Post by azslim on May 25, 2007 22:40:03 GMT -5
Not sure if anyone is interested but I thought I would share these. I have posted them on several boards over a few years and while my methods could stand updating as I have upgraded my gear the recipes are still valid.
If you have a big grinder then there is no need to double grind with small then large plates. That is the technique I used when I was using a counter-top grinder and using the 2nd grind as a way to mix spices better. If you are using a 1/2 hp or better then use whatever plate the recipe calls for.
Here are some recipes I have posted on other boards. Have also changed my technique some from when I originally wrote this. If I plan on double grinding I use the 1/4" plate first, then the 3/8" plate. I also chop my meat into strips 1" x 2"or 3", mix in the spices & liquid, then throw into the grinder. Cuts down on handling the meat. Recipes are from the book "Bruce Aidell's Complete Sausage Book" - ISBN # 1-58008-159-2. Published by Ten Speed Press - www.tenspeed.com and available at Barnes & Noble or Border's Books.
I usually use 2/3 wild meat, 1/3 clean pork, (book calls for pork butt however sirloin is leaner & no bones), then whatever fat the recipe calls for, and sometimes I scrimp on that because my family doesn't handle fat that well. The key is to keep things cool so the fat doesn't start melting and handle as little as possible. I have a couple stainless steel bowls I use and mix/knead with a potato masher or big wooden spoon before the 2nd grind. I use the 1/4 inch plate first then 3/8 plate most times. If you think the meat is getting warm then put in the icebox and have a beer. When the beer is done the meat should be cooled down.
oh - beer works for the liquid also, but different brands add different flavors so use a little at first so you don't spoil a whole batch. Try a teaspoon in a patty, cook it and go from there.
My latest change is to mix 50/50 with ground pork from Costco – sure cuts down on grinding & handling time. If you do this 2 grinds is sufficient to mix everything. I also cut my meat into small chunks and mix in spices before grinding, once again cuts down on handling time and gets a real good mix of spices throughout.
Also, I make grind packs when I butcher. Put aside 1.5 - 3 lb packs and when I get the urge I'll whip up a batch. Having made 80 - 100 lbs at a time, couple day process for me & my little counter-top grinder, I find this a good alternative especially since all the recipes in the book are for 2 - 5 lb batches.
Chicken & Apple Sausage - I like stuffed, like bratwurst - Wife and girls like bulk for breakfast w/pancakes or french toast & syrup. I tried this recipe with mtn lion and it was just okay, is a lot better with birds - chicken, turkey (white meat) or quail.
1 cup apple cider
3 1/2 lbs chicken - book says thigh's with skin, but I usually grab breasts, less work and better meat
3 oz dried apples
4 tspns kosher salt
2 tspns freshly ground black pepper
2 tspns dried sage
1/4 tspn ground ginger
1/8 tspn ground cinnamon
1/8 tspn ground nutmeg
1 chicken bullion cube dissolved in 2 tblspns boiling water
boil cider down to syrup, about 2 - 3 tblspns, cool & reserve (or use frozen concentrate, easier and quicker because I am lazy). Grind meat with 3/8 plate, mix in spices and liquids and knead together well, then I grind again thru 1/4 inch plate to get good mix. Cook small patty and decide if you want to add anything else. I have started making this with ground turkey from Costco. Makes good sausage and no grinding involved.
Hunter Sausage - I like to make hash with this one, mix in potatoes and maybe scramble an egg or 2. Book stuffs and makes links, good with deer, elk & javelina.
1 1/2 lbs game
1/2 lbs pork butt
1 lb smoked bacon - also is good with maple flavored bacon too.
1/2 cup cold water
1 tblspn whole mustard seeds
2 tspns minced garlic
2 tspns coarsely ground black pepper
2 tspns sweet Hungarian paprika
2 tspns dried mustard
1 tspn kosher salt
1 tspn ground coriander
1 tspn freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tspn ground ginger
grind meat/bacon together, mix in spices/water and knead together, then grind again. Cook small patty and decide if needs anything.
Italian Sweet Fennel - is real good in spagetti sauce. Good with deer, elk, and javelina. I have a bag of these spices mixed up with dried garlic instead of fresh, makes instant italian. I add a couple spoonfuls of the spice into a lb of burger while it is cooking, then pour in whatever sauce I have, Ragu, etc. Makes cheap sauce taste expensive.
2 lbs game
1 lb pork butt
3/4 lb pork fat
1/2 cup dry red wine
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tblspns fennel seeds
1 tblspn freshly ground black pepper
4 tspns kosher salt
1 tspn dried oregano
1/8 tspn gound allspice
grind meat/fat together, mix in spices/water and knead together, then grind again. Cook small patty and decide if needs anything.
