Homemade Linguica and a Giveaway!

So it’s only natural that I have a love of sausages (and bread).  I have never tried to make my own linguica, until now.  Being a part of the Charcutepalooza challenge has given me some guts in the kitchen when it comes to meats and having the Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking & Curing cookbook has changed my view on making homemade sausages forever.  Also, for a small investment of $84 for the attachments for my Kitchenaid mixer I have been able to make several batches of fresh sausage.  I guess I always thought it was a lot tougher to do than it is.  Sit back and relax and take a pictorial ride on just how simple it is to make your own sausage at home.  Check out the recipe at the end for the most amazing Linguica ever.  

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Let’s make some sausage now….

Because I made 2 batches of sausage on this day, I only did 2 lbs of pork butt (shoulder) which made about 6 links of linguica.  In this bowl is fresh garlic, salt, white and black pepper, lots of paprika, liquid smoke, red wine, fresh oregano, sugar and chipotle chili powder.  Mix it all together with the cubed pork and it’s time to stuff.

I use natural hog casing, but if you’re squeamish about touching hog intestines then you can use synthetic casings with similar results.  This is 10 feet, enough for 5 lbs of sausage.  It needs to soak for a bit and then you’ll need to run water inside of the casing to rinse it out.  I usually add enough water to make a 4 inch long balloon and then run it the entire way down the casing.  It’s a delicate process as you don’t want to make knots.

Attach the large grinding plate and fire up the mixer.

Lesson learned – don’t over-stuff the chamber with meat.  This results in a not-very-fun sausage making experience.  Let the machine work for you.

See how large the grind is?  This is a good thing to give you texture in your sausage.  Too small and it will look like hot dogs.

Cut off the desired amount of casing and slip it over the sausage tube insert.  Some say to grease the tube, but I’ve found it works better without.  Make sure to tie a knot in the end of the casing.

Start filling the casing with the sausage mixture.  You can twist your links as you go, but I’ve found it’s a little easier to wait until the end.  Just don’t stuff the casing too tightly or it will burst when you twist.  Think balloon…too full and POW!

This process is made much easier with the addition of more than 2 hands.  My darling daughter has become my sausage making sidekick and has perfected the right amount of meat mixture to add to the stuffer to prevent air pockets in the sausages.  She’s such a rock star.  Twist your links and go fire up the smoker.