How to make your own sausages at home without any special equipment

Did you know you can easily make sausages at home and you don’t need any special equipment?

When I do test batches at home this is how I do them. The hardest part is stuffing them into casings - so we skip that step.

Even though I have a small meat grinder with a sausage stuffer attachment I never use it. It takes too long to set up and clean and I would rather just hand mix the meat and spices, then wrap the sausagemeat in clingfilm or parchment. - you can also make the mixture into burgers.

All you need is

• meat

• fat

• spices

• binder (optional) - wheat crumb, potato starch (for gluten free) - again this is not necessary , though it helps to keep the fat in the sausage making a juicier sausage.

• water - mixing your spices in water helps them mix easier into the meat - you can leave it out

• A mixing bowl

• parchment or cling film

Many sausages use a binder - usually wheat crumb, or for gluten-free - potato starch.

We prefer to use only meat and spices but if you want a binder you can use breadcrumbs (about 3 tablespoons/lb meat).

Garlic & herb sausage

• 1lb ground Berkshire Pork

• 3/4 - 1 teaspoon salt

• 1.5 teaspoons your favourite mixed herbs

• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

• 2 teaspoons garlic powder - not garlic salt. OR you can use 1 or 2 garlic cloves grated

1. Mix all ingredients together. You can use your hands or a stand mixer.

2. Divide the mixture into 4 or 6 - depending on how big you want your sausage. I make them about 8 inches long.

3. Get 4 or 6 - (depending on how many sausages you want to make) pieces of cling film or parchment - they need to be big enough to wrap your sausages tightly.

4. Roll the pork mixture into a sausage shape and roll it up tightly in the cling film

5. Put in the fridge for about 24 hours for flavours to blend and the sausage to set up.

6. Gently unroll and either fry or broil like you usually do until internal temp is 165 degrees F

If you like this recipe you may like some of my other sausage recipes

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Small Pig Farmers Guide to Pork Processing

CA$25.00

• Farm Stories
• Pork processing
• Raising pigs
• Recipes
• Tips

5 things you need to know before buying a side of pork

5 things you should know before buying a side of Pork!

When you want to know how your food is raised it just makes sense to buy direct from a farmer.

Usually this means you have to buy in bulk and have to buy a half an animal.

Dealing with the farmer is usually the easy part.

Dealing with the processor can be intimidating - the terminology is weird and you don’t know what you don’t know!

It is totally different than going to the store and buying a pack of pork chops.

1. What is a side of pork?

2. How is it sold

3. What does hanging weight mean?

4. What is cut and wrap?

5. How much meat is half a pig?

Even with over 25 years of experience farming & working in the meat industry (both here in Canada and back home in the UK) I have seen so many differences between processors and their charges.

Many have additional charges you didn’t know you needed to ask about - I joke with my processor and ask when he will be charging a smiling charge lol - at the moment a smilke is free!

1. What is a side of pork?

This is half a pig. (Not to be confused with side pork which is pork belly). Sometimes it is called a half hog,

2. How is it sold?

This varies from farmer to farmer. Some will give you a set price but most sell based on hanging weight.

Then cut and wrap is usually done by a processor and costs extra - many farmers let you deal with and pay the processor.

(We differ from most farms - we talk to our customers to help them get the cuts that are right for their families and we talk to the processor on their behalf so there is nothing lost in translation.)

You will notice a huge difference in hanging weight prices from farmers - this is because every farmer has different input costs.

3. What is hanging weight?

This is the weight after the animal has been dispatched and gutted. It is sometimes called rail weight.

The farmer and processor both usually charge on hanging weight.

Some processors will weigh the animal with with skin and head on.

Some hanging weights are skinless.

This can make a huge difference to the price you pay for the product you get back. Depending on the size you could be paying for and throwing 50lb away

4. What does cut and wrap mean

There are hundreds of variations between each processor and often you don’t know what to ask or expect.