Venison Sausage - I didn't have any brandy so I used Maker's Mark bourbon, an extra tblspn or 2 wouldn't have hurt either....
1 1/2 lbs venison or elk
1 lb pork butt
3/4 lb pork fat
1/2 lb bacon
3 tblspns dry red wine
2 tblspns brandy - (and a shot for the sausage maker)
4 tspns kosher salt
2 tspns coarsely ground black pepper
2 tspns minced juniper berries - I bought a jar, but you can get same thing off of the trees there - is no difference
1 tspn minced garlic
1 tspn minced shallots have also used diced green onions.
1 tspn fresh rosemary or 1/2 tspn dried.
cut meat, fat, bacon into 2 inch pieces and mix in lg bowl with spices & liquid, marinate overnight. Grind twice, mixing in any juices from the bowl. I only marinated 5 hrs first time I made this, kids came back for seconds so guess it was okay.
Smoked Country Sausage - makes wonderful biscuit and gravy meat, is wife & girls 2nd favorite behind chicken & apple. Good with deer, elk, mtn lion & javelina. If you use honey cook on low heat so the honey doesn't burn.
1 1/2 lbs game meat
1 lb clean pork
3/4 lb pork back fat
1 tblspn brown sugar or how we like it 3+ tblspns desert honey
1 tblspn kosher salt
1 tblspn paprika
2 tspn red pepper flakes (cut back if not into spicey stuff - like my daughters)
1 tspn ground sage
1 tspn dried tyme
pinch of allspice
1/2 cup cold water (may use little less based on moisture in meat) - is also good to use 1/4+ cup water & couple few tblspns brandy or sweet whiskey - wild turkey, southern comfort, etc. Once again it is some for the meat and some for the maker......
grind meat & fat together into bowl, then mix in all spices/water, knead together and then grind again, depending on how well things mixed you can grind a 3rd time. The original recipe called for brown sugar, but after using honey we won't use sugar anymore. I triple grind my sausage for biscuits and gravy so it breaks up good in the gravy.
Chorizo - this is what I turn my javelina into, yum, yum. Have used deer & elk too. I have also made this using a 50/50 mix of game and 70/30 hamburger, gives it a different flavor. Different vinegars add different flavors also. I have used rice wine & red raspberry vinegar and been pleased with the results.
1 lb game
1/2 lb pork butt
1/2 lb pork fat
1 bunch (4 to 6 oz) fresh cilantro, chopped, about 1 cup
1 fresh serrano or jalapeno or other hot pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tblspn New Mexico or other dried chile powder
1 tblspn sweet Hungarian paprika
2 tspns kosher salt
1 1/2 tspn whole cumin seeds
1 tspn ground cumin
1/2 tspn coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 tspn ground cayenne pepper
1/4 tspn ground coriander
If you want to add more bite leave the seeds in the peppers. I keep a bag of all these spices mixed, minus fresh peppers & cilantro, that I use for all my mexican food. Throw in a couple spoonfuls with a lb of burger and you have taco meat, thin slice a roast or chicken breasts and you have fajita's. I use dried jalapeno's & dried cilantro in my spice baggie.
Iowa Farm Sausage
Here is a recipe I really like. Have used deer, elk, javelina and mtn lion.
2 1/4 lb pork butt or sirloin (I use 1 1/4 lb game and 1 lb pork)
3/4 lb pork fat
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tblspn kosher salt
2 tspns ground sage
1 tspn dried tyme
1 tspn dried basil
1 tspn red pepper flakes
1 tspn coursely ground black pepper
1 tspn ginger
1/2 tspn minced garlic
1/4 cup water
I dice my meat into small chunks, add the spices & liquid and mix good then run through the grinder twice. Book says to grind first then mix spices in, your choice here, I like double grinds and my way cuts down on handling time. Also, if you can get ground pork I mix 50/50 game to pork, for this recipe I would use 1.5 lbs game to 1.5 lbs ground pork. I grind them together so the meat mixes good, chunk of game and chunk of ground pork with the spices already mixed in.
Tonight supper was some brats I made out of my javelina. Came out pretty good. Here is the recipe.
1.5 lbs game
1.5 lbs fatty pork butt
1 T kosher salt
1 T coursely ground black pepper
1 T coursely ground mustard seed
2 t minced garlic (I like fresh but have used dried also)
2 t sugar
1 t ground mace
1 t dried sage
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1/2 cup water
I dice my meat up into 2" chunks, mix in the spices and water and run thru the grinder with the 3/8" plate. This mixes things pretty good, then I may grind again, depends on how well the mix looks. I stuff into hog casings, tie into 4" links then hang them in my meat locker (old refrigerator on the back porch) to let the casings dry.
