# Snack Sticks 101



## nrdk (Oct 10, 2014)

Shamelessly stealing this thread idea from hickorybutt  in his Smoking Sausage 101 thread, as I am completely new to considering smoking sausage or snack sticks. I typically split a side of beef with the parents, and always seem to have so much ground beef left over and no sticks left, even when getting 40 pounds of sticks to start with from the local processor.

I've done a few weeks worth of light reading on the forums here (kudos to nepas boyko driedstick dave and so many others)  and around the interwebs for some more information, however I'll be honest it's still a rather daunting task in just learning the basics and assembling the materials when compared to my typical smoke (pork butts, turkeys, chicken, ribs, or brisket) in my MES.

So here I am, hat in hands, hoping to pool some advice and leave a nice centralized beginner's guide for those looking to get started and who may run into the same issues (albeit a nice one) that I have, with more ground beef than I know what to do with.

Used the recipe found here  for the Long, Slow Smoke for Tang ala 'Nepas'.

Starting Materials
Jerky gun or Sausage stuffer (suggestions on type/brand or where a beginner should start?)
_Personally ordered the LEM Jerky Cannon with the 6" Stuffing Tube_

Hanging rack (seems necessary for a MES30 owner like myself, how to build/assemble one?)
_Hickory or Oak dowels purchased from local hardware store cut to fit smoker_

Casing (edible collagen casing vs natural? Supplier/store? Size for various applications?)
_Went with 21mm edible collagen for my first go, seems a bit more durable and forgiving_

Twine/string (necessary?)
_Going to personally use butchers twine as tie offs for bends, seems the best route _

Cure #1
*USE*


Now I don't want to get to deep into all the individual seasonings, however I felt it is very necessary to underline the importance of key ingredients like Cure #1, as the danger of botulism seems to present to do without.

What are other starting materials a typical weekend smoker like myself may be overlooking?

Initial Processing
Timeliness is key (keep meat cold!)
Let your seasoned liquid sit before mixing
Mix and let rest vs. mix and load and let rest in the fridge

Anything I'm missing here? I've tried to compile what I see as 'best practice' from the various head honchos around, but definitely room for improvement.

Stuffing
Load the casing to the tip and get it ready to receive meat
Using the aforementioned jerky gun or sausage stuffer, press the meat down to try and remove all air prior to loading up the casing
_Personally spent the extra $10 to get the Barrel Stomper, seems well worth it_

Press the meat to the end of the tube, tie a loose knot, then press some meat into the casing until the air in the casing is gone then tighten the knot
_Alternative, tie the knot tight but poke a *very small*  hole in the end for air to escape_

Best practice to load the entire casing and knot the end or pinch/twist off multiple times while loading? Need some experience to weigh in here

Not sure what the best practice is for the actual stuffing, is it better to load the entire casing and knot the end, or pinch/twist off multiple times while loading, or to use twine/string to tie off between for hanging purposes? Definitely need some experience to weigh in here.

Start your Smokin'
Get the sticks out and let em hang on the rack at room temp for about an hour, get your smoker up to speed at this time
Start out low, 120-130 range, and hit the AMNPS for the overnight to facilitate the drying process on the casings and get that nice tang
Bump the smoker in the morning up by 10 degrees every hour (not to exceed 170), keeping an eye on the IT until it hits the 152 mark.
Pull em and hit em with the ice bath for 5 or 10 minutes to cool down
Let air dry (bloom) for a few (2 to 3) hours
Paper bag them in the fridge for 24 to 48 hours to help with excess moisture
Follow up by vac sealing or enjoying!

Depending on your setup, this will obviously change, however as I use a MES30 and so many others seem to here, thats what I wrote it towards in mind.

Please, dissect, critique, pick apart and enhance on the above for me, as I'm itching to give this a try and as well to keep this up to date and in place as a good write up for the future. Thanks again!

Follow up #1:

As mentioned above, I decided to jump in, however one goal was to keep my upfront cost reasonable. I managed to purchase the following for just under $100 as of 10/13/14, and it should get me through my first couple smokes to figure out how my sticks are turning out and if I want to pursue further.

LEM Jerky Cannon
LEM Jerky Cannon & Gun Barrel Stomper
LEM Jerky Cannon 3/8" ID Stuffing Tube - 6"
LEM 21mm edible collagen casings
Prague Powder (Cure #1/Pink Salt)
High temperature cheese
Hickory dowels


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## themule69 (Oct 11, 2014)

Bearcarver has a good step by step. Take a look at it.