We have experienced many extra costs that we didn’t know we needed to know. E.g packaging types, labelling, boxes, de-boning, outdoor raised pig charge, carbon tax - I am still waiting for that smiling charge lol

The processor will - or should cut and wrap your pork how you want - some will do a standard cut and you get what you get - they may even automatically de-bone everything and even throw the fat away - which is a crime for us as that is a ton of flavour they are throwing out.

You may have wrapping choices

• Brown wrap

• Double wrap - cellophane around the meat then brown wrap. - this is what we choose because the product lasts longer

• Vacuum pack - this is great but the bags tend to blow, especially if they vac seal bone in products - then you have to use the meat quickly or it will freezer burn - this also usually costs more - we have been charged anything from 10c/lb on the meat put in the vac pack to $1/lb hanging weight (additional to cut and wrap charges ) - again it depends on the processor

Your processor should label the packaging for you with what is in the package - they don’t all do this.

5. How’s much meat do I get? Is a side too much?

Even though we are just a 2 person family I don’t find a side of pork too much meat. Our pigs are around 200lb hanging weight so a side is 100lb which will give us 70+lb meat the way I get ours cut and wrapped.

Having a good selection of pork at my fingertips means I can create an awesome dish any night of the week and I often substitute pork for beef.

Your meat yield will depend on the cuts you choose.

If you choose everything boneless you will get a lot less weight back than the original hanging weight. Plus you are losing flavour.

Sometimes you can get back the offal - liver, heart and kidneys - though this is not usually in the hanging weight because it is removed before weighing. You would have to check with your farmer and the processor.

An e.g of one of our sides of Berkshire Pork standard cut is

100lb hanging weight @ $6.95/lb including processing fees.

The way we cut and wrap ours we get about 70+lb meat back

At our todays prices that’s $695 for 70+lb pork (bacons, ham and sausage processing is extra)

If you would like more information about our Berkshire Pork feel free to get in touch

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4 ways to render lard incuding an Instant Pot method!

Pork fat was more valuable than the Pork Years ago!

They never wasted anything and pork fat Had so Many uses, not all were in our food.

• soap making

• candles

• wound healing/medicinal

• salves and balms

• greasing machines - (I use lard to season my cast iron skillets and wok)

The 2 types of pork fat are:-

1. Leaf lard - this is the internal fat that is around the kidneys - this is best for pastry crusts.

2. Back fat - although we call it back fat, on our pigs it is fat that the butcher trims off the pork cuts. - This is best for sausage making but can be used to render into lard.

Culinary uses for Lard

• Render the leaf lard for making the best pastry/pie crusts - Check out my best pastry ever recipe here

• Rendered lard is a great butter substitute for cakes and cookies - it is best used in cakes like chocolate cakes or heavier spiced cakes, like ginger cake - you can’t taste the pork fat but you won’t get the buttery flavour that you would be looking for in a plainer - non spiced cake.

• Use lard to make the best chips/fries!!!

• Season your lard with herbs and spices and use to roast vegetables.

• Sear meat

• Sausage making - Unrendered Back fat is popular with hunters to add to lean game meat when they make their own sausages.

• ****I use both back fat and leaf lard for cooking - but leaf lard does not work in sausage making - you need unrendered back fat for that.****
  

You won’t find canola or avocado oil in my house I am strictly a Lard girl!

Lard is listed in the top 10 of the worlds most nutritious foods so why wouldn’t you use it - and its sustainable & delicious!

I regularily use it for!

• the best chips ever, (fries to my non Brit readers)

• pastry,

• bread - forget the butter and olive oil, I have a recipe for a sourdough sandwich loaf and I only ever use lard!

• sauteed meats and veg

• Stir fries - yes I use pork fat and lard all the time in stir fries

Making your own lard at home is easier than you think.

Stove top, Slow Cooker, Oven and Instant pot all work great!

Rendering fat into lard

It is not as hard as it sounds, in fact it is super easy.