Green Chile
Start with 2 lbs of lean game, a big can of diced tomato's, a big can of whole green chili's that I slice in 1/4" thick slices, 1 large sweet onion diced, 4 fresh jalepeno's - 2 seeded and 2 with the seeds left in, 2 cloves of garlic diced fine, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper, spicey Mrs Dash and a big blast of sweet hungarian paprika to bring out and blend all the other flavors. Don't know how much water, enough to cover the ingredients when you start and add a little more as time goes by. Cook in a crockpot over night and eat with grated cheese and tortilla for sopping the juice. If you have too much liquid then cook for a while with the lid off so the excess can steam out.
For those of you that can't take much spicey hot, the seeds and white membrane of a pepper contain the heat. If you take out the seeds and membrane the flavor of the pepper comes out without all the heat. My daughters can't take too much is why I seed and clean 2 of the peppers. Be warned, the longer something with fresh peppers ages the hotter it gets. If you don't have access to fresh hot peppers then canned will work.
Tried a new one tonight folks. I made Green Chili Enchilada's and I believe I will have to make them again.
Started with the backstraps from my javelina braised in olive oil with Mrs Dash, seasoning salt & seasoning pepper. Then dumped in 2 small cans of diced green chiles, 2 cans of diced tomato's, one whole head of garlic - about 8 cloves - sliced about 1/8" thick, one diced onion, a sprinkling of dried jalapeno's because I didn't have any fresh ones and 4 crushed chiltepin's. The chiltepins are little tiny peppers that grow wild in Mexico and have a great flavor and lots of heat. I let this cook in the crockpot for 6 hours then spooned the big chunks into tortilla's, added some diced onion, diced black olives and shredded cheese and rolled them up and stuck em in the baking dish. Then spooned some more green chili over them to get everything wet, added another sprinkling of diced onions, olives and shredded cheese and baked in the oven for 20 mins at 325. Well worth the time fellers.......
Cooking Gear Review
Typed this up on a local board and thought some of you may appreciate it.
As you all know I DO NOT eat beans & weenies when I am out and about - that crap is for the boy scouts. Same for freeze dried food unless it is a lengthy backpacking trip. I have 2 items that I don't leave home without.
1. The Outback Oven. This is a backpacking oven that also doubles as your 10" frying pan. I have baked cookies, cakes, brownies, bread, roasts, meatloaf, biscuits, breadsticks - well you get the idea. Anything you bake at home you can bake in this. Mine ran about $60 back in 99 from REI and I have 2 of them. You need to get a gripper handle also. You will need a burner for this, it won't work on a Coleman stove, but will work on the single Coleman burner you screw onto a 1lb propane tank.
2. GSI Pressure Cooker. I have the 3.5 qt model I think, it is the smaller one. It ran around $65 if I remember right, got it back in 2001. This allows me to pack dried beans, rice, barley, etc so you don't have so many canned goods. I have made stews, soups, beans, shredded meat taco's, shredded meat BBQ, quail and rice and many other meals. Once again anything you can cook at home with a pressure cooker you can do on this. It will work on the Coleman stove, in fact I prefer that over my backpacking burners because the fuel is cheaper. I really like this because when I hit camp to eat around 11:00 or so I will throw together supper, let it cook under pressure from 20 to 30 minutes depending on what it is, then turn off the burner and go back out. When I get back to camp at dark supper is ready, all I have to do is warm it up.
These 2 items really open up the menu and once you get the hang of them you can put out some great chow.
Here are some recipe's I made up this last week cooking at a buffalo hunting camp.
Stew - one pork tenderloin from Costco cubed and braised in olive oil, 1 big potato diced in 1/2" chunks, 1 celery stalk diced, 1/2 onion diced, maybe 1/2 cup of a mixture of wild rice and barley, pinch of ground bay leaf, big dash of basil, bigger dash of dried mustard, some minced garlic, seasoning salt, lemon pepper, Mrs Dash, light sprinke of dried jalapeno's and 2 bullion cubes - either beef or chicken depending on what I have and a blast of paprika to blend all the spices together. Once the meat is braised then add the rest of the ingredients and water up to the handle rivets in the side of the pot. Cook under pressure for about 20 to 25 minutes then turn off the burner and let the residual heat finish the cooking. When the pressure is all gone check out your stew, if it is too thin then fire up the burner and simmer with the lid off to steam out some liquid, too thick then add a little water. Bake up some Pilsbury biscuits in the OB oven to serve with. They only take about 15 mins to bake. Watch the thermostat on the oven and once it hits the B on BAKE then flip the biscuits. If you just leave them then the bottom gets too done. This fed 7 of us.
