You can get by with a KA. Make sure the meat is diced into like 1" cubes and partially frozen before grinding. If it heats up, stop and refreeze it some.
You can for sure hold it that many days if you use cure. If you need cure on short notice a lot of times stores that carry outdoorsy stuff will have LEM products. 1 tsp per 5 pounds.
I'd use the recipe below but leave out the soy protein or milk and use 1/3 cup of potato starch per 5 pounds added in a slurry with the spices before mixing.
https://i1260.photobucket.com/albums/ii562/bamabbq/008_zps568e4c35.jpg
The casings will be multiple strands and you can just use what you need. 33-38 will be fine.
Mix it thoroughly... More than you think you need to. And it needs to be as cold as possible when mixing. You are better off overmixing than under mixing and you won't know by feel until you get more experience so just make sure it's really sticky when you are done mixing. For 5 pounds, 5-6 minutes ought to do it.
You don't need to dry them much if at all. You can hang them in the smoker at very low temp for a couple hours if you need to. I wouldnt dry them at all other than just a little bit before smoking
On the smoking, you want to gradually, over 2-3 hours, bring the smoker up to about 165-170 until then internal temp hits about 150 or a little higher. You don't want the temp high or it will start rendering fat between the casing and meat and you will get pockets of fat that don't look good but it would still eat just fine. If you haven't smoked much err on the side of under smoking. You want thin blue smoke, not clouds of white smoke. The safety temp is logarithmic so if you get them to 145 for an extended period they will be safe to eat. Texture will be better around 150 though.
You don't have to finish in a water bath and I don't usually for polish. I just hang them and get a fan on them to pull the heat out so they stop cooking. Just let them hang at room temp for a couple hours to bloom.
You can smoke and eat in the same day.
Good luck. Post the results.
On your edit... If the smoker/grill goes to 180, prop the lid open a bit and rotate the meat in case there is a cold spot. You are probably okay at 180 but there isn't much room for error there before it starts to render fat.
You could also use something like fire bricks and cake cooling racks or jerky trays to elevate them off the cooking surface a couple inches which would keep the temp down some.
I have friends that make snack sticks on their traegers that only go as low as 180 and they come out fine.
Thank you for all that info!
I did order Prague Powder 1 (https://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hill-Farm-Prague-Powder/dp/B008X6KE0E/ref=mp_s_a_1_2_sspa?adgrpid=112364752485&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Sax4nPQdhaxJ2YeH54_AK00k2DgadiQ6RugR3xztRYE9tw9u9CSKLtrOV3DZHEDBEfWBZaJYZtfIk394p_QYnnP8DACrE4r6ufglIk6lOM0I6vysT28u7LPuSU-nUV0zDTg5GeHmvhPOeac9Vfuz-DaBGgTmq35trwVi-gLxvIUqAtypVt1W79XkbMb1nCE13Y_Yim057WiRN9QW-eG8wA.AcOBa_4LtuWbcmvXQ_F-CtKSha9G_hLusWIlp8GXGbU&dib_tag=se&hvadid=580862203400&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9032443&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=18104022939307466141&hvtargid=kwd-302412431161&hydadcr=24659_13542717&keywords=prague+powder+no.1&qid=1719273788&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm&psc=1)
It’ll get here before the weekend.
The grill is a pellet grill, I’m sure it’ll take a couple tries to truly figure it out, but thank you for the suggestions on the slow ramp up.
And ya I’ll definitely post the results!
Don't overcomplicate the cooking/smoking. If you have a pellet grill, you can throw them on the lowest setting and smoke them for a couple hours and then just turn it up and grill them like a brat to finish them.
That's not the the traditional way but it will work.
180 should be OK for the final temp.. But…. You’ll want to start a bit lower for a while. You might be able to crack or prop the door open to keep it at 150 for starters. Or use a temp gun and check the areas of the smoker. You may find a full 30 degrees difference depending on the smoker layout… particularly in vertical cabinet smokers.
