient. (I usually use a funnel because it is faster than using a sausage stuffer and—more importantly—cleanup is very easy.) Slide the casing on the funnel spout in the same way as described above, and pack the sausage into the casing with a large diameter dowel while the casing is held tightly around the spout with the left hand. Suitable funnels are difficult to find, however. Some kitchenware specialty shops stock them. Such funnels are probably intended for loading a container with solid foodstuffs such as dry beans or whole grain.
CHAPTER 6
Cooking Sausage
T he last step in making a great sausage is cooking it properly. It is just as important as carefully grinding, seasoning, and mixing it.
Most sausage is cooked (dry-cured sausage is the main exception), and if the cooking is done improperly, it can ruin an otherwise perfect sausage. Sausage is delicate, and no matter what method of cooking is used, it must be slow and gentle if the best result is desired. Overcooking is the most common mistreatment of sausage; it must be avoided.
Any method of cooking will accomplish the primary goals: to change the raw meat to cooked meat, to prevent parasitic diseases, and to kill pathogenic microbes. However, in addition to the primary goals, we want to prevent, to the extent possible, the escape of juices and melted fats. These fluids make the sausage delicious and succulent, and careful cooking helps to keep them in the sausage.
Important Note: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), together with the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), recommends that ground beef, pork, mutton, and similar ground meats be cooked until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 160° F (71° C).
For ground poultry, 165° F (74° C) is the recommended minimum internal temperature. In April 2006, the recommended minimum internal temperature for ground poultry was changed from 160° F (71° C) to 165° F (74° C) because of the high risk of salmonella contamination and because of salmonella’s acquisition of some resistance to being killed by heat.
If these recommended temperatures are reached for even one second, there is no risk of food poisoning. Actually, the temperatures could be 155° F (68° C) and 158° F (69° C), respectively, and there still would be no risk of food poisoning. (The recommended minimum temperatures have a safety factor of a few degrees for several reasons: thermometers are not always accurately calibrated; temperature measurements of one or two samples are not always representative of the entire lot; the thermometer is often not placed in the coolest part—usually the exact center—of the sausage.)
The recommended temperatures mentioned above are for the benefit of the average consumer like you and me. If we have a reasonably accurate thermometer and exercise care when measuring the internal temperature, the sausage should be safe to eat if heated to the recommended temperature.
Actually, the same level of pathogen kill can be accomplished at a lower temperature if that temperature is maintained for sufficient time; the microbes are not killed by temperature alone—they are killed by time and temperature working together. For example, the same level of safety can be accomplished by maintaining the internal temperature of the sausage at 145° F (63° C) for 4 minutes. The sausage will be just as safe to eat as sausage that has reached an internal temperature of 160° F (71° C). (The time that a certain temperature is maintained is called
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