If you are a bit of a kitchen gadget fiend like me you likely have every labour/time saving kitchen appliance going.

Though I did resist the instant pot for a long time, I just didn't think I needed one.

Then someone told me they had made a million (slight exaggeration) freezer meals in a day and that it would change my life.

When I burned some potatoes in one of my best pans, which was so badly burned on I couldn’t rescue it, I finally caved in and got an Instant Pot.

I needed a pot that I didn’t have to babysit, and it turns out the perfect way to make small batches of lard!

Use muffin cases to store lard.

When I discovered I could render lard in the instant pot I felt like a cavewoman that just discovered fire!

It is perfect in summer when you only want to do small batches and not heat up the house.

To make rendering quicker use ground pork fat but you can also just chop up pork fat.

I sometimes use my food processor to chop the fat which is easier if it is still slightly frozen.

INSTANT POT

• Put ground fat into Instant Pot - don’t go above the max fill line.

• Add 1/4 cup cold water

• Press Pressure Cook (High) for 1 hour

• Allow to cool with natural pressure release

• Strain into containers (See tips about straining)

Tip - lard rendered in the instant pot may have some water which will settle as a gel under the cold rendered lard - I always strain mine into pans lined with parchment or cling film.

When its set turn it over and scrape off the gel, then store the lard as normal.

SLOW COOKER

• Place the fat in a slow cooker and set it to LOW.

• It will take several hours.  The cracklings will soon sink down and then rise up again.  

• When they rise again the lard is done.

• Strain into containers (See tips about straining)

  STOVETOP

• Place fat in a heavy pot (cast-iron Dutch ovens are perfect because they distribute heat evenly), and set it to “2”.  

• Once it begins melting set it to “1”.  

• As the fat melts Strain into containers (See notes about straining)

OVEN

• Set oven to 200 degrees F

• Place it in a Dutch oven or roasting tray don't put a lid on you need the moisture to evaporate.

• Strain into containers (See tips about straining)

If you over-cook it the lard will begin to brown and you’ll end up with lard that has a stronger porky flavour.  It’s still completely usable for things like frying and sauteing, it’s just not ideal for making sweet pastries and pie crusts.

In its liquid state, the colour of the lard will be like lemonade.  Once it cools and hardens it will become pure, delicious, white goodness.

Tips for Straining

Strain it through a fine mesh sieve to remove the cracklings.  Then strain it again through 3 layers of cheesecloth to remove the remaining small bits and sediment.

• It’s critical that you remove any bits of fat and gristle along with any tiny bits of sediment, otherwise, your lard will get mouldy.

• Pure fat doesn’t grow mould, it goes rancid.  So if there’s mould on it it’s because it wasn’t rendered long enough to remove all the water and/or it wasn’t strained properly.  So be sure to properly strain it.

• Let it sit undisturbed at room temperature until it has cooled down and is firm (it firms up pretty quickly).   

Tips for storage

• Jars

• Bread pans - I line with plastic wrap - then I have brick-shaped lard

• OR for pre-measured portions and easy clean up  - Measure how much a muffin tin holds, line with muffin casings and pour lard in. This is my personal favourite - Then I freeze the lard and take out as I need it.

What to do with the bits left behind - crispy cracklings!  Transfer them to a frying pan and fry until they’re puffy and crispy.  Add your favourite seasoning. Then if you don’t eat them straight out of the pan you can add to salads as a crispy topping!

Clean up Tips

Yes making lard can get a bit messy - If you have cast iron pans you need to season then put your lard covered utensils and sieve in the pans to catch all the lard drips.

You can also use parchment paper to lay your utensils on - then you sue this lard loaded paper to grease bread or cake tins, or to season cast iron.

Happy Rendering!

Small Pig Farmers Guide to Pork Processing

CA$25.00

If you found this content useful and would like to buy me a coffee that would be greatly appreciated!