Sausage Making Yet another beginner - Looking for Hot Italian

Gentlemen (wolfgast, geir, K Kryger and mr nichols)

I have read all of your post on wolfgast's sausage. I recently forayed into grinding up a butt and making some bratwurst using only some prepared spice blend. Result was at very encouraging, although i do think I packed the sausage a little to tight.....

So that being said I sure would like to give two items a try. One is strickly a great hot spicy italian sausage. Dallas stinks for good italian.....and I am used to more of the chicago italian...hopefully K kruger knows of what I spreak of. I like to make my own pizzas and also use in pasta dishes.

Also, I absolutely love a thing they just call a spicy dog that street vendors sell. It doesn't seem to be a polish sausage, and it may be just a little more than a glorified hot dog with red pepper added...but i am just not that good at breaking down flavors. . . . . .

So after all of that I would appreciate any simple recipes for hot italian sausage and a spicy dog that i can use for my starter recipes. Also if you have any bratwurst recipes that are killer.....i seem to lean more towards the nutmeg flavor than johnsville.....maybe i need to add cream and egg like i saw on a youtube....just not sure.

Okay, realize this was rather lengthy but now that I finally bit on getting all my stuff together to make sausage I really want to do more of it this fall. From a personal note...my business falls off so I have lots of time to do stuff. Also, I work in 5 lb batches or smaller because it is just me. Although I have friends that want to try it. I would have no problems doing multiple recipes at the same time. I have ample storage, ample large bowls, etc.

Thanks again.....am a very frequent lurker but don't post a whole lot. . . .and cheers

First of all it is Wolgast! and second i cant give you any tips couse i´m a newbie to in sausage making. Kevin,Geir or jeff can give you the advise you need.

If you read my post,i would grind every thing twice next time for a better texture in the sausage.

If you want italian dogs try this :


2 1/2 pounds lean ground pork butt or leaner cuts if desired
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
1/8 teaspoon dry basil
1/8 teaspoon dry oregano

1/8 teaspoon cracked rosemary
1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1 1/4 teaspoons fennel seed (up to 1 tablespoon if you like dominant fennel flavor)
1/4 cup beef or chicken broth or dry white wine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons Italian (flat leaf) parsley, chopped, (stems removed)
Casings (water packed)*

1. Hand-trim all visible fat from the outside of pork, then cube the meat, removing interior fat as you find it.
2. Coarsely grind the pork and glean then ground meat, picking out gristle, cartilage and veins of fat. Grind one more time.
3. After second grinding, place meat in a large bowl, add dry seasonings and blend by hand to mix thoroughly to ensure it is spread throughout the meat.
4. Add broth or wine and mix again by hand.
5. Stuff by hand or use sausage stuffing attachment on electric meat-grinder
(do NOT use blade in meat-grinder when stuffing).

*Casings should NOT be packed in salt. Get fresh casings from the butcher.

Makes about 20-ounces of sausage, cooked.

Hi Petrman,

I've had good luck with several of the recipes I found here. (Scroll down for the recipes.) So far, I've made the hot Neapolitan, chorizo, andouille and merguez, and have been quite happy with all of them. Of course, I made my own tweaks and additions, but these seem to me a solid basis to start from.

You might try one of the hot links recipes there as well; they seem similar to the spicy dog you described.

Good luck!

I just wonder, Wolgast- what's up with casings in salt? I get my casings from a local butcher, the company has been around for a decade, and I get the casings almost for free. They use salted casings, as the one I buy are taken from their production stock.

As far as I know, the important part is to fill and rinse the casings internally with water, and let them soak for several hours. If you do not do that, the sausages can get sour quite fast, even when frozen.

Oh i just copy/pasted that from another site and i dont really know about the salted casings i got mine from the butcher fresh to.

I just posted becouse D Petrman maby was interested about the spices and what might work together.

I wish i could help you more mr D but my try was not a succses(were a bit grainy inside)

Yes, D, I know what you speak of (both the dearth of decent Italian in Dallas (well, the dearth of a lot of stuff in Dallas) and the sausage.

Give me a little time. I'm prepping for a party for this evening and only took a minute to glance at the board but I'll get back to you.

Geir/Wolgast- Casings are packed in salt to preserve them. Fresh casings have a short shelf life. They'll sour. Salted casings last. They do need to be rinsed and soaked - well, imo; they work best if soaked overnight after rinsing, starting with very warm water and letting it cool while in the fridge. Soaking for some time also makes the casings more supple to work with when filling, more tender after smoking/cooking.

The Chicago-style Italian-style hot sausage can vary a bit but they tend toward rather simple formulations, like this:

2 lbs ground pork butt

1 Tbls Fennel

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp salt

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 tsp granulated garlic or 2 cloves minced fresh garlic, optional

a good splash of cold Italian pinot grigio, optional

a little (1-2 tsp) oregano, optional

Street vendors dogs are largely Vienna brand all-beef hot dogs. You can make them all beef of use a pork-beef blend. They are an emulsified sausage (meaning the mix is well puréed and bound). Emulsified sausages for dogs are made in shee casings or, for a straight sausage (natural casings bend), in cellulose casings. (Cellulose casings don't link well; simply tie them to make links.) In either case the sausages are gently poached to cook through then cooled. They can then be fried or grilled. To grill or fry cellulose-cased sausages remove the casings after the poaching/cooling process; they will then be 'skinless', like Vienna all-beef dogs.

