Summer Sausage, Snack Stick Extravaganza - Live Weekend Thread

Alright well things are happening now.. I checked all snack sticks. anything above 155 I pulled. some were right at 155.. some were even at like 170... This is about 1/2 of the first batch coming off.. the rest are still in the oven.. I have the 2nd batch in the smoker now.. I'll be transferring it to the oven after the smoke season and the oven free's up.

Alright first up...... I will completely change my first impressions on the snack stick seasonings.. Completely changed my mind after eating the final product.. I even ate one of the more over cooked sticks and I enjoyed it.. I can pick out that "strange" flavor but it is nothing like what it smells from the container.

Here's the finished snack sticks.. I'll let them bloom and rest for a while then I'll split one open for internal pictures

First batch of snack sticks are done. Just a reminder this is a 2.5 gallon bag.



I'll do a full scale photo tomorrow to finish the thread Thanks for looking!

Well its 4:45 a.m. Just pulled a few pieces of snack sticks from the 2nd batch off at 155 IT... Directions call for 152.... so I'm calling it good at 155. just to be safe. But I figured out my new method hands down..

After the 3-4 hours of applying smoke finish them in the oven.. Seems to me you get a better "even" result... in the smoker there seemed to be several hot spots in different locations... and those snack sticks in those area's were cooking a lot faster.. causing more wrinkled casing

Alright.. Well the Marathon is about over.. This is the full 2nd batch minus 2 sticks. As you can see here in the picture it seems to have cooked a bit more evenly than the first batch that spent most of the time in the smoker.

It was a good idea to do both flavors of snack sticks as well.. The mild flavor from TSM goes well together with the kick the Hi-mountain Hunter's Blend has.. Gives us two different flavor profiles



have a good night folks!! Thanks for looking.. Thanks for those who I have spoke to through out the past few weeks to help with details and information on how to make this happen.

jsperk said:

Great job. Love the pic with one with the cheese. I need to get into making that type of stuff.

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Yeah real curious to know How the cheese ones set after being in the fridge for 24 hrs

blazinfire said:

Yeah real curious to know How the cheese ones set after being in the fridge for 24 hrs

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Never thought I would quote myself.... But I just passed around a stick of the Jalapeno and cheese to share slices because its a "limited" edition.. I expected the cheese to have a bit more solid state after being in the fridge for 24 hrs.. It solidified a bit more than the picture I posted.... but not much...

Everything turned out to be a smash hit with those who have tried it already. hope you guys have a good weekend.. Thanks for looking!

The real question is..... What's next? Wish I had some kind of sneak peek.... No clue what's next! Maybe jerky?

Alright final post!! Here's the mother load... give or take a couple logs and snack sticks..... I was hungry LOL...

IamMadMan said:

Great job.....

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Yup... and thank you for all the help and information you have provided me on sausage making!! Really appreciate it. It would of been a harder process without the knowledge you provided.

IamMadMan said:

In no time at all you will have this mastered, and you may be able to help someone else. That's what the forums are all about.

Btw.....
You were concerned about the odor of the spice blend because it contained sodium erythorbate. I take it everything tasted fine? Some people can pick it out, some never notice it. It simply speeds the rate at which nitrite reduces to nitric oxide, thus facilitating a faster cure time and helps to retain that beautiful pink color.

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ah that makes sense...... But yeah the taste is perfect.. very mild flavor smoked snack sticks..... I think I can pick out the flavor but it gives the sausage a little zest to it.

Joshw said:

I wonder if it has fermento, or buttermilk powder in it. Either is fairly common in summer sausage, and would give it a tangy flavor.

You had me curious, so I looked at sausagemakers website, their summer sausage seasoning, does contain fermento. I am guessing that is the "zest" you are talking about. If you like it great, if not, just order a seasoning without it next time. Buttermilk powder will add a similar flavor as well, so you might keep an eye out for it too.

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yeah.. That's what madman told me earlier in the week.. Don't have the problem with the finished product at all.. it surprised me because from the smell I wasn't expecting greatness.. lol Just something I wasn't use too.... Turned out great.. and I would be willing to buy the seasoning again.. But its good to know.. as it was something different

OklaDustDevil said:

Were you pleased with the amount of jalapeno you used (I think you said one pepper per pound of meat)?

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Now I couldn't tell you that 1 pepper is perfect for 1 pound.. But I can tell you that 5 large jalapeno peppers was perfect for 5 lbs of meat..... So far when slicing it each slice ends up with jalapeno and cheese. I'm pretty sure I used just a tad more than 1/2lb of cheese... I got the next size up from the smallest on the block of cheese.. pretty sure its 1lb. I cut more than half of the block for the sausages. No exact measurements.

I removed the seeds and middle (brain fart forgot what it was called at the moment LOL)..... so There's no heat to the sausages... But what there is is a very nice jalapeno flavor.. and if I would choose between the two summer sausages Hands down I wish I made the entire batch jalapeno and cheese.. It'll knock your socks off!

Also to add to this thread... I'm not sure if I made this very clear... I am absolutely happy with my purchases of the MES40.... Does a great job doing what I'm doing with it.... Perfectly happy with the products I ordered from www.sausagemaker.com The summer sausage seasoning was amazing.... The snack stick seasoning started off with mixed thoughts. but as I'm typing this and eating one of the snack sticks I can assure you its probably one of the best snack sticks I've ever ate. I will be a repeat customer.. Looks like I need to place an order for their BBQ snack stick seasoning and buy some jerky seasoning

Well that's a wrap folks.... My 2 packages have been received in NC, and NH... Everything was a hit!! Hands down the Jalapeno and Cheddar summer sausages were my favorite thing I've ever made... I've made a lot of interesting stuff through out my past... Gonna be doing another batch of those next month probably.