Sausage Making Equipmet

[SlushDeezey]

Thinking about making smoked sausages. Can you guys help with entry level equipment and gear recommendations?

[edible hen]

A budget and existing equipment would help. Do you have a meat grinder? Do you have a sausage stuffer? Are you looking at hand-crank or electric items that you don't have?

[SlushDeezey]

I have no equipment. Would prefer electric. Maybe some type of starter kit? As for budget I'd like to stay around 100-150.

[lschweig]

I am also thinking about making sausage and saw a you tube video using a kitchen aid mixer. So if you already have a kitchen aid mixer that might be a place to start.

[Steve B]

Check out (thesausagemaker.com). They have any and everything you may need at all price levels.

[RonB]

If you have a Kitchen Aide mixer, you can add a grinder for less than $40. It would be OK for smaller quantities, and a good introduction to sausage making.

[SlushDeezey]

I have a delonghi mixer and attachments aren't available.

[RonB]

SlushDeezey - sorry, but I can't help then. I don't grind much meat, so the KA attachment works well for me. I make around 5 lbs of sausage at a time, and maybe three or four times a year. I also grind my own hamburger, but again, maybe three or four times a year.

[Rlawton79]

Ive never made sausage, but wanted to give it a shot. Where do you get the casings?

[Steve B]

If you're just starting out I have found using (pre-tubed) casings are really easy to use. Pre-tubed meaning the casings are already flushed out and put onto a plastic tube. You just slide the tube over the sausage attachment, pull out the plastic strips and you're ready to go.

[Steve B]

I've gotten mine from The Sausage Maker. That's also where I got my grinder a TSM. They're located in NY but will ship anywhere.

[nickgutnick]

Try your local butcher.

[Jerod Broussard]

I got my 1/2 horse #8 grinder from Cabela's while it was on sale. Everything else I have gotten from sausage maker. I have three grinder plates.

You also need a good set up to keep everything as cold as possible. If the meat coming out of the grinder is over 55.0 degrees F for any length of time you could have food safety issues.

Colder meat cuts better and grinds better.

[Greatplainsbrewer]

Not a fan of stuffing with a stand mixer attachment. I picked up an old #22 grinder and 6 qt enterprise stuffer on a yard sale for about $100 iirc. I've been able to get casings through my local grocery store. If I were you I'd start with a small manual grinder and make bulk sausage to see if I liked it before committing to a stuffer. The grinder can also be used to make freshly ground hamburgers

[Atalanta]

The food service at work has a monthly cookbook drawing. Oct. 2015 it was a book on sausage making (I stuffed the entry box - I was told I won because of my enthusiasm and the other entrants had won before. I think I linked the right one.) I picked up a hand grinder from a thrift shop for $10. Then we got a Kitchen Aid mixer and I got the grinding attachment for it.

RonB - I've read reviews of there being some issues with the grinder. Have you ever noticed grey in your meat?

[RonB]

Atalanta - yes, there is a tiny bit of discolored meat in the very center. I just watch for it and pull it out.

[johnec00]

I have LEM Product's #8 electric grinder and 5 pound stuffer. Both (as well as a meat slicer) have been bought from their "refurbished products" page at about 30% discount. My one experience with their customer service was excellent. The grinder can double as a sausage stuffer if you don't want to spring for the stand-alone stuffer at first.

[MattTheGR8]

I concur. A grinder with a stuffing tube is the best option in the price range where you're looking. If you like sausage making you'll eventually want to invest in a separate stuffer. Also, LEM makes some good quality equipment.

[MattTheGR8]

Also, while sausagemaker.com has plenty of supplies I've often found https://www.butcher-packer.com/ has at least as many supplies and typically much lower prices.

[johnec00]

I agree that Butcher-Packer's prices are better than Sausage Maker. But for casings, my favorite is https://www.butcherspantry.com/.. Their Pre Tubed casings are competitively priced and sooooo much easier to use than the tangled-up hanks most offer.

[johnec00]

Ran out of character count on the previous comment, but Butcher's Pantry also offers a good selection of specialty casings and other consumables.

[nickgutnick]

https://www.psseasoning.com very good as well. also sells "high temp" cheese if you like cheese in your sausage.

[Peterbilt123]

https://www.waltonsinc.com/

This is where I get all of my supplies. Usually ships the same day I order it.

[Dr ROK]

At a minimum you would want an electric grinder and a stuffer. While you can stuff sausage with a stuffer attachment on your grinder, it is MUCH easier with a dedicated stuffer. I got my current electric grinder from Cabela's, but started with a small electric grinder/juicer/grater and while it worked it took much longer to grind the meat and I had to be much more careful about trimming any gristle/tendons or the grinder plate would get plugged. My sausage stuffer is from The Sausage Maker. LEM also offers them. I have also used my kitcheaide with the grinder attachment to grind meat, but usually only for smaller batches of hamburger or pork sausage. I use casings that are packed in salt rather than water. They are cheaper than water packed, last indefinitely, and are very simple to use. Just pull them out, rinse them a bit, and soak in water according to instructions on package.

[Jerod Broussard]

Another vote for a stuffer. Not even funny comparing that thing to stuffing through the grinder.