Sausage stuffing problem. Do you have a solution?
 

Okay... so just made my first run at sausage. This is cook on the grill, or smoke and eat sausage, not cure.

Initial grind was fine. It was medium. But when I ran it back through to stuff the casings, the meat quickly turned to something like foam.

I ground the meat last night and seasoned it. It spent the night in the refrigerator. I stuffed the sausages this morning. While stuffing, I was not using a blade. I used the wagon wheel plate. At first the meat coming out looked like sausage. Then it turned to a foamy sort of consistency. :yuck:

What went wrong?

Thanks in advance for any help,
-marrs

it was beef, by the way.

Remove the plate for stuffing - just run it through the tube into the casing.

Not sure what a wagon wheel plate is but i agree with gtr

What equipment are you using?

Sounds like the meat was too warm to me. bit hard from here.
Make sure its chilled and a slow speed rather than fast

I think you are always going to get some additional breakdown using a grinder to stuff. It will be worse with smaller tubes because of the higher back pressure. I would either leave it coarser on the first pass or buy a stuffer.

fogetaboutit stuffing with a meat grinder, very frustrating...
Get yourself a sausage stuffer, cry once but be happy forever! Lem has a 5 pounder, really nice for home, occasional, use:
http://cdn.lemproducts.com/images/large/606.jpg
(there are clones, cheaper - just make sure you get one with metal gears)

just like the other folks said, make sure the meat is as cold as possible...

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...Q/Bangers1.jpg
http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...BQ/Bangers.jpg

I was having similar problems a couple of days ago. You need to have the "wagon wheel" plate in to support the outside end of the auger. My problem is that it gets clogged up with stringy pieces of meat till the stuffing speed slows down to a crawl. Having the cutting blade in would fix this by cutting up the stringy bits but I can't fit the cutting blade, wagon wheel plate and stuffing tube all on at the same time. The stuffing tube is plastic and the mounting flange at the end is quite thick meaning I can't have all these pieces in place and get the retaining ring to catch the threads to hold it all in place. :mmph: I thought about getting a metal tube that would be a bit thinner for mounting but then went fark it and did what Bebe suggested and ordered a LEM 5lb vertical stuffer. The grinder will now be used for one purpose - grinding! I'll let you know if the investment was worthwhile once it arrives. :grin:

possibly u had a partial blockage usually something like when u cleaned the knife and plate u mixed the the remains in with the rest of ur grind. X2 on the stuffer u won't look back, buy the size u think you will need, then purchase the next bigger size less work.

there are plates like this - you'll still need the knife otherwise the auger will be lose.
Kinda works but nowhere near as nice as a proper sausage stuffer.
http://www.onestopjerkyshop.com/imag...Plate_Bean.jpg

I'm using an STX turbo force 3000.

I think the blockage comments hit it on the head. The initial burst of sausage looked nice, then it went wrong. When I cleaned it out there were stingy bits.

Two more questions:
1: It had been in the fridge again before stuffing, should it have done time in the freezer again?

2: Can you explain the process with the stuffers? Looking at them they seem like they'd add more hassle. But I can't imagine you'd recomend them if that's the case.

Thanks again, marrs

1. no, you don't have to put it in the freezer.. out of fridge is ok, take out just what you need to fill the can.
2. actually, can not get any easier, you'll be amazed... it takes more time to fill the can than to stuff the casing :)


even better:

my Chinese toy, maybe 15 years old but still going strong... i remember i've paid $79.99 and i thought it was expensive :)
http://www.onestopjerkyshop.com/imag...ic_grinder.jpg
Tasin TS-108 Electric Meat Grinder

Oh man Bebe, I have seen the light! Should you get any hate-mail or offensive messages from my wife, I apologize in advance.

Thanks again!
Hope life is treating you well down on the south side of the city.

I grind mine twice. First time chili grind, second time medium grind. I haven't had much luck grinding into casings. Like you say it turns to foam! It's too hard to push it into the casings and over grinds it. Did have luck grinding twice with chili grind. Second grind into casings. Sausage looked great but every onece in a while it was a little chunky. It makes a lot better product to stuff separately. I am going to try the wagon wheel next time. Still grind twice( it helps mix the spices too to season first) then put the wagon wheel on and try to stuff with grinder. It can be hard to turn the crank on the stuffer if the meat is cold!
Good luck! You can make a lot better sausage than you can buy!
Kevin