Shredded pork taco's - used the other pork tenderloin, they come 2 tl's to a pack and you get 2 packs. Diced up the tl and braised in olive oil, threw in the other 1/2 of onion diced, some minced garlic, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper & Mrs Dash. Once all this was braised I dumped in a can of Rotel Chili Fixings, it has the diced tomato's and peppers along with a little seasoning, and a can and 1/2 of water. Cook under pressure for about 20 to 25 minutes, turn off the burner and let residual heat do the rest. Once all the pressure is gone take off the lid and steam out some of the water, your choice how much liquid you leave in the meat and shred the meat with a fork. Serve with flour tortilla's, shredded cheese, diced onions, diced tomato's, salsa and lettuce from a ready-made salad pack. I heat up the tortilla's on the burner. This fed 5 of us.
Beans, rice, barley & cornbread - the amount depends on how many people I am feeding. This recipe fed 5 of us - 3/4 cup pinto beans, 3/4 cup black beans, 1/2 cup wild rice & barley. Soak the beans for several hours - this takes out some of the farts. I also clean my dried beans and throw out any busted ones, stems, dirt chunks, etc. Add the beans, rice, barley, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper, Mrs Dash, sprinkling of dried jalapeno's, minced onion, minced garlic, some left-over pork loin I cooked over fire on the first night of camp, filled with water to the rivets and poured just a touch of olive oil in. The olive oil keeps the beans from foaming up and plugging the pressure outlet. Then cook under pressure for 20 minutes, turn off the burner and let residual heat do the rest. Pull the lid and see if you need to add a little more water as the ingredients soak up a lot. Before serving bake up Marie Calander's cornbread. One of the cans fills an OB oven and makes a 10" circle about 3" thick. You can also add a small can of green chiles or corn to the mix before baking. I didn't bake the cornbread this time out because I had a bunch of Biskwik biscuits already made.
OB oven recipe's
Enchilada's - cook up your meat, either burger or diced steak with onions, garlic, a small can of green chiles and some dried jalapeno's. Pour a little enchilada sauce in the meat mixture when it is done, then wet a tortilla (corn or flour, your choice) - I pour some sauce on one of my tin plates and just flop the tortilla on both sides - spoon in some meat mixture, sprinkle on some shredded cheese, roll and stick in the frying pan. Repeat until the pan is full, pour the rest of the sauce over the enchilada's, sprinkle on some shredded cheese and diced onions, bake about 20 mins with the thermostat between the A & K of BAKE, you are only cooking the tortilla's. I like to throw on some diced raw onion before eating too.
Roast - small roast from deer or elk, the eye-of-round from an elk works great. Braise the meat in oil/butter/whatever, when that is done slice up a potato and onion and lay around the roast, add a cup or so of water and a little beef bullion. The amount of water varies on how much stuff you have in the pan, I try and keep it about 1/2" below the top so it doesn't boil over and make a mess. Then bake for about 45 mins to 1 hr, depends on the size of the roast. Keep the thermostat between the A & K. I squish up my taters on the plate and spoon over the juice for gravy.
Pie - buy some ready made pie crusts, I use Pilsbury and a can of filler - apple, cherry, raspberry. Put the bottom crust down in the oven, dump in your filling and cover with the top crust pinching the edges together. Bake with a higher heat, I like the thermostat up around the E of BAKE and crack the top of the oven by sliding the lid to the side once the oven starts heating up. Bake according to the instructions on the crust, about 45 mins if I remember right. Haven't made this one in a while so don't remember off the top of my head.
Fresh bread - this works great on a backpack trip. Pack in a bread machine box of ingredients, mix according to instructions, put in the tent with windows closed to allow the yeast to rise, stick in the oven and bake, crack the lid to brown the top. You can make a round loaf or rolls, whatever tickles your fancy. I also cook the Pilsbury biscuits and breadrolls a lot, just remember to flip them at about the halfway mark. I do this when the thermostat hits the B on BAKE.
Cinnamon Rolls - any of the ready-made ones work, just bring up to heat slowly and crack the lid from the get-go to get the tops browned. Cover with the glaze provided and wash down with ice cold milk.
Another one
Several quail, breasts or whole birds, a cup of Minute Rice, a couple of chicken bullion cubes, a little S&P and Mrs Dash, water according to Minute Rice instructions, varies depending on how much rice but is a 1 to 1 ratio, ie 1 cup rice/1 cup water, 1/2 cup rice to 1/2 cup water. Bake for about 25 to 30 mins and sit down and eat. I usually have this for lunch on my quail hunts, shoot 3 birds and sit right down and cook them up. The most I have done is 9 birds and a cup of rice, fed 3 of us. I tried using the Ben's Ready Cooked rice once out with Creed, birds came out too dry & tough - about like jerky - I won't make that mistake again. I have also done this with pheasant breasts at the Youth Pheasant Hunt. Made my daughter some and boy were all the people at the clubhouse envious, she had to eat with a gun beside her.....