5 lbs ground beef, not less than 25% fat

1.25 cups nonfat dry milk powder

5 tsp salt

6.5 tsp paprika for color, or 5 tsp smoked paprika plus 1.5 tsp paprika, or 6.5 tsp smoked paprika for color and smoke flavor

3 tsp AmesPhos, or a similar phosphate, for moisture retention (this can be optional but adjustments need to be made without)

1 tsp MSG

1 tsp pink salt

1-3 tsp cayenne, to taste

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp ground white pepper

1.5 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp dry mustard powder

.5 tsp ground nutmeg

.5 tsp ground mace

.5 tsp ground celery seed

Mix the dry ingredients together well then sprinkle over the meat, working into the meat as more is sprinkled on. Use all the dry ingredients then mix very well.

Using a food processor, process .75 lbs of mix with 1/4 cup ice water plus 2 ice cubes for 1-2 minutes, till a smooth paste is achieved. Place into a bowl, put in fridge, repeat with the rest of the mix, adding it to the bowl in the fridge.

Stuff into sheep or cellulose casings.

Poach the sausages in very hot, almost simmering water (about 180?), till the internal hits 152?. Remove and cool. Remove casings if you used cellulose. Pack for storage. Poach, fry or grill for service.


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Another version that is uncured, so take necessary precautions (I have not tried this one yet):

6 lbs ground pork butt

4 lbs ground beef, not less than 25% fat

2 cups cold milk

1 cup flour

.5 cups grated onion

10 tsp salt

2 Tbls ground coriander

1 Tbls white sugar

1 Tbls mace

1 Tbls nutmeg

1.5 tsp cayenne

Mix the meats in a large bowl. Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl then mix well into the meat. Emulsify as above using about 1.25 lbs of the mix with .25 cups of the cold milk plus 2 ice cubes. Stuff into sheep casings then poach as above.

Cream is standard in American bratwursts.

5 lbs pork butt, ground through a 1/4 or 3/8 disk

5 lbs veal, ground through the same - or use the equivalent weight of ground turkey made with half thigh meat, half breast

1.5 cups heavy cream

.5 cups whole milk

3 Tbls salt

2 Tbls dextrose

2 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground mace

1 tsp ground coriander

Mix the meats well together then chill in the fridge for a few hours. Mix the cream and milk well with the dry ingredients then mix onto the meat very well. Stuff into 32mm hog casings then fridge several hours or overnight.

To grill, first immerse the sausages in very hot water (bring enough water to a simmer on the stove then remove the pot from the heat; immerse the sausages) for 20 minutes. Remove, drain, pat dry, then grill gently till just cooked through.

I don't know what a spicy dog is, but here are two hot link recipes that I think are pretty good -

Pappa Robert's Louisiana Hot Sausage

20lb pork 80/20
5lb beef chuck
5 tbs black pepper
5 tbs white pepper
7 tbs cayenne pepper
4 tbs gran garlic
10 tbs salt (non iod)
10 tbs paprika
2 tbs sweet basil
5 tsp. ground bay leaf
4 tbs dry parsley flakes
6 tbs cane sugar
1 12oz bottle Dixie Beer

Grind all the meats thru a 3/16 plate
mix all dry ingredients with beer
mix with meat until well distributed
stuff in a 32/34 mm Hog Casing

I like to grill the links 8-10 inch makes the best hot sausage po-boy you ever ate. Serve on french bread dressed add a slice of pepperjack cheese. I get 5.00 a pop at vending events for this. Any leftovers throw in a pot of red beans or jambalaya


Bigwheel's Genuine Texas Hotlinks
(Rev 11/01/04)

6-7 lbs. Boston Butt
1 bottle beer
2 T. coarse ground black pepper
2 T. crushed red pepper
2 T. Cayenne
2 T. Hungarian Paprika
3 T. Morton's Tender Quick
2 T. Whole Mustard Seeds
1/4 cup minced fresh garlic
1 T. granulated garlic
1 T. MSG
1 t. ground bay leaves
1 t. whole anise seeds
1 t. coriander
1 t. ground thyme


Mix all the spices, cure, and garlic into the beer and place in refrigerator while you cut up the meat to fit in the grinder.

Pour the spiced water over the meat and mix well. Run meat and spice mixture through the fine plate and mix again. Stuff into medium hog casings. Smoke or slow grill till they are done. Wrap in a piece of bread and slap on the mustard heavy.

Bob Wills music and Lone Star Beer on the side.

I remember my dad teaching the owner of the only Italian restaurant in Knoxville how to make real italian sausage...as he knew it. Kevin is spot on (no garlic or oregano in my dads recipe). That old recipe is in a 1950's vintage cookbook I'll try to run down.

Here you go.

25 lbs. coarse ground pork
1 1/2 cups crushed fennel seeds
1/2 cup salt
1 cup paprika
3 tablespoons black pepper
3 tablespoons crushed red pepper

Thanks for the recipes. Wolgast...sorry, my last name is Petr, first name is Dave. more common in europe than america and it always gets butchered.

Mr. Kruger, I really appreciate the thoughtfullness that you put in your replies on my request.....for sure I am going to do the italian, bratwurst and the dog recipes........I will post the pics and the process when i do them.

Steve, thank you as well...i love old recipes...

John, thanks as well....the hot sausage recipe looks pretty interesting....and I like earl campells hot links.....

So, the only thing i need is for pork to go on sale! And making some home brew too.......going to be a busy boy come fall!

Thanks again all....i really appreciate the responses and these are all getting catologue in my recipe file.....

Cheers