What to do with my new grinder attachment?

[The Burn]

My GF got me the grinder attachment for our KitchenAid for Valentine's Day. Now I have to figure out what to do with it. Straight chuck roast for hamburger (although almost 2x the price as 80/20 ground beef)? Some mix of meats? Other ideas?

[Strat50]

Bulk sausage. Easy to do, and you can take this a lot of places.The rest will require a book, or series of books! Just a couple thoughts, that might help you as a budding charcuterist. Where would YOU like to take it?

[Medusa]

Here is a link to a topic on this site. Agreed, making your own sausage is the best.

http://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/the-pit-mastery-program/hot-dogs-and-sausages/35498-homemade-sausage

Read reviews and tips on Amazon and LEM for more info about what, how, and why. You should place all of your metal parts (knive, auger,blade) in the freezer for about 20 minutes before the grind.

Freeze the cutup meat for about 20 minutes, too. Cut the meat into cubes that will run through your hopper - you don't want to fight with stuffing and plunging. Grinders like small & cold things.

DO NOT grind up pork LOIN - complete waste of good meat. Use Boston Butt or Picnic when they are on sale. Butts have the right mix of meat to fat.

I keep all of my metal parts coated in PAM and stored in ziplocs. You want to eliminate any chance of getting rust on your stuff.

Boneless beef chuck makes the best burgs, but @ 6.49 / lb, I skip it for now.

Have fun!

--Ed

[bbqoaf]

I have the same attachment and love it. I'm a big fan of an approximate blend of 50/50 beef chuck and pork shoulder, makes killer burgers and meatloaf. Ground lamb shoulder is also great for sausages or burgers. One thing I want to try is making my own hot dogs from scratch, http://www.sausagemaker.com/tutorial...s/hotdogs.html, I haven't gotten around to it yet but it is on my list for the summer.

[Medusa]

YUM!

[Dr ROK]

There are lots of sausage recipes on the net. Use a reliable source like sausagemaker.com, meatman.com, or seriouseats.com and you will end up with a fine sausage! Way better than store bought because you can adjust the seasoning to your tastes.

[The Burn]

Thanks all. I eat a lot of hamburger on my low carb diet and buy 80-20, but every once in a while I remember MH's article about what can be put in ground beef. Like Medusa noted, I don't want to pay too much for hamburger so thought that "cutting" it with some pork or something else would reduce the overall cost.

Anybody grinding turkey for burgers or sausages? What cuts do you buy for this?

[The Burn]

Also, what do you guys do for stuffing sausages? The reviews of the little stuffer attachment for the KitchenAid grinder are awful.

[Medusa]

I'd have the LEM 5lb sausage stuffer if I had space for it. Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002L80O50/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3NB7S6I14NC4U&coliid=I143VPUMG9E9GS

I have a LEM grinder, but haven't done anything with the sausage stuffer attachment. I think you see why, based on what you've read.

[Strat50]

I have both the LEM stuffer and the grinder. They both work very well. I use the Kitchen Aid for light grinding and making salsa. I didn't care for using the KA for sausage stuffing, as it tends to over work the meat mixture as well as not being very efficient. It works great for just grinding, however.

[Dr ROK]

I use a manual 5 Lb stuffer from sausagemaker.com Does a great job.

[Strat50]

I have a 5lb. capacity LEM stuffer. It works very well for sausage, but it also makes a fine cheese press for homemade cheese!

[Dr ROK]

Looks like they are pretty much the same machine. Never thought about using it as a press for cheese. I may have to try it for a wine press too!