If you have a big grinder then there is no need to double grind with small then large plates. That is the technique I used when I was using a counter-top grinder and using the 2nd grind as a way to mix spices better. If you are using a 1/2 hp or better then use whatever plate the recipe calls for.
Here are some recipes I have posted on other boards. Have also changed my technique some from when I originally wrote this. If I plan on double grinding I use the 1/4" plate first, then the 3/8" plate. I also chop my meat into strips 1" x 2"or 3", mix in the spices & liquid, then throw into the grinder. Cuts down on handling the meat. Recipes are from the book "Bruce Aidell's Complete Sausage Book" - ISBN # 1-58008-159-2. Published by Ten Speed Press - www.tenspeed.com and available at Barnes & Noble or Border's Books.
I usually use 2/3 wild meat, 1/3 clean pork, (book calls for pork butt however sirloin is leaner & no bones), then whatever fat the recipe calls for, and sometimes I scrimp on that because my family doesn't handle fat that well. The key is to keep things cool so the fat doesn't start melting and handle as little as possible. I have a couple stainless steel bowls I use and mix/knead with a potato masher or big wooden spoon before the 2nd grind. I use the 1/4 inch plate first then 3/8 plate most times. If you think the meat is getting warm then put in the icebox and have a beer. When the beer is done the meat should be cooled down.
oh - beer works for the liquid also, but different brands add different flavors so use a little at first so you don't spoil a whole batch. Try a teaspoon in a patty, cook it and go from there.
My latest change is to mix 50/50 with ground pork from Costco – sure cuts down on grinding & handling time. If you do this 2 grinds is sufficient to mix everything. I also cut my meat into small chunks and mix in spices before grinding, once again cuts down on handling time and gets a real good mix of spices throughout.
Also, I make grind packs when I butcher. Put aside 1.5 - 3 lb packs and when I get the urge I'll whip up a batch. Having made 80 - 100 lbs at a time, couple day process for me & my little counter-top grinder, I find this a good alternative especially since all the recipes in the book are for 2 - 5 lb batches.
Chicken & Apple Sausage - I like stuffed, like bratwurst - Wife and girls like bulk for breakfast w/pancakes or french toast & syrup. I tried this recipe with mtn lion and it was just okay, is a lot better with birds - chicken, turkey (white meat) or quail.
1 cup apple cider
3 1/2 lbs chicken - book says thigh's with skin, but I usually grab breasts, less work and better meat
3 oz dried apples
4 tspns kosher salt
2 tspns freshly ground black pepper
2 tspns dried sage
1/4 tspn ground ginger
1/8 tspn ground cinnamon
1/8 tspn ground nutmeg
1 chicken bullion cube dissolved in 2 tblspns boiling water
boil cider down to syrup, about 2 - 3 tblspns, cool & reserve (or use frozen concentrate, easier and quicker because I am lazy). Grind meat with 3/8 plate, mix in spices and liquids and knead together well, then I grind again thru 1/4 inch plate to get good mix. Cook small patty and decide if you want to add anything else. I have started making this with ground turkey from Costco. Makes good sausage and no grinding involved.
Hunter Sausage - I like to make hash with this one, mix in potatoes and maybe scramble an egg or 2. Book stuffs and makes links, good with deer, elk & javelina.
1 1/2 lbs game
1/2 lbs pork butt
1 lb smoked bacon - also is good with maple flavored bacon too.
1/2 cup cold water
1 tblspn whole mustard seeds
2 tspns minced garlic
2 tspns coarsely ground black pepper
2 tspns sweet Hungarian paprika
2 tspns dried mustard
1 tspn kosher salt
1 tspn ground coriander
1 tspn freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tspn ground ginger
grind meat/bacon together, mix in spices/water and knead together, then grind again. Cook small patty and decide if needs anything.
Italian Sweet Fennel - is real good in spagetti sauce. Good with deer, elk, and javelina. I have a bag of these spices mixed up with dried garlic instead of fresh, makes instant italian. I add a couple spoonfuls of the spice into a lb of burger while it is cooking, then pour in whatever sauce I have, Ragu, etc. Makes cheap sauce taste expensive.
2 lbs game
1 lb pork butt
3/4 lb pork fat
1/2 cup dry red wine
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tblspns fennel seeds
1 tblspn freshly ground black pepper
4 tspns kosher salt
1 tspn dried oregano
1/8 tspn gound allspice
grind meat/fat together, mix in spices/water and knead together, then grind again. Cook small patty and decide if needs anything.
Venison Sausage - I didn't have any brandy so I used Maker's Mark bourbon, an extra tblspn or 2 wouldn't have hurt either....