Happy smoken.

David


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## nrdk (Oct 13, 2014)

themule69 said:


> Bearcarver has a good step by step. Take a look at it.
> 
> Happy smoken.
> 
> David


Agreed and thanks for the pointer, I've spent many hours pouring over Bear's step by step guides and definitely drew a lot of information from them and will continually revisit them.

However, they don't translate quite as well into what most people typically look at for a 'snack stick' as there is no casing, thus no need for a stuffer or any of the issues I raised in regards to the casing/stuffing/prep etc. 

Thanks


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## themule69 (Oct 13, 2014)

nrdk said:


> Agreed and thanks for the pointer, I've spent many hours pouring over Bear's step by step guides and definitely drew a lot of information from them and will continually revisit them.
> 
> However, they don't translate quite as well into what most people typically look at for a 'snack stick' as there is no casing, thus no need for a stuffer or any of the issues I raised in regards to the casing/stuffing/prep etc.
> 
> Thanks


I still use a stuffer with my naked sticks.













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Happy smoken.

David


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## tropics (Oct 13, 2014)

I have a MES40 you can get dowel rods at Lowes HD cut to fit the inside. Use hickory or oak ( no pine)

Here is what I am doing this week

Beef Sticks With A Long, Slow Smoke For 'Tang' ala Nepas

Thanks for the motivation ChefWillie


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## driedstick (Oct 13, 2014)

nrdk said:


> Shamelessly stealing this thread idea from hickorybutt  in his Smoking Sausage 101 thread, as I am completely new to considering smoking sausage or snack sticks. I typically split a side of beef with the parents, and always seem to have so much ground beef left over and no sticks left, even when getting 40 pounds of sticks to start with from the local processor.
> 
> I've done a few weeks worth of light reading on the forums here (kudos to nepas boyko driedstick dave and so many others)  and around the interwebs for some more information, however I'll be honest it's still a rather daunting task in just learning the basics and assembling the materials when compared to my typical smoke (pork butts, turkeys, chicken, ribs, or brisket) in my MES.
> 
> ...


Hope this helps and let me know if I can help you out anymore. 

A full smoker is a Happy smoker 

Make your smoker happy 

DS


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## nrdk (Oct 13, 2014)

themule69 said:


> I still use a stuffer with my naked sticks.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Saw your thread and have been drooling since, those look great and I'm thinking I may have to give caseless a shot, however the future wife loves the casing so I'll have to make sure I do a couple batches with casing to start with to get her on board.


tropics said:


> I have a MES40 you can get dowel rods at Lowes HD cut to fit the inside. Use hickory or oak ( no pine)
> 
> Here is what I am doing this week
> 
> ...


That is the exact one I'm thinking I'll start out with, need to make some measurements on my MES30 for the dowels and get that all in place. Hoping to have some time this weekend.


driedstick said:


> Hope this helps and let me know if I can help you out anymore.
> 
> A full smoker is a Happy smoker
> 
> ...


Thanks! Really appreciate the time to look over and review, I know it's a chore but I'm trying to get an upfront idea of just how involved this will be prior to jumping in. Limited budget with a wedding coming up next summer, so really trying to restrict myself with new toys.

Thinking I'll have to go with the gun to begin with, LEM jerky cannon seems well reviews and liked around here, and if I get positive reviews on the sticks I'll be adding a stuffer to my Christmas list.

Called around a bit and struck out trying to find casings at the local butcher, unfortunately the butcher I used to use went under a few months back and just haven't found a good alternative since. May just order online for the 21mm collagen casings. 

Thinking I should be able to pull all this off with under $100 upfront investment, and move forward from there depending on the results. Have a feeling I'll jump in the same as I did smoking and learn after a few batches, but really happy to be able to get an idea of what is required upfront with both time and money.

The main thing I wanted to avoid before jumping into this was an o crap I don't have that moment, and I think with the input from everyone here I'll be able to do that. Thanks again guys


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## chef willie (Oct 13, 2014)

tropics said:


> I have a MES40 you can get dowel rods at Lowes HD cut to fit the inside. Use hickory or oak ( no pine)
> 
> Here is what I am doing this week
> 
> ...


