Cal Blacksmith Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Dtel, That sure looks good! Your method was about as good as any! You may try tying the loin back together in stead of the tooth picks, it is a more sturdy way to hold it together. Was that cooked sausage? If it was, that was as good as any. The photo of the pork loin I posted was stuffed using the loin like you would a sausage casing. If you have a meat grinder or an attachment for a Kitchen Aid mixer, sausage is VERY easy to do. I will try to remember to bring in and post the recipie I use for Polish sausage. I can't get enough of that stuff! If your sausage was raw, if it was chopped small enough or very coarsly ground, it will go through a food grinder/stuffer and you could do it the way we did that one. It is very hard to go bad on Q! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 13, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 13, 2011 Yes it was precooked, it was a really good tasting sweet italian but didn't really go with everything else, part of the problem was (I think) was when cooking the juice from the sausage went thought out the whole thing and the flavors just didn't go together like we thought they would. I still ate it of course. [] I was talking to Christy the other day about the string, we didn't know what kind of string was used for cooking, but could see how that would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 13, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 13, 2011 I am no great Qer, I just got lucky! Yea right, just the experience of that much cooking even without a trophy's is many years ahead of someone like me just starting out. "Quality, attention to detail and practice, that is the "secret" to winning" That just about says it all, with just about anything your doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechMan Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Cal... I would love to hear more about the pork back rib recipe you offered up. Do you think it would well in a medium sized Cookshack electric smoker ? I can Q my back bibs to perfection, but they always come out a tad on the dry side in my smoker. That recipe you mentioned is so far away from the norm up here I would love to give it a serious try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Mech, The equipment is not that big of a deal, electric, wood, gas, you are only talking about a source of heat. I see no reason for your smoker to be any better or worse than any other. Give it a try! The sugar will melt into the mustard giving you a glaze yhat will thicken as the ribs cook and will help keep them moist. Like I said though, don't go above about 225 F, higher temps will burn the sugar. Most of the mixture will drip off by the end of cooking so if you have a favorite sauce feel free to use it, just try one of the ribs without it first, you may like the ribs that way too! Pork goes well with orange, apple and the other, sweeter woods. Oak, misquete etc is better used on beef. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 One more thing, to repeat something I said earlier, take off the membrane from the rack before cooking. Use a clean philips screwdriver or similar tool to get under the membrane to seperate it from the meat. Use a clean towel or paper towel to grab hold of it and pull it off. This alone will make you look like a pro! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Yes it was precooked, it was a really good tasting sweet italian but didn't really go with everything else, part of the problem was (I think) was when cooking the juice from the sausage went thought out the whole thing and the flavors just didn't go together like we thought they would. I still ate it of course. I was talking to Christy the other day about the string, we didn't know what kind of string was used for cooking, but could see how that would help. No special string is required. Just plain cotten string is fine. Online look for butchers twine. It should be in the cooking isle of most mega marts or in any cooking store. In a pinch, use unwaxed, unflavored dental floss. Thicker twine is easer to handle but any clean cotten string will work, even cotten kite string. Tou don't need any fancy knots either. If you want to learn the running butchers knot, fine but a series of seperate wraps and tieoffs are just fine also. Just tie it together, best as you can with what you have ... and is food safe. On the combo of flavors, live, try and learn. Not every combo goes like it seems like it should, so try something different next time. The mix of spices in that sausage may have changed in a way that you didn't expect. Use a different brand or type of sausage next time. I will still bet it was good though! Everyone should give sausage making a try though. You can have the butcher grind the meat for you if you don't have a grinder. You can make patties with the sausage if you don't have a stuffer. It really is very easy to make.. ground meat and fat (hey I said it was god not low fat! ) spices and mix, that's about it. Treat like any fresh meat for any preservation. I forgot my recipie to post and this is on my phone so the formating of my posts is not yhe way I typed it, sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 14, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 14, 2011 Everyone should give sausage making a try though You just have to be careful with the seasoning, as I found out. At one time we would raise 2 hogs a year and butcher them ourselves, with help from a friend. We would quarter them and put them into a deep freezer for a couple of hours until they got cold enough to make it easier to cut up. We would make mostly roast and ribs and use the rest for sausage with the friends grinder. The first time we did it we didn't know how much seasoning to use so we would cook a little to taste and adjust from there. What we didn't know was extremely fresh meat is different than what you get in the store. The seasoning was about twice as strong as when it was cooked that day after it sat in the freezer