1 1/2 lbs venison or elk
1 lb pork butt
3/4 lb pork fat
1/2 lb bacon
3 tblspns dry red wine
2 tblspns brandy - (and a shot for the sausage maker)
4 tspns kosher salt
2 tspns coarsely ground black pepper
2 tspns minced juniper berries - I bought a jar, but you can get same thing off of the trees there - is no difference
1 tspn minced garlic
1 tspn minced shallots have also used diced green onions.
1 tspn fresh rosemary or 1/2 tspn dried.
cut meat, fat, bacon into 2 inch pieces and mix in lg bowl with spices & liquid, marinate overnight. Grind twice, mixing in any juices from the bowl. I only marinated 5 hrs first time I made this, kids came back for seconds so guess it was okay.
Smoked Country Sausage - makes wonderful biscuit and gravy meat, is wife & girls 2nd favorite behind chicken & apple. Good with deer, elk, mtn lion & javelina. If you use honey cook on low heat so the honey doesn't burn.
1 1/2 lbs game meat
1 lb clean pork
3/4 lb pork back fat
1 tblspn brown sugar or how we like it 3+ tblspns desert honey
1 tblspn kosher salt
1 tblspn paprika
2 tspn red pepper flakes (cut back if not into spicey stuff - like my daughters)
1 tspn ground sage
1 tspn dried tyme
pinch of allspice
1/2 cup cold water (may use little less based on moisture in meat) - is also good to use 1/4+ cup water & couple few tblspns brandy or sweet whiskey - wild turkey, southern comfort, etc. Once again it is some for the meat and some for the maker......
grind meat & fat together into bowl, then mix in all spices/water, knead together and then grind again, depending on how well things mixed you can grind a 3rd time. The original recipe called for brown sugar, but after using honey we won't use sugar anymore. I triple grind my sausage for biscuits and gravy so it breaks up good in the gravy.
Chorizo - this is what I turn my javelina into, yum, yum. Have used deer & elk too. I have also made this using a 50/50 mix of game and 70/30 hamburger, gives it a different flavor. Different vinegars add different flavors also. I have used rice wine & red raspberry vinegar and been pleased with the results.
1 lb game
1/2 lb pork butt
1/2 lb pork fat
1 bunch (4 to 6 oz) fresh cilantro, chopped, about 1 cup
1 fresh serrano or jalapeno or other hot pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tblspn New Mexico or other dried chile powder
1 tblspn sweet Hungarian paprika
2 tspns kosher salt
1 1/2 tspn whole cumin seeds
1 tspn ground cumin
1/2 tspn coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 tspn ground cayenne pepper
1/4 tspn ground coriander
If you want to add more bite leave the seeds in the peppers. I keep a bag of all these spices mixed, minus fresh peppers & cilantro, that I use for all my mexican food. Throw in a couple spoonfuls with a lb of burger and you have taco meat, thin slice a roast or chicken breasts and you have fajita's. I use dried jalapeno's & dried cilantro in my spice baggie.
Iowa Farm Sausage
Here is a recipe I really like. Have used deer, elk, javelina and mtn lion.
2 1/4 lb pork butt or sirloin (I use 1 1/4 lb game and 1 lb pork)
3/4 lb pork fat
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tblspn kosher salt
2 tspns ground sage
1 tspn dried tyme
1 tspn dried basil
1 tspn red pepper flakes
1 tspn coursely ground black pepper
1 tspn ginger
1/2 tspn minced garlic
1/4 cup water
I dice my meat into small chunks, add the spices & liquid and mix good then run through the grinder twice. Book says to grind first then mix spices in, your choice here, I like double grinds and my way cuts down on handling time. Also, if you can get ground pork I mix 50/50 game to pork, for this recipe I would use 1.5 lbs game to 1.5 lbs ground pork. I grind them together so the meat mixes good, chunk of game and chunk of ground pork with the spices already mixed in.
Tonight supper was some brats I made out of my javelina. Came out pretty good. Here is the recipe.
1.5 lbs game
1.5 lbs fatty pork butt
1 T kosher salt
1 T coursely ground black pepper
1 T coursely ground mustard seed
2 t minced garlic (I like fresh but have used dried also)
2 t sugar
1 t ground mace
1 t dried sage
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1/2 cup water
I dice my meat up into 2" chunks, mix in the spices and water and run thru the grinder with the 3/8" plate. This mixes things pretty good, then I may grind again, depends on how well the mix looks. I stuff into hog casings, tie into 4" links then hang them in my meat locker (old refrigerator on the back porch) to let the casings dry.
Green Chile
Start with 2 lbs of lean game, a big can of diced tomato's, a big can of whole green chili's that I slice in 1/4" thick slices, 1 large sweet onion diced, 4 fresh jalepeno's - 2 seeded and 2 with the seeds left in, 2 cloves of garlic diced fine, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper, spicey Mrs Dash and a big blast of sweet hungarian paprika to bring out and blend all the other flavors. Don't know how much water, enough to cover the ingredients when you start and add a little more as time goes by. Cook in a crockpot over night and eat with grated cheese and tortilla for sopping the juice. If you have too much liquid then cook for a while with the lid off so the excess can steam out.
