Looks damn good. Nicely done

Did the KA for years...then found a carnivore 3/4 hp at basspro return center for half price. If you like making sausage, get a real grinder. Looks very good btw.

Where's your fresh garlic??

You used my recipe (except you left out the garlic). No wonder it's good.

How much pork vs. beef was used?

Didn't realize fresh garlic was so common! I will definitely try it out next time.

10.14 lbs beef
12.91 lbs pork

I rigged up an old still operational fridge to use as a sausage dryer. It had a top mount freezer so I took out the section between the freezer and fridge part to make one big chamber. I removed all the inner wiring to the inside factory control system. I went on line and bought a temp controller and a humidity controller and mounted them on a side wall outside. The compressor hooks into one inlet on the temp controller and an infrared heating bulb to the other. A small fan is pigtailed into the cooling side. The heating bulb is inside the box. I also put a small humidifier and a small dehumidifier in the box and they hook up to the outside humidity controller. Back during the winter I cold smoked my links in an outside smoke house for about 6 hours then hung them in the fridge. I set the temp controller to 48 degrees and the H controller to 60 %. Both controllers can be set to keep the set levels at + or - 3 . Weighed each link before hanging them and kept a record . When they had lost 30 to 35 % of weight they were ready. Best dried sausage ever. No shriveling and were as round as when I put them in. I recently put together a contraption to use pellets for cold smoking and can pipe it into the fridge from the outside and can plug the entrance hole and the top vent hole when through smoking. Now I can make dried sausage in the middle of summer which is good because I finished my last piece of the Feb batch day before yesterday. I bought some 3 inch collagen casings and am going to make some hard salami which entails adding a fermenting solution to the meat before stuffing and letting it hang at 76 degrees for about 72 hours before lowering the temp. The solution is what gives salami it's "tangy" taste. The salami will be 70 % lean pork and 30% fatback. Making cured meat products that never need cooking is dam addictive..... and a good reason to partake of some adult beverages.

For dried snacking sausage I use 40 % lean beef rump roast, 40 % pork loin and 20% pork fatback.

Seasoning for 40 lbs of mix:

I C. pickling salt
1/2 C #32 grind black pepper
1/3 C sugar
1/4 C granulated garlic
1/8 C cayenne pepper but I usually add a tsp or so more
8 tsp Cure #1 Pink salt

Cube meat into 1 inch chunks or so then mix meat, fat and spices and set in another fridge overnight to blend then grind, stuff and smoke the next day. These old square heads around here have winter sausage making parties at some ones place and stuff 300 lbs plus . Like some one above posted ...a good 3/4 horse grinder will grind 50 lbs of meat as fast as you can push it down the tube.

I need to make some Inmans Turkey Sausage that stuff
Is outstanding

Nice Perlicks on that kegorator.

What kind of paint did you use that makes it easy to write with chalk?

Thank you! They are actually the Intertaps. Love them. https://www.morebeer.com/products/intertap-beer-faucet-stainless-steel.html

I used this paint, https://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleum-Specialty-30-oz-Flat-Black-Chalkboard-Paint-206540/100141287?modalType=drawer

Love making sausage, its an annual tradition with my in-laws at their place out in Doss...we always use their German family recipe. Tying the links is back breaking work but totally worth the finished product. Hoping they get a taller table next year.

Keeper of The Spirits said:

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Looks great. On the smoking if get something to hang the sausages off the racks vertically so you can get more even color and airflow

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This. YOu want them to hang, and no part of any sausage touching anything else. Tie your knots so that you have enough slack to loop over whatever your rod is. We use 1" wood dowels and 1" EMT conduit. Ensures you get an even heat and smoke, which means you set your cure uniformly in your sausage.

This entire post is badass. Love the smokehouse, the setting, the family tradition, everything. Thanks for sharing.

As to grinding, are y'all coarse grinding?

I made my 4 salami sticks back 4 plus weeks ago and weighed them again this morning. They've lost 30 % of their weight so I figure another week or so they should be at a 35 % moisture loss. Any brave souls out there willing to be the guinea pig to try the first bite next week? If you live, I'll try some the next week....