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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