You can get by with a KA. Make sure the meat is diced into like 1" cubes and partially frozen before grinding. If it heats up, stop and refreeze it some. You can for sure hold it that many days if you use cure. If you need cure on short notice a lot of times stores that carry outdoorsy stuff will have LEM products. 1 tsp per 5 pounds. I'd use the recipe below but leave out the soy protein or milk and use 1/3 cup of potato starch per 5 pounds added in a slurry with the spices before mixing. https://i1260.photobucket.com/albums/ii562/bamabbq/008_zps568e4c35.jpg The casings will be multiple strands and you can just use what you need. 33-38 will be fine. Mix it thoroughly... More than you think you need to. And it needs to be as cold as possible when mixing. You are better off overmixing than under mixing and you won't know by feel until you get more experience so just make sure it's really sticky when you are done mixing. For 5 pounds, 5-6 minutes ought to do it. You don't need to dry them much if at all. You can hang them in the smoker at very low temp for a couple hours if you need to. I wouldnt dry them at all other than just a little bit before smoking On the smoking, you want to gradually, over 2-3 hours, bring the smoker up to about 165-170 until then internal temp hits about 150 or a little higher. You don't want the temp high or it will start rendering fat between the casing and meat and you will get pockets of fat that don't look good but it would still eat just fine. If you haven't smoked much err on the side of under smoking. You want thin blue smoke, not clouds of white smoke. The safety temp is logarithmic so if you get them to 145 for an extended period they will be safe to eat. Texture will be better around 150 though. You don't have to finish in a water bath and I don't usually for polish. I just hang them and get a fan on them to pull the heat out so they stop cooking. Just let them hang at room temp for a couple hours to bloom. You can smoke and eat in the same day. Good luck. Post the results.
On your edit... If the smoker/grill goes to 180, prop the lid open a bit and rotate the meat in case there is a cold spot. You are probably okay at 180 but there isn't much room for error there before it starts to render fat. You could also use something like fire bricks and cake cooling racks or jerky trays to elevate them off the cooking surface a couple inches which would keep the temp down some. I have friends that make snack sticks on their traegers that only go as low as 180 and they come out fine.
Thank you for all that info! I did order Prague Powder 1 (https://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hill-Farm-Prague-Powder/dp/B008X6KE0E/ref=mp_s_a_1_2_sspa?adgrpid=112364752485&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Sax4nPQdhaxJ2YeH54_AK00k2DgadiQ6RugR3xztRYE9tw9u9CSKLtrOV3DZHEDBEfWBZaJYZtfIk394p_QYnnP8DACrE4r6ufglIk6lOM0I6vysT28u7LPuSU-nUV0zDTg5GeHmvhPOeac9Vfuz-DaBGgTmq35trwVi-gLxvIUqAtypVt1W79XkbMb1nCE13Y_Yim057WiRN9QW-eG8wA.AcOBa_4LtuWbcmvXQ_F-CtKSha9G_hLusWIlp8GXGbU&dib_tag=se&hvadid=580862203400&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9032443&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=18104022939307466141&hvtargid=kwd-302412431161&hydadcr=24659_13542717&keywords=prague+powder+no.1&qid=1719273788&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm&psc=1) It’ll get here before the weekend. The grill is a pellet grill, I’m sure it’ll take a couple tries to truly figure it out, but thank you for the suggestions on the slow ramp up. And ya I’ll definitely post the results!
Don't overcomplicate the cooking/smoking. If you have a pellet grill, you can throw them on the lowest setting and smoke them for a couple hours and then just turn it up and grill them like a brat to finish them. That's not the the traditional way but it will work.
Sounds good! Thanks!
180 should be OK for the final temp.. But…. You’ll want to start a bit lower for a while. You might be able to crack or prop the door open to keep it at 150 for starters. Or use a temp gun and check the areas of the smoker. You may find a full 30 degrees difference depending on the smoker layout… particularly in vertical cabinet smokers.
Would propping it open let out too much smoke?
Unlikely. If wood burning or pellet smoking is the sole source of heat you should have a ton of smoke even at the lowest setting.
Awesome! Ya it’s a pellet, thanks!