For those of you that can't take much spicey hot, the seeds and white membrane of a pepper contain the heat. If you take out the seeds and membrane the flavor of the pepper comes out without all the heat. My daughters can't take too much is why I seed and clean 2 of the peppers. Be warned, the longer something with fresh peppers ages the hotter it gets. If you don't have access to fresh hot peppers then canned will work.
Tried a new one tonight folks. I made Green Chili Enchilada's and I believe I will have to make them again.
Started with the backstraps from my javelina braised in olive oil with Mrs Dash, seasoning salt & seasoning pepper. Then dumped in 2 small cans of diced green chiles, 2 cans of diced tomato's, one whole head of garlic - about 8 cloves - sliced about 1/8" thick, one diced onion, a sprinkling of dried jalapeno's because I didn't have any fresh ones and 4 crushed chiltepin's. The chiltepins are little tiny peppers that grow wild in Mexico and have a great flavor and lots of heat. I let this cook in the crockpot for 6 hours then spooned the big chunks into tortilla's, added some diced onion, diced black olives and shredded cheese and rolled them up and stuck em in the baking dish. Then spooned some more green chili over them to get everything wet, added another sprinkling of diced onions, olives and shredded cheese and baked in the oven for 20 mins at 325. Well worth the time fellers.......
Cooking Gear Review
Typed this up on a local board and thought some of you may appreciate it.
As you all know I DO NOT eat beans & weenies when I am out and about - that crap is for the boy scouts. Same for freeze dried food unless it is a lengthy backpacking trip. I have 2 items that I don't leave home without.
1. The Outback Oven. This is a backpacking oven that also doubles as your 10" frying pan. I have baked cookies, cakes, brownies, bread, roasts, meatloaf, biscuits, breadsticks - well you get the idea. Anything you bake at home you can bake in this. Mine ran about $60 back in 99 from REI and I have 2 of them. You need to get a gripper handle also. You will need a burner for this, it won't work on a Coleman stove, but will work on the single Coleman burner you screw onto a 1lb propane tank.
2. GSI Pressure Cooker. I have the 3.5 qt model I think, it is the smaller one. It ran around $65 if I remember right, got it back in 2001. This allows me to pack dried beans, rice, barley, etc so you don't have so many canned goods. I have made stews, soups, beans, shredded meat taco's, shredded meat BBQ, quail and rice and many other meals. Once again anything you can cook at home with a pressure cooker you can do on this. It will work on the Coleman stove, in fact I prefer that over my backpacking burners because the fuel is cheaper. I really like this because when I hit camp to eat around 11:00 or so I will throw together supper, let it cook under pressure from 20 to 30 minutes depending on what it is, then turn off the burner and go back out. When I get back to camp at dark supper is ready, all I have to do is warm it up.
These 2 items really open up the menu and once you get the hang of them you can put out some great chow.
Here are some recipe's I made up this last week cooking at a buffalo hunting camp.
Stew - one pork tenderloin from Costco cubed and braised in olive oil, 1 big potato diced in 1/2" chunks, 1 celery stalk diced, 1/2 onion diced, maybe 1/2 cup of a mixture of wild rice and barley, pinch of ground bay leaf, big dash of basil, bigger dash of dried mustard, some minced garlic, seasoning salt, lemon pepper, Mrs Dash, light sprinke of dried jalapeno's and 2 bullion cubes - either beef or chicken depending on what I have and a blast of paprika to blend all the spices together. Once the meat is braised then add the rest of the ingredients and water up to the handle rivets in the side of the pot. Cook under pressure for about 20 to 25 minutes then turn off the burner and let the residual heat finish the cooking. When the pressure is all gone check out your stew, if it is too thin then fire up the burner and simmer with the lid off to steam out some liquid, too thick then add a little water. Bake up some Pilsbury biscuits in the OB oven to serve with. They only take about 15 mins to bake. Watch the thermostat on the oven and once it hits the B on BAKE then flip the biscuits. If you just leave them then the bottom gets too done. This fed 7 of us.
Shredded pork taco's - used the other pork tenderloin, they come 2 tl's to a pack and you get 2 packs. Diced up the tl and braised in olive oil, threw in the other 1/2 of onion diced, some minced garlic, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper & Mrs Dash. Once all this was braised I dumped in a can of Rotel Chili Fixings, it has the diced tomato's and peppers along with a little seasoning, and a can and 1/2 of water. Cook under pressure for about 20 to 25 minutes, turn off the burner and let residual heat do the rest. Once all the pressure is gone take off the lid and steam out some of the water, your choice how much liquid you leave in the meat and shred the meat with a fork. Serve with flour tortilla's, shredded cheese, diced onions, diced tomato's, salsa and lettuce from a ready-made salad pack. I heat up the tortilla's on the burner. This fed 5 of us.
