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This is one of the first recipes I developed when I opened my sausage biz. 10 years and dozens of awesome sausage recipes later, this is still one of my all-time favorites to make and eat. I always think of this sausage in the fall when summer produce is peaking and the weather is just starting to turn. It is heavily seasoned with fresh green bell peppers and studded with big chunks of pork loin. Andouille is the cornerstone to many of the dishes I love to make most when the nights get colder – gumbo, jambalaya, and hearty and spicy stews. It is worth making a big batch of this at the start of fall to stock your freezer for winter meals.
Traditionally this sausage is smoked and fully cooked. I use my Traeger for these and they turn out perfectly. If you do not have a smoker, you can substitute some of the salt for smoked salt and cook them in the oven, directly on the oven racks at a low temperature. Purists may scoff, but I won’t judge.
If you are new to making sausage, I highly recommend you check out this detailed step-by-step guide: How to Make Sausage which covers sausage-making equipment and the details within each step of the process. This sausage variety really wants to be made into links. However, there is a lot you can do with fresh bulk andouille and I always enjoy making empanadas or stuffed zucchini with the little bit of bulk sausage that you end up with at the end of the sausage stuffer. If you want to skip the links part (because let’s be honest, not every kitchen is outfitted for twisting sausage links), you can make a small batch of this and enjoy it uncased in a million different ways.
If sausage-making is your thing, I will be posting more of my previously top-secret recipes from my days as a professional sausage maker on this site. Be sure to subscribe for recipes delivered straight to your inbox. Recipes that are on the docket to be released soon: Turducken Sausage, Maple and Sage Breakfast Sausage, Spicy Apple Breakfast Sausage, Chicken-Bacon-Chestnut Pate, Currywurst, Butifarra, Herbs De Provence Sausage, Chorizo Verde, Moroccan Chicken Sausage and many more.
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Andouille Sausage Recipe
- Prep Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 1-3 hours
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 10 lbs 1x
- Category: Charcuterie
- Method: Sausage Making
- Cuisine: Cajun
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Andouille Sausage is a spicy smoked Cajun Link used in gumbo and jambalaya. This version is studded with large chunks of pork loin and is seasoned with fresh green bell pepper, fresh onion, and celery salt for the unmistakeble cajun flavors of the “holy trinity” (aka cajun mirapoix).
Ingredients
Meat
9 lbs trimmed pork butt (or venison, pork mixture that is 70-75% lean)
1 lb diced pork loin (1/4–1/2 inch dice)
Dry-Spice Mix
10 grams curing salt #1 (aka “pink salt”, not to be confused with Himalayan Pink Salt which does not work here)
54 grams salt (if you don’t have a smoker, sub 1/2 of this salt for smoked salt)
6 grams celery salt
20 grams ground cayenne pepper
2 gram dried thyme leaves
6 grams ground allspice
3 grams mustard powder
4 grams sugar
Fresh Ingredients (Mince everything in food processor)
270 grams minced onion
30 grams minced garlic cloves
200 grams minced green bell pepper
Liquid Mix
1 cup water
Instructions
If you are new to sausage making, I recommend reading this post before beginning: How to make sausage
Measure and prep all your ingredients into different containers: 1) force meat (pork butt), 2) liquid ingredients (minced veggies and their juices + water), 3) spices mix 4) garnish (pork loin).
Combine the pork butt and dry-spice mix together, refrigerate.
Soak your sausage casings (if using natural casings) in water for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
Dice the pork loin into 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch chunks and refrigerate.
Chill all your grinding and mixing equipment for at least 30 minutes. While you are waiting for everything to chill, its a good time to do your first round of clean up. For these next steps you will want a completely cleared and clean counter and a couple of sheet pans laid out for twisting sausage on.
Grind the pork butt and spices together into a chilled mixing bowl.
Transfer the ground meat mixture and the pork loin chunks to your mixer and begin mixing. After about 1 minute, slowly add the minced peppers, onion, and garlic (and their liquid), and the chilled water with the mixer running and continue mixing for 4 more minutes after all ingredients have been added. After the 5th minute, the sausage should look sticky or tacky. If it doesn’t, keep mixing for a minute or two longer. Note: As long as the mixture is still nice and cold, you really cannot over-mix it. You can however undermix it.
Transfer the meat to your sausage stuffer and fill and twist the casings (or skip this step for bulk sausage). It’s helpful to shoot the stuffed sausages out onto a sheet pan to contain the mess.
Refrigerate the sausage uncovered for 1 day. If you can, hang them in the fridge for the best result.
Preheat your smoker to 180-220 F. Smoke the sausages until the sausages reach an internal temperature of 150-160. Quickly submerge in ice water to cool and prevent shriveling. Remove from the ice water after about 30 seconds and leave out for an hour or 2 to dry, then package and store, or cook and serve them as desired.
Equipment
| Kitchen Aid 6 Qt Stand Mixer |
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| Weston Manual Vertical Sausage Stuffer, 7 lb Capacity |
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[…] Andouille is a spicy smoked sausage. In my previous life, I was a professional sausage maker. My andouille sausage recipe is one of my all-time favorite recipes from this time in my life and I sorely miss having this […]