# Stuff immediately or rest meat overnight?



## oil99 (Feb 13, 2018)

Hello all,

I have seen many recipes where people add the spices (and cure if applicable) to the meat (cubed or ground) and then rest overnight before stuffing. I usually grind, add spices/cure, mix with Kitchenaid and then stuff. The finished sausage goes into the fridge overnight for a smoke the next day.

I believe the other process is to let the flavors blend and the cure do it's thing before stuffing. I understand the mixture can set up a bit so more liquid and a mix is needed before stuffing. Is one way preferred or better than the other? 

The only problem I've had in the past was a batch of Kielbasa and snacksticks were a tad watery after being defrosted. I assume that was a result of not enough bloom time and being put into the fridge too soon? Usually I finish in a water bath, let sit on racks to cool for a few hours and into the fridge overnight. Vac packed and freeze within a day or 2. I've never tried binders, ECA, etc.

Thank you for any advice. Cheers!


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## SmokinAl (Feb 14, 2018)

I stuff mine after mixing, then refrigerate overnight uncovered & smoke the next day.
Then another night in the fridge uncovered, and then vac pack the next day.
Al


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## DanMcG (Feb 14, 2018)

I do it the same way as Al. 
Except for kielbasa, I cube the meat coat it with the salts and spices then refrig overnight, then stuff and and rest again. Why do I do it this way, I have no clue, :confused: but it does come out good.


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## jimmyinsd (Feb 14, 2018)

I like to stuff it right away,  get the mess cleaned up and that way I have less to do prior to smoking which can at times be a long day in itself.


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## jp61 (Feb 14, 2018)

oil99 said:


> I believe the other process is to let the flavors blend and the cure do it's thing before stuffing. I understand the mixture can set up a bit so more liquid and a mix is needed before stuffing. Is one way preferred or better than the other?


I also stuff after mixing for this reason.


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## indaswamp (Feb 14, 2018)

The reason for salting, adding cure, and letting the meat rest is to extract the salt soluble proteins from the meat. These long chain proteins are the natural binder in the meat which when mixed, denature the proteins and form a tacky, sticky mass of meat paste. These proteins also grab and hold onto water. Using this method butchers can use less binders added into the meat paste and still get a great product that sticks together.

Secondary reason is to allow the cure to evenly distribute throughout the meat paste. Best practice is to dissolve both the cure and salt in water, then mix to get a jump on even distribution.


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## forvols (Feb 14, 2018)

I usually  cube, grind, season/mix, stuff and into the fridge over night, smoke the next day, after smoke bloom for a few hours open air, into the fridge overnight, vac seal the next day. I have left SS in the fridge 2days before smoke and for 2days after smoke, then vac seal. Both ways sausages came out great.


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## jimmyinsd (Feb 14, 2018)

indaswamp said:


> The reason for salting, adding cure, and letting the meat rest is to extract the salt soluble proteins from the meat. These long chain proteins are the natural binder in the meat which when mixed, denature the proteins and form a tacky, sticky mass of meat paste. These proteins also grab and hold onto water. Using this method butchers can use less binders added into the meat paste and still get a great product that sticks together.
> 
> Secondary reason is to allow the cure to evenly distribute throughout the meat paste. Best practice is to dissolve both the cure and salt in water, then mix to get a jump on even distribution.



but cant this all happen in a casing in the fridge just as easy as it could in a tub in the fridge?  I am not seeing the difference in resting it before smoking in the casing vs in a tub or even seasoned unground as long as the meat has been mixed with the cure and has adequate time to do its job right... or am I not understanding something on how cure works?


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## indaswamp (Feb 14, 2018)

Sure, the salt will extract the proteins after the sausage is cased, but you will not be able to mix the meat to denature the proteins that get extracted after stuffing. Butchers allow for the proteins to extract in order to reduce the amount of binders needed. You will get a firmer product if the meat paste is allowed to extract proteins before final grinding and mixing.


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## Rings Я Us (Feb 14, 2018)

All sounds good 
Good luck.


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## myownidaho (Feb 14, 2018)

I pretty much always let the meat sit overnight for the reasons Indaswamp indicated. I’ve done it with the meat just cubed, after the first grind and sometimes both if I’m adding in duck breast that doesn't handle two grinds very well.


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## oil99 (Feb 14, 2018)

Awesome stuff thank you everyone.


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## indaswamp (Feb 14, 2018)

oil99 said:


> Awesome stuff thank you everyone.



Letting the meat paste sit over night is way more important for smoked sausage than it is for fresh or breakfast. But all will be better if allowed to sit.


