Tony Soprano Edition 🇮🇹

Italian Sausage at Home Guide

There’s an old saying:

“Anyone who loves the law or sausages should never watch either being made”

Many people are of the opinion that sausage is undesirable as it has a reputation as being the place where all the scrap and “gross” parts are thrown to reduce and save costs… especially for large manufacturers.

While that may be true for Oscar Meyer, Hormel and the other big boys… the tradition of sausage making has origins in no-waste, delicious flavor and high quality animals.

If you make your sausage at home it will be undoubtedly more delicious and enjoyable… with the bonus that you can customize the flavors to your exact liking.

You can go full rabbit hole and get a grinder, casings, and stuffer… I still love to do this.

But for the minimalist this is not necessary. You can make in bulk, store long-term without doing any of the above.

There are a few noteworthy tips to making great sausage that differentiates sausage from ground meat.

Sausage is not just dumping seasonings into ground meat and calling it day.

Tony isn’t *actually* here today but the (2) sausage recipes below would have him taking a long nap after a big lunch featuring these Italian-inspired versions.

So let’s quickly see “how the sausage is made” and I’m sharing two of my favorite Italian Sausage blends that will get you started on a fun and delicious journey to perfecting your own blend(s) 🙌

Intro to Sausage

As stated above, sausage is not just ground meat with spices mixed in. Good sausage has a completely different texture and doesn’t just fall apart like you see when breaking up ground meat in a hot saute pan.

There is a natural “glue” called myosin that develops when the sausage is properly made and mixed. The best news is that you don’t need any machines or gadgets to do this at home.

The short version is that salt interacts with certain proteins in the meat, when agitated, myosin is formed which makes a gel that holds the proteins and fats together creating a wonderful mouthfeel and texture (hence why I called it a “glue” above).

The trick is that when agitating the mixture you don’t want it getting warm, then the fat will start melting and you’ll be left with a split, dry mess once cooked.

Using electric mixers is also not recommended unless you’re an advanced maker since the paddle can “smear” the fat if not careful and you’ll get the same result as above.

Make sure your mixing bowl and meat are thoroughly chilled. With clean hands, (or gloves) mix the sausage with the salt and spices thoroughly. You basically want to use a kneading motion, like bread, until the mixture starts to get sticky. Every few kneads I’ll pick up the mixture in one mass and firmly “throw” it down into the bowl (yes this works). This should take only 4-5 mins.

When the meat mixture is sticky the salt-soluble proteins have been extracted. To test for the right level of stickiness, make a thin burger-like patty and press it into the palm of your hand; now turn your hand over (make sure you’re working over the meat bowl), if the patty remains sticks firmly and doesn’t fall, your pretty much there.

Making at Home

To start making sausage you need… no specialty equipment.

This is the best way to start if you haven’t made before and just want to get your feet wet. Just a mixing bowl and your hands.

If you want to graduate into more and ultimate control then you would get a grinder followed by a stuffer with casings.

When not stuffing and casing the grind, simply roll into 1lb logs in parchment; wrap tightly in plastic wrap, followed by foil and freeze until ready. (Will keep for up to a week in your fridge).

I like to make a double or triple batch and then you have plenty on hand depending on the size of your crew.

To Grind or Not to Grind

If you decide to keep making sausage then you will want to start eventually grinding your own meat. This will have a big impact on flavor. You can also customize your fat %’s.

If grinding at home, get a decent grinder. Grinders with all plastic parts will break or split in a short amount of time (usually right after the warranty finishes). You also want a strong enough motor and sharp blades so that your grind does not get “smushed” during the process which can ruin the final texture.

The recipes below are made for you to easily make at home without fiddling too much with weights.

If there is sufficient interest we can go deeper into making fresh, cured as well as dried charcuteries at home. I ran a full charcuterie program at one of my restaurants for many years and love the entire process and all the possibilities. Comment below if interested in more.