Beans, rice, barley & cornbread - the amount depends on how many people I am feeding. This recipe fed 5 of us - 3/4 cup pinto beans, 3/4 cup black beans, 1/2 cup wild rice & barley. Soak the beans for several hours - this takes out some of the farts. I also clean my dried beans and throw out any busted ones, stems, dirt chunks, etc. Add the beans, rice, barley, seasoning salt, seasoning pepper, Mrs Dash, sprinkling of dried jalapeno's, minced onion, minced garlic, some left-over pork loin I cooked over fire on the first night of camp, filled with water to the rivets and poured just a touch of olive oil in. The olive oil keeps the beans from foaming up and plugging the pressure outlet. Then cook under pressure for 20 minutes, turn off the burner and let residual heat do the rest. Pull the lid and see if you need to add a little more water as the ingredients soak up a lot. Before serving bake up Marie Calander's cornbread. One of the cans fills an OB oven and makes a 10" circle about 3" thick. You can also add a small can of green chiles or corn to the mix before baking. I didn't bake the cornbread this time out because I had a bunch of Biskwik biscuits already made.
OB oven recipe's
Enchilada's - cook up your meat, either burger or diced steak with onions, garlic, a small can of green chiles and some dried jalapeno's. Pour a little enchilada sauce in the meat mixture when it is done, then wet a tortilla (corn or flour, your choice) - I pour some sauce on one of my tin plates and just flop the tortilla on both sides - spoon in some meat mixture, sprinkle on some shredded cheese, roll and stick in the frying pan. Repeat until the pan is full, pour the rest of the sauce over the enchilada's, sprinkle on some shredded cheese and diced onions, bake about 20 mins with the thermostat between the A & K of BAKE, you are only cooking the tortilla's. I like to throw on some diced raw onion before eating too.
Roast - small roast from deer or elk, the eye-of-round from an elk works great. Braise the meat in oil/butter/whatever, when that is done slice up a potato and onion and lay around the roast, add a cup or so of water and a little beef bullion. The amount of water varies on how much stuff you have in the pan, I try and keep it about 1/2" below the top so it doesn't boil over and make a mess. Then bake for about 45 mins to 1 hr, depends on the size of the roast. Keep the thermostat between the A & K. I squish up my taters on the plate and spoon over the juice for gravy.
Pie - buy some ready made pie crusts, I use Pilsbury and a can of filler - apple, cherry, raspberry. Put the bottom crust down in the oven, dump in your filling and cover with the top crust pinching the edges together. Bake with a higher heat, I like the thermostat up around the E of BAKE and crack the top of the oven by sliding the lid to the side once the oven starts heating up. Bake according to the instructions on the crust, about 45 mins if I remember right. Haven't made this one in a while so don't remember off the top of my head.
Fresh bread - this works great on a backpack trip. Pack in a bread machine box of ingredients, mix according to instructions, put in the tent with windows closed to allow the yeast to rise, stick in the oven and bake, crack the lid to brown the top. You can make a round loaf or rolls, whatever tickles your fancy. I also cook the Pilsbury biscuits and breadrolls a lot, just remember to flip them at about the halfway mark. I do this when the thermostat hits the B on BAKE.
Cinnamon Rolls - any of the ready-made ones work, just bring up to heat slowly and crack the lid from the get-go to get the tops browned. Cover with the glaze provided and wash down with ice cold milk.
Another one
Several quail, breasts or whole birds, a cup of Minute Rice, a couple of chicken bullion cubes, a little S&P and Mrs Dash, water according to Minute Rice instructions, varies depending on how much rice but is a 1 to 1 ratio, ie 1 cup rice/1 cup water, 1/2 cup rice to 1/2 cup water. Bake for about 25 to 30 mins and sit down and eat. I usually have this for lunch on my quail hunts, shoot 3 birds and sit right down and cook them up. The most I have done is 9 birds and a cup of rice, fed 3 of us. I tried using the Ben's Ready Cooked rice once out with Creed, birds came out too dry & tough - about like jerky - I won't make that mistake again. I have also done this with pheasant breasts at the Youth Pheasant Hunt. Made my daughter some and boy were all the people at the clubhouse envious, she had to eat with a gun beside her.....
But I started with a little counter-top model from Krupps and the 2nd & 3rd grinds took a lot longer. And because of the grinder size I could only do 9 to 12 lb batches, meat got warm and the grinder got hot, which is not a good thing. Took me a few days to make burger & sausage when I had a couple elk to do because I had to stop & cool things down. Not now tho.....