Cure Pink #1... when is it needed?


 
Matthew

Matthew

TVWBB Pro
I am making some brats and or Smoked cajun sausage this week... Do I need to add any cure to any of this if I am keeping sausage in fridge and smoking and should only take a few hours to get to 155.. I have no issues adding but if I stuff brats and freeze, is a cure needed? Also, if I stuff and then smoke, is a cure needed?
 
What temp are you smoking at? Personally, I'd add cure because you are cutting it close. At 225 you don't need cure.
 
Cure is needed esp at low-ish temperatures in smoking sausages as the skin & smoke combined make it an anaeroob environment..

One of the best books to check is from Stanley Marianski. Most of it is free on the internet.
I copied a little below

"Home Production of Quality Meats and Sausages" by Stanley Marianski, Adam Marianski -

"For those who smoke meats without cures, it will be advisable to smoke them at temperatures well above the danger zone (>160° F, 72° C). Such a product will not be pink but will exhibit a typical grayish color of cooked meat. Adding cure to meats that will be smoked brings many benefits, one of them is preventing the danger of contracting food poisoning, known as botulism. Barbecued meats are smoked at much higher temperatures which eliminates the danger of Clostridium botulinum producing toxins."

Start reading this book for free: https://amzn.eu/6HUANaq
 
Thank you all. I am going to skip the cure on the brats that I am going grill at high temps. And use a #1 for the smoked. Ill
Be smoking around 180 temps. Thxs. That helped.
 
Grinding meat creates massive surface area for bacteria to grow . Everything needs to be cleaned with bleach beforehand, and cleanliness taken while working with the meat etc. The problem with sausage is if you smoke it hot enough to not need the cure...... You've cooked it . Actually you've overcooked it. Brown sausage isn't that appetizing either.

My advice would be add the cure, cold smoke it and don't worry about it.
 
I agree with you Martin
Just left it out of my post. Better be safe than sorry, but nitrite not only provides safety, it changes colour and changes pork into ham.
Try a pork chop, cure for a while, something like overnight, and you get a kassler chop.
I'm metric and I weigh. I would definitely recommend weigh your cure.
It's a lot more accurate than volume measurements
 
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