All Purpose Italian Sausage

A great blend that encapsulates the classic Italian sausage flavors but not spicy and the fennel seed is on the lower side making this very approachable. (See next recipe for something more intense)

2lb ground pork (coarse is preferable but not necessary)

18g (approx 1 TB) sea salt; I used Baleine

2 tsp whole peppercorn (toasted in a dry pan and cooled to room temp)

1 tsp fennel seed (toasted in a dry pan and cooled to room temp)

1 TB finely chopped fresh sage

2 tsp sugar

2 tsp dried marjoram

1 tsp crushed red pepper

2 cloves garlic peeled and grated on microplane

1.5 TB ice-cold water

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1. Take the peppercorns and fennel seeds and blend in a spice grinder with the sage, marjoram, red pepper flakes and sugar until finely ground.

2. In a small (cereal-size) bowl add the salt, ground spice mix, garlic and then the water. Stir to combine into a paste-like consistency.

3. Place the ground pork in a mixing bowl, add the paste you just made and mix with your hands until just incorporated.

4. *At this point it’s ideal to let the pork mix rest, covered in the fridge for 2-8 hours. It’s not necessary but will give you a better result. I usually do before bed then wake up and finish. (Don’t let sit longer than 8hours)

5. Now take the meat mixture and knead with your hands, taking the mass and throwing it down into the bowl every 3 (or so) kneads, until the mixture is sticky. Should take 4-5 mins depending on how fast you’re kneading.

6. Once the mix is sticky test it as described above.

7. You can at this point cook a small 1/2TB off in a dry pan to test for seasoning. Adjust if needed.

8. Roll the meat mixture into 1lb logs in parchment; wrap tightly in plastic wrap, followed by foil and store in fridge up to 7 days, or freeze to have on-demand.

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Hot Italian Sausage

This is a really nice blend because I LOVE heat, fennel and the red wine adds a nice depth.

2# pork (coarse is preferable but not necessary)

18g (approx 1 TB) sea salt; I used Baleine

2 tsp whole peppercorn (toasted in a dry pan and cooled to room temp)

1 TB fennel seed (toasted in a dry pan and cooled to room temp)

1 TB finely chopped fresh sage

2 tsp sugar

2 tsp dried marjoram

1.5 TB crushed red pepper

3 cloves garlic peeled and microplane

1.5 TB chilled red wine

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1. Take the peppercorns and fennel seeds and blend in a spice grinder with the sage, marjoram, red pepper flakes and sugar until finely ground.

2. In a small (cereal-size) bowl add the salt, ground spice mix, garlic and then the wine. Stir to combine into a paste-like consistency.

3. Place the ground pork in a mixing bowl, add the paste you just made and mix with your hands until just incorporated.

4. *At this point it’s ideal to let the pork mix rest, covered in the fridge for 2-8 hours. It’s not necessary but will give you a better result. I usually do before bed then wake up and finish. (Don’t let sit longer than 8hours)

5. Now take the meat mixture and knead with your hands, taking the mass and throwing it down into the bowl every 3 (or so) kneads, until the mixture is sticky. Should take 4-5 mins depending on how fast you’re kneading.

6. Once the mix is sticky test it as described above.

7. You can at this point cook a small 1/2TB off in a dry pan to test for seasoning. Adjust if needed.

8. Roll the meat mixture into 1lb logs in parchment; wrap tightly in plastic wrap, followed by foil and store in fridge up to 7 days, or freeze to have on-demand.

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No need to be giving Oscar (Meyer) or Jimmy (Dean) your hard earned dollars when you can make a far tastier version at home. Feel free to customize the above blends for your taste.

I make a hot with Calabrian chili powder added that is lovely but you can spin it many ways.

Please comment if you’d like to see more charcuterie (sausage and salami making) content in the Substack for future.

COMING UP NEXT: WE WILL BE USING OUR SAUSAGE TO MAKE ONE OF THE TASTIEST PASTA DISHES ON THE PLANET… DON’T MISS IT 🙌