Ring Bologna in Links

[reinhard1]

Haven't posted this on my page yet with the step by steps but here are some pics.  Last time I made these they were in rings.  That was a 10 pound test batch with Curleys seasoning.  I liked them a lot so I made 25 pounds this time in link form.  I do like the old fashion ring style but I think links are  more handy for most.  This is why I haven't bought any type of store bought sausage for a very long time.  Something you look forward to eating with ingredients that you know are in there.  This batch also had venison involved.  good luck.

 

For those that haven't made sausage before, this is how your mix will look melding in the fridge overnight.  It's the cure that give's the mix that red color.  When using cure, you should wait one night before stuffing.  Grind, mix the seasonings and the cure, and place the mix in the fridge for a overnight stay in the fridge so the seasonings and the cure can meld together with the meat.

 

 

Before linking I like to poke a few holes in the casings to get rid of air pockets that can form and to make linking easier.

 

 

Some of the links right out of the oven to go into a cold bath.  Had the oven set at 225 deg and the links were pulled at a internal of 160 deg.

 

 

Closer look at the links.

 

 

Had some with some eggs this morning.

[smurfy]

gawd.......them look good!!!!! little horseradish.....aNd KATCHUP! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

[lovebigbluegills]

Those look great RH!!!!!

[LindellProStaf]

That's what I want to make next.  Look just like the ones my grandma used to buy at an old fashioned butcher when I was a little kid.  I can still taste them. They had a lot of pepper in them and I liked it..  Had that good red color to them.

[thirdeye]

Those look great!  Ever do that mix in larger casings?

[reinhard1]

No I haven't Thirdeye.  These are 32 to 35 mm hog casings.  I would like to go slightly larger for the rings though.  I used the same size casings for the last batch of rings I made.  I added extra garlic and mustard seeds to this batch just like the other.  good luck.

[Cooperman]

Wow that looks good! Look how juicy they are. RH....is the recipe on your web page?

By the way, I looked on you web page for a German potato salad recipe, but didn't see one? Not a fan? My mother use to make it all the time, and we all loved it. My brother likes it so much he buys that pile in the can? I won't go that far.

[reinhard1]

I'm going to post it on my page soon.  I already have that same ring bologna recipe  on the Homemade Sausage page.  Only difference is that I made it in rings instead of links.  No, I haven't posted the German Potato salad recipe on there yet.  We always ate it warm.  I have to make it one time and post the exact measurements that I use on there.  Right now I make it like my mom and it's one of those "a little bit of this and some of that thing".  Before I post anything on there I at least should measure what I put in there.  I do have some old cookbooks that have no measurements at all dating many years back.  Kind of like the sausage recipe's from my grandfather from Germany.  I have to have my mom to explain to me what he wrote.  Those are usually the best one's.  good luck.

[thirdeye]

What are the differences if any, by not emulsifying the meat when making bologna?  I was happy with the emulsified texture when I made my hot dogs, but it is time consuming.

[reinhard1]

Thirdeye, the difference is texture as far as I know.  I'm not a fan of emulsifying because I'm a coarser texture type of guy.  I ground the meats through a medium plate just once.  Then mixed the spices and the cure in the mix.  The cure and the seasonings went into the water I used but the mustard seeds and powdered milk I just spread on there.  It's very important to mix the cure in the liquid used [water or beer].  I put the seasoning mix in there as well.  This way the meat mix  get's everything blended much better and allows the cure to meld [along with the seasonings] in the stay in the fridge overnight.  It's all about the texture you want.  The medium plate doesn't give you the course texture at all.  Try it, and you may like it better.  good luck.

[thirdeye]

I might skip the emulsifying step next go-round since I'm playing with seasoning adjustments.  For sausage, I'm with you on adding cure to icy liquid, but when I did the emulsifying I used crushed ice (about like a sno-cone) instead of water, so I was very careful with the mixing.

Speaking of water, a friend that makes their family "German Sausage" recipe will take pureed garlic and mix it into warmed water and simmer.  The water is later chilled and that is used for adding to their sausage.

[reinhard1]

That would be a great way for more flavor with the garlic and the simmering process.  Thank's I will try that next time also.  Great idea.  Of course that must come from a German LOL.  good luck.

[bobberineyes]

Dang those look good!!!, I just ate but now could eat more..