Basic Homemade Sausage

Step 1

Cut the meat and fat into chunks that will fit into your grinder. Mix well with the salt and set in the fridge overnight.

Step 2

The next day, put your auger, blade, and dies - I prefer a 10 mm coarse die to start, then a 4.5 mm die afterwards - into the freezer for 1 hour before you grind. If you are making links, soak about 15 feet of casings in warm water. Mix the black pepper with the meat chunks and grind through the coarse die.

Step 3

If the meat is still cold, as in below about 38°F, go ahead and grind a second time through the fine die. If the meat has gotten warm, freeze it for 20 minutes or so before grinding again. Optional: If you have some bread, add that after the last of the meat has gone into the grinder; this pushes out every bit of meat so you don't waste any.

Step 4

Put the mixture in the freezer while you clean up. You want the meat mixture to be close to freezing before you mix it. When it's ready, add the ice water and, with your very clean hands, knead and mix the meat for 60 to 90 seconds, until it comes together as one cohesive, sticky ball.

Step 5

You now have sausage. If you don't want to case it, you are done. If you do want links put the meat into the stuffer. Slip a length of casing on the stuffer all the way, leaving about 4 inches of "tail" hanging off. Crank the stuffer down to remove air. "Milk" the air out of the "tail" of casing, then fill the casing entirely, making a large coil. You want it full, but not overly tight at first. Repeat until you've cased all the meat.

Step 6

To make links, gently compress one end of a coil and tie off that end of casing. Moving about 6 inches down the coil, pinch off a link with your fingers. Spin that link away from you a few times to form the link. Move down the coil, pinch off another link and, this time, spin it towards you. Repeat until the end, and tie off that last link. (Here is a video of the process.)

Step 7

Use a needle or somesuch to prick out any air pockets in the links, gently compressing them to fill the gaps. Be careful, as you don't want to burst the link. Hang your sausages as noted in above and, if you can wait, eat the next day.