Hey, you're very welcome.....hmmmm, I'm needing a stix fix myself.....thanks for the mention and motivation back. Waiting for UPS with some SS making stuff to arrive, that'll get me going....enjoy and post pics/results........Willie


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## driedstick (Oct 13, 2014)

Sounds good this video may help also give you Idea on summer sausage and same way for snack sticks except no water bath and smaller casings 



DS


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## tropics (Oct 13, 2014)

Forgot to tell ya I have the Large Jerky Cannon, use it for when I make Sausage. Works nice, if you get it you mat want to order an extra small tube for the sticks.


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## nrdk (Oct 13, 2014)

tropics said:


> Forgot to tell ya I have the Large Jerky Cannon, use it for when I make Sausage. Works nice, if you get it you mat want to order an extra small tube for the sticks.


When you say extra small tube for sticks, do you mean the adapter on the end or the actual load tube? From what I've read the meat tube only holds 1.5 pounds, which means I'll be doing some reloading. As far as the adapter goes, I'm going with the Jerky Cannon 3/8" ID Stuffing Tube - 6" so I can load using casings (went with their 21mm casings as well, figured easier to just group the order).


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## tropics (Oct 13, 2014)

nrdk said:


> When you say extra small tube for sticks, do you mean the adapter on the end or the actual load tube? From what I've read the meat tube only holds 1.5 pounds, which means I'll be doing some reloading. As far as the adapter goes, I'm going with the Jerky Cannon 3/8" ID Stuffing Tube - 6" so I can load using casings (went with their 21mm casings as well, figured easier to just group the order).


Thats the one my plan just got moved till next week, have a job to do now.


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## nrdk (Oct 13, 2014)

Edited the original post to include some of the information collected here as well as what I personally have started towards and purchased, with links.

Will be a work in progress for awhile. I'll update and post qviews when I start my first smoke (hopefully this weekend if I can get the fiancee to leave me to it)


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## crazymoon (Oct 13, 2014)

Nrdk, The Sausagemaker still has free shipping on orders over  $ 49 if you still need any supplies.


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## chef willie (Oct 13, 2014)

driedstick said:


> Sounds good this video may help also give you Idea on summer sausage and same way for snack sticks except no water bath and smaller casings
> 
> 
> 
> DS



thanks....will check it out....YouTube can show u how to do anything...lol....later


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## nrdk (Oct 17, 2014)

Edit: Had some problems loading from my phone, not sure what the deal is but came back to finish it off

Gatherin the ingredients:













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Got SWMBO to help mix it all up for me













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Gettin to the stuffing. Gotta say, very very impressed with the LEM Jerky Cannon. Did a 5 lb batch and took 4 loads of the LEM, 2 loads per tray which ended up perfect. Very easy to use, easy to clean, and not sure I'll even bother moving onto a Stuffer unless I get to doing a lot of batches.













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Done loading, these babies are goin in the fridge for the night and will head into the smoker tomorrow evening for a low and slow overnight, after getting a batch of ABTs and some chili done for a party tomorrow night. :biggrin:













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## nrdk (Oct 17, 2014)

So a random question just formed, do I just stick the internal temp probe into one of the sticks? Won't that cause the meat to come out from the puncture?


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## chewmeister (Oct 19, 2014)

nrdk said:


> So a random question just formed, do I just stick the internal temp probe into one of the sticks? Won't that cause the meat to come out from the puncture?


Yep. No, the meat will not come out of the hole. The cure stiffens the meat especially after a rest in the fridge.


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## nrdk (Oct 19, 2014)

chewmeister said:


> Yep. No, the meat will not come out of the hole. The cure stiffens the meat especially after a rest in the fridge.


That was my assumption and worked out for me last night, thanks for the reply

Had some issues initially with the AMPNS not wanting to stay lit, ended up going with the chip loader all the way out to keep it goin since there was no wind. 

In the smoker last night:













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Woke up to them at 128 IT after about 14 or 15 hours in the smoker, beginnin to look tasty.













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Gonna bump em 10 degrees an hour til they hit the magic 152


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## timstalltaletav (Oct 19, 2014)

Looking excellent!


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## chewmeister (Oct 19, 2014)

Those are going to be good.


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## tropics (Oct 20, 2014)

Nice job on the sticks nrdk


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## nrdk (Oct 22, 2014)

Been a crazy couple of days running around so hadn't had a moment to sit down until now, sorry for the late follow up













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Overall taste is phenomenal, blows store bought out of the water and overall flavor even beats the sticks I typically get from the processor when I get a side of beef.

