Charcuterie journal: venison kielbasa

We got to put The Beast back in his box, stored the stuffer, and have kielbasa simmering in beer for dinner.

The kielbasa started as all our other sausages, meat and fat and salt and spices ground together, then liquids kneaded in until it looks like it will both stick together and flow through the casing stuffer. The one important difference in this batch was the addition of curing salt to the mix.

We added curing salt due to our desire for smoked kielbasa. It tasted great before smoking, but superlative afterwards. Adding curing salt ensures that nothing untoward grows while held at a low temperature during this process.

We used a combination of applewood and hickory chips. Off to the left you can see some lighter lines where the links touch each other. Ideally, the sausages shouldn’t touch anything which allows the smoke to penetrate all over. The loops of links were too long for the smoker, so I had to bunch them to make them fit. Next year we will be smarter.

The links stayed in the smoker for about 5 hours, but were in smoke for about 4 hours. It took us a while to balance getting the smoke going but not cooking all the fat out of the kielbasa.

Our house smelled like a deli. A really good one.

One of the sites Michael found recommended poaching the kielbasa for 45 minutes at 165°. We aren’t sure if this suppresses undesirable pathogens or just hydrates the sausages.

Every recipe said to shock the sausages in ice water.

Several sites said to hang the sausages in a cool place for a couple of hours. We opened the window in the guest room and left them overnight.

Kielbasa for breakfast!

Kielbasa for dinner!

I hope the house smells like this for days and days. We knew we loved fires. We just didn’t know smoke could be so good.