for a while. It was still good but a little more and we would have ruined the sausage. Lately we have been using alot of ground turkey, seasoning the turkey is also much different than pork or beef as far as how much seasoning it takes to get where you want it, sometimes more sometimes less. It all comes down to, I need to take notes because I can never remember what I did last time so it makes it hard to try to adjust. Well I guess I will just have to keep eating so I can practice more, tough job. [] Going to get some string, and a thermometer I can leave in the meat when it's cooking. [Y] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechMan Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Thanks for the tips Cal. I'm definately gonna give that a whirl this weekend. I think my little smoker maxes out at 225 so that should not be an issue. ps. I always remove the membrane, night and day diff pps. Dtel I like your idea, keep eating untill you get it right...not soo easy with the pork back ribs though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 I love the attitude you guys have! Sausage will change for a few days. For compitition, I make it about 4 days in advance. Just go out there and do it, the worst that could do is better than most any BBQ joint. You just need to go out there and do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechMan Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Me and a friend saw a video about a concoction called the pork explosion a while back and started making them...I believe you guys in the south call them fatties. Everyone that has tasted it has been impressed. I love finding new recipes and sharing them with others...really makes it worth while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 14, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 14, 2011 Me and a friend saw a video about a concoction called the pork explosion a while back and started making them...I believe you guys in the south call them fatties. Everyone that has tasted it has been impressed. I love finding new recipes and sharing them with others...really makes it worth while. Your right a fattie/pork explosion is a great idea because they can be made a million different ways, even without pork ! [] I think most of the reason I like to cook so much is trying different things...........and eating them. [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsear Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 I have no problems with brisket. 1st I do not trim all of the fat cap and the fat I leave I score in a cross hatch. I do try to remove all fat from the bottom of the roast. I use a dry rub (many variations) and I let it set for 24 to 48 hours. Fat side up, I wet smoke it for 12 hours. I use plain old water and make sure that the water pan does not go dry. I've used a hickory/cherry and/or an apple/cherry combination. The apple/cherry is better for a long smoke time IMHO. The hickory gets too smokey. I pay no attention to meat temp and I do not bother checking the meat until at least 10 hours (I can get to the water bath and the chip pan w/o exposing the roast). Then I gauge tenderness by gently forking the meat. Easy in and easy out (watch the jokes here) and its done. You can eat it when it is done but I now wrap the done roast in foil and let it cool down inside my oven. These days I wait for a day before I cut it. It will cut and hold shape but the meat can be easily pulled apart by a gentle hand and it is melty good to eat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsear Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 I got this bright idea this morning. I have lots of the plant Russian Sage in my yard. It has very earthy leaves, etc, so I'm a thinking I could use the stuff to make an herbal pack for a brisket. Then I checked. The plant isn't actually a botanical form of herbal 'sage' at all. And except for the petals of its pretty blue flowers the dang thing is toxic. YIKES! Dodged ye olde bullet there. So much for me ever becoming a survivalist. I'd be dead in days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Blacksmith Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 Good catch Oscarsear! One needs to be very carefull when it comes to "around the yard" items. Well, I did a quick search for my sausage recipie book and, for now it is lost [] I am going to order another one today. I remember getting it out to coppy some recipies for my son and that was the last I remember seeing it, about 6 months ago! When the new one gets here, I will post the Polish sausage recipie I use. Good stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 back in the day, i smoked things grown in the yard many times--guess i was just lucky [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 15, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 15, 2011 back in the day, i smoked things grown in the yard many times--guess i was just lucky [] Yes you were lucky we had to buy it, in the past of course. Smoking meat is fun, but VERY hard to keep lit, going through alot of lighters. [A] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebes Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 back in the day, i smoked things grown in the yard many times--guess i was just lucky Yes you were lucky we had to buy it, in the past of course. Smoking meat is fun, but VERY hard to keep lit, going through alot of lighters. I've been smoke free since last Friday night. Er, I mean tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 15, 2011 Moderators Share Posted July 15, 2011 I've been smoke free since last Friday night. Er, I mean tomorrow. Funny............... all that's in my past ! [<)] like this post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted July 16, 2011 Share Posted July 16, 2011 Well I pulled off the membrane, covered the slab in mustard, and rolled it up in a gallon ziplock bag. Tomorrow we'll do the brown sugar and the cookin! [<)] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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