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## jimmyinsd (Feb 15, 2018)

I just made a batch of country style and let it set for 3 hours and it got so thick it damn near broke my stuffer even after adding an extra 1/2 cup of water.  My arm was actually getting sore when I was mixing it again before loading the stuffer.  How much worse would it get if it sat overnight?  I typically have 2 cups of water in a ten pound batch and it's about perfect if I stuff it right after mixing.  This was a total of 2.5 and it felt like it could have used another cup.


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## indaswamp (Feb 15, 2018)

Jimmy, I normally coarse grind, salt, season, and add cure if I making smoke sausage, then let it sit. I second grind when I pull it our of the fridge, adding a couple TBSPS of ice cold water to the grinder tray with each load to help it slide into the throat of the grinder tube. After the second grind I mix in the binder, typically NFDM and a little more water....then I stuff.
Stuffers like a moist mix. But second grinding after letting it sit really helps.


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## jimmyinsd (Feb 16, 2018)

indaswamp said:


> Jimmy, I normally coarse grind, salt, season, and add cure if I making smoke sausage, then let it sit. I second grind when I pull it our of the fridge, adding a couple TBSPS of ice cold water to the grinder tray with each load to help it slide into the throat of the grinder tube. After the second grind I mix in the binder, typically NFDM and a little more water....then I stuff.
> Stuffers like a moist mix. But second grinding after letting it sit really helps.



I will keep that in mind in the future... all I know is that if I had added enough water to make that stuff easy to mix i would have needed a swimming pool,  and if i did that very often I would have the arms of popeye! :p


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## indaswamp (Feb 16, 2018)

When I finish mixing second grind doing it this way, I literally have 1~2# of meat sticking to my hands...

Little more water in smoke sausage won't hurt anything. You will loose water while smoking due to evaporation so over shooting is never a problem.


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## indaswamp (Feb 21, 2018)

Great video!


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## smokeymose (Feb 22, 2018)

Apparently it doesn't make a difference, but I usually mix and let it rest overnight before stuffing, mainly because I need a break. If it needs some liquid for easier stuffing that's fine. I use cure even in fresh sausage, so I can let it hang dry a bit before smoking (or packaging).


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## HalfSmoked (Feb 22, 2018)

As with so many things on here again it seems it's what ever your personal preference is. There appears to be no wrong way or a right way but what works best for you.

Warren

danmcg Thanks for the like.


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## indaswamp (Feb 22, 2018)

If you are adding a binder, you are adding proteins to the meat paste and those proteins will make the meat tacky.


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## indaswamp (Feb 22, 2018)

double post..


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## indaswamp (Feb 23, 2018)

I found this on Wedliny & Domowe:
https://www.meatsandsausages.com/sausage-making/curing/sausages


> *Alternative Curing Methods*
> *Method 1.* Grind each meat through a proper plate (as dictated by the recipe). The reason that we grind now and not cut meat into pieces for curing is that salt and sodium nitrite will penetrate a tiny piece of ground meat much faster than a 5 cm (2”) cube. Mix meat with salt and Cure #1. Pack tightly (to remove air) and separately, place each type of ground meat in a container and cover with a cloth to allow breathing. Let it “set” for 3-4 hours at room temperature 20-22°C (68-71°F). Chemical reactions proceed much faster at higher temperatures and so does curing. Add spices, mix all together and stuff casings.
> 
> *Method 2.* Grind each meat through a proper plate (as dictated by the recipe). Mix meat with salt, Cure #1 and other ingredients. Stuff sausages and place in a cooler for 12-24 hours before smoking. When removed from a cooler they have to be conditioned at room temperature for a few hours to remove moisture from the surface.
> ...



And...


> When making less than 5 pounds of sausage it is perfectly acceptable to make curing a part of the mixing and conditioning process. This way the sausage is stuffed and ready to go into the smoker and all equipment can be washed and put away. When making large amounts of sausage, you may use a few pork butts or picnics and trimming this meat will take a while. Then you have to grind, mix, stuff and smoke sausages. This operation will take many hours. It is feasible to make sausages on two separate occasions:
> 
> 
> The first day - meat selection and trimming. The skin and bones are removed, all sinews, gristle and glands are discarded. Meat is cut into small pieces, mixed with salt and nitrite and placed in a refrigerator for 24 hours. Except the knife no equipment was needed.
> The second day - cured meat goes into the grinder and the sausage making process continues.



I rarely make batches smaller than 12.5lbs. (max. batch size a MES - when I used my MES for smoking sausages- will handle and it is 1/2 of a 25# seasoning package.), and usually it is more than 50lbs. at one time. We process a lot of game and wild hog meat and use this in our sausages so we tend to get a lot of meat at one time. When I have access to enough frig. space, I will let the coarse grind sit over night, or a minimum of 12 hours. If I can let the stiffed links sit for 2 days, that would be my preference but sometimes that is not possible and I will have to smoke them the next day. The links are always better having sit for at least 2 days-especially andouille links which is a very coarse grind.


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