Unfortunately they ended up a tad dry for my liking. I'm not sure if it was due to my MES having some issues regulating temperature (overnight ended up dipping to high 20s low 30s with a steady wind, morning after wasn't much better and had some rather large fluctuations) or if the beef I had from the processor wasn't actually 80/20 like requested, did seem a bit lean.

Anyways, they still taste great and gives me an excuse to grab a cold one


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## driedstick (Oct 22, 2014)

Dang it those look great, sorry they turned out dry you can always send me them I have a "Free Taste Testers" License LOL 

Yep way better than store bought for sure.

Great job. 

A full smoker is a happy smoker 

DS


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## fished (Oct 26, 2014)

Both of those sticks look great.  I have never done the naked sticks before.  For those who have done them, how would a high temp cheese work with them?  I have used the cheese before with sticks with casing and it worked good.  Thanks


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## crazymoon (Oct 26, 2014)

Nice job !


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## hillerhalf (Nov 6, 2014)

Thank you for this post!  I love the thorough information!

Do you have the recipe for your seasoning of the sticks?


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## nrdk (Nov 9, 2014)

hillerhalf said:


> Thank you for this post!  I love the thorough information!
> 
> Do you have the recipe for your seasoning of the sticks?


Used the recipe found here


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## brewerdave (Nov 29, 2014)

I wanted to perfect an oven recipe as a baseline before I tried it in my homemade smoker. Here are the results and I appreciate any advice given.

Snack sticks first attempt
Ingredients:

3 pounds of ground beef (about) 2 pounds of 90/10 and 1 pound of 85/15
1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder (about)
2 teaspoon of paprika
3 tablespoons of Morton’s Tender quick salt
2 tablespoons of fennel seed
1 1/2 tablespoon of crushed red pepper
1/4 cup water per pound of meat (3/4 cup in this mix)

21 mm collagen casings

Mixed well in kitchenaid mixer. Let sit for about an hour. Made a bunch of 2 foot long sticks using jerky gun. Oven cooking schedule was:
2 hours at 200 degrees
1 hour at 220 degrees
45 minutes at 240 degrees
15 minutes at 300 degrees
Showered the links in cold water and let reach room temperature. About 2 hours. Taste test...oh my, tastes like excellent spicy pepperoni, but dry. Gritty dry. The beer helped but I don't want to blow 15-20 bucks on the next batch.
I'd appreciate any help on what I missed.

DS


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## acres87 (Nov 29, 2014)

My thought, to get something more like a "slim Jim" I would add some fatty pork.  A buddy and I years ago did a similar recipe with wild game birds, venison and ground fatty pork.  We had to go 50/50 mix or we had that "dry gritty"texture.  We did use his smoker to finish.


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## daveomak (Nov 30, 2014)

BrewerDave said:


> I wanted to perfect an oven recipe as a baseline before I tried it in my homemade smoker. Here are the results and I appreciate any advice given.
> 
> Snack sticks first attempt
> 
> ...





Do not raise the smoking/cooking temperature above 150 deg F ....


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## brewerdave (Nov 30, 2014)

The lowest the oven will go is 170. So, maybe try 170 and go by internal temperature alone?


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## daveomak (Nov 30, 2014)

BrewerDave said:


> The lowest the oven will go is 170. So, maybe try 170 and go by internal temperature alone?




170 will cause "fat out" in the sticks....  which will lead to a grainy, sawdust like texture....    

Also, about the amount of Morton's TQ you added...   It is recommended that 1.5 tsp of TQ be added per pound of ground meat....   
So, at 4#'s of meat, 6 tsp. would have been the correct amount to add...  6 tsp. = 2 Tbs...   FWIW....

*http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?736-Curing-Salts*



Snack sticks first attempt
 Ingredients:

3 pounds of ground beef (about) 2 pounds of 90/10 and 1 pound of 85/15
 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder (about)
 2 teaspoon of paprika
 3 tablespoons of Morton’s Tender quick salt


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## brewerdave (Nov 30, 2014)

Excellent information on curing salts. I'm going back to the drawing board and trying the following recipe:

Snack sticks test 2

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground beef

1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon of paprika

1.5 teaspoons of Morton’s Tender quick salt

1 tablespoon of fennel seed

1 tablespoon of crushed red pepper

1/4 cup water

dash of liquid smoke

collagen casings 21mm

Directions:

Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Let rest in fridge for 1 hour

I have a dehydrator that goes from130 degrees to 145 degrees. I'll try this batch at 130 degrees and check inner temps after a while. I see recommendations for inner temps ranging from 150 to 160 plus on here. I think I will err on the safety side and go for 160.

