Homemade Andouille Sausage Recipes

Steps:

• Soak the casing in cold water for about an hour to soften it and loosen the salt in which it is packed. Place the wide end of the sausage stuffer up against the sink faucet and run cold water through the inside of the casing to remove excess salt.
• Cut the meat and fat into 1/2-inch wide chunks. Pass them once through the coarse blade of a meat grinder. In a large bowl, mix together the ground pork and fat with the garlic, salt, pepper, cayenne, thyme, paprika, bay leaf, sage, and hickory smoke. A wooden spoon works well.
• Cut the casing into 26 inch lengths and tie a small knot in one end of each. Fit the open end over the tip of the sausage stuffer and slide it on until the tip of the stuffer touches the knot. The casing will look like accordion folds. This keeps excess air from getting into the casings. Fit the stuffer onto the meat grinder or according the directions that come with the stuffer, or hold the wide end of the stuffer against or over the opening by hand.
• Fill the hopper with the sausage mixture. Turn the machine on if it is electric and feed the stuffing gradually into the hopper; for a manual machine, push the stuffing through with a wooden pestle. The sausage casing will fill and inflate gradually. Stop filling about 1 1/4 inches from the funnel end and slip the casing off the funnel, smoothing out any bumps carefully with your fingers and being careful not to push the stuffing out of the casing. Tie off the open end of the sausage tightly with a piece of string or make a knot in the casing itself.
• To cook, slice the sausage into half-inch rounds and grill in a hot skillet with no water for about 12 minutes on each side, or until brown and crisp at the edges.

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine all the ingredients except casings (you will need 3 hog casings, rinsed). Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 days. *Don't be shy with spices as the meat will absorb most of them, making the sausage weaker in taste.
• When ready to grind, remove meat from fridge and process. Cover with plastic wrap making sure it touches the meat, and transfer to the refrigerator for 30 to 45 minutes or until meat is cold again.
• Place hog on a lightly greased nozzle, remove meat from fridge and process, making sure casings are not over stuffed. Prick meat on both sides. To make links, press where link should be made and turn the casing one way. Repeat with the next casing but twisting the opposite way.
• There are three options....
• - If wanted to smoke sausages, dry the casings for 2 hours on a drying rack or wire rack using a fan. Place in a smoker or BBQ for 3-4 hours using wood chips. If using a BBQ, place links on indirect heat source at 160ºF.
• - If cooking right after making them, refrigerate until ready to cook. Add a little olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat and cook for 12-14 minutes, flipping every 2 minutes (using a net for preventing from splatting).
• - If cooking on the BBQ, grill links at 350ºF for 10-12 minutes flipping every 2 minutes.
• Reference....
• For 2 lbs. of meat, it makes about 8 sausages (1/4 lb. each) and it's good for 4 people. Five pounds of meat will make 20 sausages therefore 10 servings. Also if there's any leftover casings which there probably will be, put them in a container, add plenty of salt, close the lid and transfer to the refrigerator. They will keep for a long, long time!