Venison sausage

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cwillett
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Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

I got back from three days of hunting and came back with a gorgeous mule deer. A big one (4x5, 18.5" spread). Given his size, I decided to keep the tenderloins and backstraps for steaks and convert the rest of the meat to sausages of various sorts and jerky. He was especially fatty for a game animal, but not enough for a juicy sausage. I'm out of fat back and so thought I would use pork belly to mix in with the venison. My thoughts were to use a 3:2 ratio of venison to belly. With a previous elk I used 3:1 and it was too dry.

Any suggestions?

By the way, I used a little KOA Cub Bear for most of the gutting, cleaning, skinning, quartering (all field done), and deboning (at home). It started with a great edge and it still pretty serviceable. The D2 steel did great!
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Drewski
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Drewski »

I just did a deer into sausage last week. We also saved the tenderloins and backstraps. Threw the heart in the grinder too, after trimming out the valves and crap. A smaller whitetail, ended up with 42 pounds of ground deer. Used a 2:1 ratio of deer to pork. The pork I got was from a local butcher and he gave me trimmings that he uses for sausage. Was fatty like pork belly, that's for sure. Pretty happy with how this batch (240 big smokie-sized sausages) has turned out. I'm pretty novice to sausage making though, and I'm sure somebody could provide more insight.

Used a Buck 113 here. Perfect size and shape imo. 420HC steel (don't know anything about this, just found that online). Wish it held an edge longer.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by jacko9 »

I just avoided a large deer on my way to the gym in the dark at 6am. Driving down the road between the vineyards doing 55mph I caught sight of it at the last second and slammed the brakes (Acura MDX) and was very relieved to see it clear to my left! That's the closest I have ever come to road kill that would have wiped out my SUV! I like your way of getting venison better!
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by old onion »

I seen my deer sausage run off last evening when I road my Yamaha Grizzly 700 through my woods.I am finding a number of scrapes on the farm so the big bucks are on the move.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Mike9 »

I still have venison and goose in the freezer I need to turn into sausage. I want to do a Wellington with a piece of back strap this year.

I don't grind everything like some guys around here. I like whole joints for slow cooking, roasting etc. My favorite parts are the shanks, neck and front haunch - that I make bourguignon with, or slow roast for pull.
cwillett
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

As an update, I made the first round of sausage (maple sage breakfast sausage) yesterday with a 3:2 ratio of venison to pork belly and 1.8% salt by weight. Fantastic stuff! The sausage is leaner than, say, the stuff that comes in a plastic tube at the store, but isn't dry at all. I'm going with this ratio for the rest of the sausage projects. Today's goal is 15 pounds of Hungarian links.
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Drewski
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Drewski »

cwillett wrote: Tue Oct 23, 2018 2:04 pm As an update, I made the first round of sausage (maple sage breakfast sausage) yesterday with a 3:2 ratio of venison to pork belly and 1.8% salt by weight. Fantastic stuff! The sausage is leaner than, say, the stuff that comes in a plastic tube at the store, but isn't dry at all. I'm going with this ratio for the rest of the sausage projects. Today's goal is 15 pounds of Hungarian links.
Awesome! Do you hang it? Smoke it? Freeze it fresh? As a newbie, I'm still just freezing it fresh. Need to figure out steps for curing properly.
cwillett
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

Nothing I've done so far is cured. The breakfast sausage is loose. I packed it in 1.5 pound amounts and vacuum sealed it for the freezer. The Hungarian sausage will be stuffed into links approximately 1/4 pound in weight and vacuum sealed 6 per container. You have to light freeze the links first, and then seal, otherwise the sealer will partly crush the sausages.I have a beef bung sitting around and might do one traditionally fermented sausage (think salami). I don't have a good smoking set up and find it easier to use liquid smoke or smoked paprika.
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Drewski
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Drewski »

cwillett wrote: Tue Oct 23, 2018 4:43 pm Nothing I've done so far is cured. The breakfast sausage is loose. I packed it in 1.5 pound amounts and vacuum sealed it for the freezer. The Hungarian sausage will be stuffed into links approximately 1/4 pound in weight and vacuum sealed 6 per container. You have to light freeze the links first, and then seal, otherwise the sealer will partly crush the sausages.I have a beef bung sitting around and might do one traditionally fermented sausage (think salami). I don't have a good smoking set up and find it easier to use liquid smoke or smoked paprika.
Do you use liquid smoke or smoked paprika directly in the meat? Mine work out to be around a quarter pound as well, I did a 63 pound patch a couple weeks ago into hog casings. Vac sealed as well, but mine did get a little deformed in the vacuum process. A salami would be fun!
cwillett
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

I use smoked paprika directly in the meat for sausages, liquid smoke on the jerky. I find I have difficulty getting the liquid smoke to distribute evenly in the grind, so I don't use it for sausages. I partially freeze my sausages individually before sealing them up to avoid the crushing effect. I'm making a parsley parmesan sausage today and will start a fermented soppresatta type sausage with the last of the venison on Tuesday. My curing skills have gotten better, but I don't have a very controlled environment for fermentation.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by daviddg »

cwillett wrote: Sun Oct 28, 2018 12:06 pm I find I have difficulty getting the liquid smoke to distribute evenly in the grind, so I don't use it for sausages.
I don't know about making sausage..but after you grind it cant you just lay it out flat in a thin layer. Then put the smoke in a small mister and spray it. Could cover with another pan flip the sausage and then mist that side also.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by nakneker »