Suggestions are definetly appreciated


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## brewerdave (Nov 30, 2014)

I forgot to ask what meat/fat ratio on the beef? Maybe a 75/25 this time?


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## nrdk (Dec 1, 2014)

BrewerDave said:


> I forgot to ask what meat/fat ratio on the beef? Maybe a 75/25 this time?


Would probably suggest an 80/20. Personally mine was around an 85/15 and I'll probably add some pork next time to get it a bit fattier.


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## redneck1676 (Dec 3, 2014)

Question here for all those that posted here. I've got a snack stick kit from High Mountain. It makes a 10lbs of sticks. It says smoke or oven cook at 200 for 1-2 hrs. Does this sound correct or should the time and temp be adjusted? I'm using 7lbs deer meat and 3lbs of 73%-23% ground beef. Not sure if a longer smoke will make them bitter or dry. Using an MES 30 with a chip tray and hickory.


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## daveomak (Dec 3, 2014)

redneck1676 said:


> Question here for all those that posted here. I've got a snack stick kit from High Mountain. It makes a 10lbs of sticks. It says smoke or oven cook at 200 for 1-2 hrs. Does this sound correct or should the time and temp be adjusted? I'm using 7lbs deer meat and 3lbs of 73%-23% ground beef. Not sure if a longer smoke will make them bitter or dry. Using an MES 30 with a chip tray and hickory.



Does the package contain nitrite, cure #1....   if so, I would smoke them at 100 ish degrees the up the temp to 150 and let them "cook" for 24 hours...   IT should be around 145 ish when done.....

Temperature Time Temperature Time
°F (°C) (Minutes) °F (°C) (Seconds)

130 (54.4) 112 min   146 (63.3) 169 sec
131 (55.0) 89 min     147 (63.9) 134 sec
132 (55.6) 71 min     148 (64.4) 107 sec
133 (56.1) 56 min     149 (65.0) 85 sec
134 (56.7) 45 min     150 (65.6) 67 sec
135 (57.2) 36 min     151 (66.1) 54 sec
136 (57.8) 28 min     152 (66.7) 43 sec
137 (58.4) 23 min     153 (67.2) 34 sec
138 (58.9) 18 min     154 (67.8) 27 sec
139 (59.5) 15 min     155 (68.3) 22 sec
140 (60.0) 12 min     156 (68.9) 17 sec
141 (60.6) 9 min       157 (69.4) 14 sec
142 (61.1) 8 min       158 (70.0) 0 sec
143 (61.7) 6 min
144 (62.2) 5 min
145 (62.8) 4 min

Table C.1: Pasteurization times for beef, corned beef, lamb, pork and cured pork (FDA, 2009, 3-401.11.B.2).


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## redneck1676 (Dec 3, 2014)

The kit says it has all ingredients included but ill double check. How long at 100? Not sure if it will run that low. Plus the wife said she just picked up about 10lbs of ground pork at a local Mexican meat market, so I will probably supplement that for the beef.


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## daveomak (Dec 3, 2014)

I usually smoke stuff at 70-110 deg. F...  just to keep the surface dry and no possible fat out.....  I smoke from 2-8 hours depending on the product...   2 for some cheeses, 4 for others, 4 for bacon, 6-8 for Andouille...  then the temp goes up to start the cooking process....  The smoke seems to penetrate and take better at lower temps for cured products...  Non cured products, the temp thing is totally different...   Just be sure the sticks are at least smoker temp before the smoke starts or you may get condensate on the sticks...  water and smoke make for a very ugly acidic taste...


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## countryboy-q (Dec 3, 2014)

Good looking sticks!


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## brewerdave (Dec 20, 2014)

Pepperoni sticks are curing as we speak, I'll have them in the dehydrater in the morning. I'll report back on this test. I appreciate the info/tips/etc very much

DS


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## brewerdave (Dec 30, 2014)

They came through fine after 8 hours at 145 degrees. IT was 160 and no fat out. This will be my go to recipe for pepperoni sticks


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