The Sausage Maker-Polish Sausage kit question

[HumboldtSmokeBBQ]

So I bought the Smoked Polish Sausage kit from the Sausage Maker. Seems pretty straight forward, but I don't want to use liquid smoke, and the directions instruct to put it in the oven.

Can I just get rid of the liquid smoke portion of the recipe and throw these on my smoker? That was my intention when I bought this kit. I wanted to get started in smoking sausage...not liquid smoking sausage!

 

[Joshw]

As far as smoke flavor goes, I don't think you would have a problem leaving out the liquid smoke, if you smoke it. Only concern would be cooking temps. If the recipe is designed to be cooked fast, then there could be a problem, if you slow smoke it. Looked on the website, and the smoked polish sausage kit, says it contains cure #1, but no amounts. It also says it is designed to be prepared fresh, or smoked. You would probably be safe, but with out the amounts of cure #1, it is hard to say proper cooking temps. Also depending on the amount of liquid smoke it is calling for, you might want to adjust the water you add.

 

[HumboldtSmokeBBQ]

Thank you for your input. This is my first time making sausage. I can adjust my smoker to to match what the recipe calls for. I recall it did say to prepare in the oven. Which, no way...I am using my smoker. Maybe I can just crap can the recipe it calls for and only use the casings and cure #1 it calls for?

 

[Joshw]

If the cure #1 is separate from the other seasonings. You can use the seasonings and add 1 level tsp of cure #1 per 5 pounds of meat, and you are good to smoke.

 

[HumboldtSmokeBBQ]

If the cure #1 is separate from the other seasonings. You can use the seasonings and add 1 level tsp of cure #1 per 5 pounds of meat, and you are good to smoke.

Yes, it is. Thank you!

 

[IamMadMan]

The idea behind the liquid smoke is to add smoke flavoring without using an additional form of cooking the sausage. You can substitute cold smoking in lieu of the liquid smoke, and then finish in the hot smoker in lieu of the oven.

 

[worktogthr]

All good suggestions and advice up above. I really like the idea of measuring the cure they provided to make sure it is 1tsp per five pound batch. Also, I recommend drying the sausage at room temp for a few hours before smoking or in your smoker (at about 100 degrees in the smoker) for an hour or so until the outside feels dry. Not sure of the science behind it but it will absorb the smoke better than a wet sausage.

 

[thirdeye]

How much liquid smoke per pound of meat does the recipe call for? I would suggest trying a split batch, even if you reduced the amount of liquid smoke. This way you have something as a baseline for the flavor footprint.

You treat liquid smoke as an ingredient... meaning it needs to work in conjunction with other ingredients but not stand out from the other ingredients. I make my own hotdogs in sheep casings. I explored several recipes before coming up with my own, and the one with the most authentic flavor has 2 teaspoons of liquid smoke to 5 pounds of meat. Wright's is the preferred brand of many sausage makers and some are picky enough that they measure the liquid smoke in drops. I prefer to smoke my dogs in my Big Chief because I can keep the chamber about 160°, and sometimes I need an oven finish to get them to temp... so don't discount that option. You can turn smoked sausage mealy, or the fats can break if your smoker is running too high, so be mindful of that too. I also use dry milk as an adder in all sausage I smoke. Anyway, here are my hotdogs which are a mix of beef and pork.