Cwillett, sounds like your having and getting it dialed in. I just put two small Couses deer up a couple weeks ago. Thats my favorite game meat here in Arizona and used every bit I could for steaks. They were especially fat this year due to the acorns.The rest I cut into chunks and vacuum sealed for tacos, biscuits and gravy and stew meat. I’ve always processed my own game, very satisfying.
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Drewski
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Drewski »

nakneker wrote: Sat Nov 10, 2018 9:38 am Cwillett, sounds like your having and getting it dialed in. I just put two small Couses deer up a couple weeks ago. Thats my favorite game meat here in Arizona and used every bit I could for steaks. They were especially fat this year due to the acorns.The rest I cut into chunks and vacuum sealed for tacos, biscuits and gravy and stew meat. I’ve always processed my own game, very satisfying.
Nice! Any pics of the deer pre-butchering?
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by nakneker »

Drewski wrote: Sun Nov 11, 2018 12:36 am
nakneker wrote: Sat Nov 10, 2018 9:38 am Cwillett, sounds like your having and getting it dialed in. I just put two small Couses deer up a couple weeks ago. Thats my favorite game meat here in Arizona and used every bit I could for steaks. They were especially fat this year due to the acorns.The rest I cut into chunks and vacuum sealed for tacos, biscuits and gravy and stew meat. I’ve always processed my own game, very satisfying.
Nice! Any pics of the deer pre-butchering?
Good morning Drew,

We shot those bucks in some rough country 6 miles in and quartered them and then four of us, my wife and daughter included, packed them out. They weren’t big bucks, one was ok. I’ll PM you a pic of the rack. Neat deer, much smaller than the white tails in your area. .
“The goal is to die with memories, not dreams.”
cwillett
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

The mule deer that I shot was probably close to 200 pounds field dressed and skinned, but with the head. A big deer that had been eating well off garbonzo beans and alfalfa. I probably should have kept more of the rear leg in roasts, but used them primarily for jerky and in the grind. The backstraps and tenderloins are immaculate. I'm very excited for the two sopprasatta style sausages that are currently fermenting and drying in the garage. One of the best yields was deeply reduced stock (jelly at room temp, solid in the fridge) from the bones. About 50% of demi-glace consistency. Just gold.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by cwillett »

daviddg wrote: Fri Nov 09, 2018 4:19 pm
cwillett wrote: Sun Oct 28, 2018 12:06 pm I find I have difficulty getting the liquid smoke to distribute evenly in the grind, so I don't use it for sausages.
I don't know about making sausage..but after you grind it cant you just lay it out flat in a thin layer. Then put the smoke in a small mister and spray it. Could cover with another pan flip the sausage and then mist that side also.
That sounds like not a bad way to go, but what I really need to do it build an offset smoker.
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by daviddg »

thumbs upon the smoker.. I do love real smoke
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Drewski
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Drewski »

What's everyone use for a skinning knife for deer sized game? Looking for something to use in the field, not at home in the garage. I've been thinking about a Havalon with changeable blades, but haven't heard much about them. I got my brother a a Buck 113 and he loves it. Just don't want the same exact knife as him haha.
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lsboogy
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by lsboogy »

Drewski wrote: Sat Nov 24, 2018 9:38 am What's everyone use for a skinning knife for deer sized game? Looking for something to use in the field, not at home in the garage. I've been thinking about a Havalon with changeable blades, but haven't heard much about them. I got my brother a a Buck 113 and he loves it. Just don't want the same exact knife as him haha.
Buck 119 - carried it for years and it was always a decent hunting knife. We used to be able to get 7 tags a day for deer, me and my buds hunted for food shelf. Thing has dressed out hundreds of deer, many elk, a moose and lots of other game. Skinned a couple elk and made coats with the thing. Never really neede a dedicated skinning knife - the tip is round enough to do a pretty quick job - cape and carcass did not take long - never took the hide from the legs.
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Vouston
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Re: Venison sausage

Post by Vouston »

Through experimenting, come to figure a 2:1 or 3:2 mixture venison to pork fat has always done pretty well with Michigan whitetails when mixing for various ground meats concoctions whether sausages, burgers, meatballs, etc.
Also love the caul fat for wrapping a hind roast if i can ever remember to grab it during the field dressing process, along with the heart and liver...

Never occurred to me to try doing a venison backstrap wellington.... with morels and stone ground mustard. Got a couple deer in the freezer, that just may very well move up to the top of the list for family christmas dinner.

Fave knifes - got an old carbon steel old henry slip finger knife that was my grandpa's that i love and always in my pack. Great for field dressing, caping, and holds its own as a littler blade boning and doing trimming and butchering. Also love my good ole leather handled kabar, there's not much that knife cant do.
Has anyone taken the jump on that Doi Homura 130mm Blue #2 custom hunting knife that was put up recently on CKTG for sale? :?: :?: Keep staring at that knife posting and I'm thinking that thing would put a hurting on a Benchmark or other various hunting knives.
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