# 1st Try at Smoked Chorizo



## fishwrestler (Jan 21, 2011)

A little background. When I was in High School I worked at a Mexican Mom and Pop that had a meat Department. I got to learn a lot of cool stuff, one was making the Chorizo. I loved the the flavor and for the life of me cannot duplicate it and can not get a hold of the old owners.  So not giving up yet , but thought i would go another direction and try making some smoked/cured chorizo. This will be my first try so I am doing a small batch. I found several recipes online and combined a few.

The plan was to grind and stuff tonight, but it has been a long work week. So I only go the spices all weighed out will grind and stuff tomorrow them smoke on Sunday.

Here is the recipe and a picture of the ingredients waiting for some meat.

More to come as the weekend moves along

Smoked Chorizo

10 oz. Water
10 oz. white vinegar
6 Tbsp 1 Tsp.  Paprika
5 Tbsp  Red Hawaiian Sea Salt
1 Tbsp 1Tsp Course Ground Black Pepper
5 garlic cloves
1 Tbsp 1Tsp Ground Oregano
5 Tsp Cayenne
2.5 Tsp California Chili Powder
1/2 oz Instacure
12.5 lb boneless pork rib roast


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## les3176 (Jan 21, 2011)

Looks like a good start! Looking forward to the finished product!!!


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## scarbelly (Jan 22, 2011)

I am looking forward to your results. I have made several batches of Chorizo, none with cure and have not smoked them for long. The results have been tasty and not the greasy mess you get with the store bought stuff. Good luck and I will be following this one

Thanks for sharing


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## bamaboy (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds most excellent,I love me some chorizo


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## beer-b-q (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds good, looking forward to the finished product...


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## mballi3011 (Jan 22, 2011)

I have to agree with everyone here and I'm waiting patiancely also. I would really like a good chorizo recipe


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## bakerboy7 (Jan 22, 2011)

Can't wait.  Love Chorizo. Chorizo with eggs, Chorizo with peppers, Chorizo with tortillias, the list goes on...


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## fpnmf (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds great!!

  Craig


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## old poi dog (Jan 22, 2011)

Looking forward to the Chorizo .....


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## rio_grande (Jan 22, 2011)

Little did I know while chatting last night we share the same plight!!!!!!

I too have been searching for the perfect chriso recipe. I will be watching and may give the recipee a shot. Few spices I will have dificulty finding here though.


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## down lowe (Jan 22, 2011)

can't wait to see the finished product.  thanks for sharing the recipe.  it's on my list to try


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## chefrob (Jan 22, 2011)

lots of different styles of chorrizo...........want to see how this one comes out as well.


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## fishwrestler (Jan 23, 2011)

I let the links sit in the smoker for 1 hour before doing anything to it. Then 2 hours of Mesquite smoke. Then I added heat and it got a little to hot to fast. End result, good flavor but I did not like the texture. Here are some pictures of them in the smoker, being iced and the links, then the slicing. Don't get me wrong they are not horrible just not what I want. I think i need to get to building on that Propane heated smokehouse. So hard to bring the temperature up slowly on a charcoal heated smoker. I asked my wife on a scale of 1-10 what did she give it. She said 4-5, that the italian and Kielbasa I made were 9-10.  The taste was good that the texture was a little grainy, or mealy  and was not chunky and did not hold together like the Kielbasa did. Makes me wonder if I I should have added some powdered Milk. Back to the drawing board boys and girls, IF anyone has any suggestions let me know.

One other note I left these casing in the refrigerator and did not drain off all the water from rinsing them last week. The casing seemed mushy and they tore a lot. Live and Learn.

Good times.

Robert


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## mrsb (Jan 23, 2011)

Sorry it wasn't what you were striving for, but I can tell you it looks 10x better than the store bought chorizo I had with eggs for breakfast.

Keep trying and we'll keep looking!


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## chefrob (Jan 23, 2011)

other than spices what else differed from the italian and K-links......... fat/meat ratios....etc.?


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## fishwrestler (Jan 25, 2011)

chefrob said:


> other than spices what else differed from the italian and K-links......... fat/meat ratios....etc.?




I used powdered milk in the k links, the K-links had some beef in it. I used the same cut of pork on both of them. I took the casing off the chorizo and asked the wife to taste she gave it a 7-8 with out the casing. I think either letting the casing sit for week in to moist of an environment or the fact I got them to hot to soon. Any thought by you more seasoned sausage makers out there.

Robert


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## fpnmf (Jan 25, 2011)

Making sausage is fairly easy.

Making good sausage is an art form.

I am just learning. Have had several ok sausage builds.

And some really good andouille.

I learn more each time.

 Have fun!!

 Craig


----------



## BGKYSmoker (Jan 26, 2011)

I have made many chorizo. I your texture is from to much vinegar and the sea salt. Added with a fat out of the heat to fast. On the casing, rinse good inside and out, soak in luke warm water with 1 Tbs vinegar to the soak water for 45 mins.

Here is my recipe for chorizo.

For 10 lbs

7 lbs lean meat, beef

1 1/2 lb pork butt

1 1/2 lbs pork fat......Grind the meats through the med plate 1 time

4 Tbs non iodized salt

2 Tbs paprika

3 Tbs cayenne pepper

2 Tbs black pepper

3 Tbs garlic granules

1 Tbs mexican oregano

1/4 cup powdered dextrose

1/3 cup white or red wine vinegar

2/3 cup cold distilled water

2 level tsp cure #1

If you want a 5 lbs batch just cut the recipe in half.

Mix the recipe very good into the meat, stuff and smoke starting at 140* ramping to 170* until you have a meat IT of 150-155*. Shower with cold water or let stand at room temp to bloom and get wrinkly.


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## boykjo (Jan 26, 2011)

I would add more fat ratio to the mix and when adding water add as little as possible. Just enough to mix the spices in the meat. let sausage rest out of fridge for an hr. start smoke at 160 for 1 hr 180 for 2nd  hr 200- 225 for third hr depending on how much sausage your cooking. a packed cooker takes a higher temp. Stop when internal temp reaches 160 and put in water bath immidiatly. i would grind with a 7mm plate. shorten up the sausage so it doesnt hang too close to the heat source....

one mis hap and sausage will wrinkle. i have made hundreds of batches of sausage and most are wrinkle free now and plump unless i lost control of my process somewhere. its easy to do even with the best of us.... plump wrinkle free sausage is what I like to see sausage presentation

Oh and I also use fresh casings in a salt water brine...


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## laszlo (Jan 26, 2011)

Watching this thread with interest.

I'm planning on making csabai (hungarian) style suasage. Very similiar to chorizo, far less ingredients though.

Not to hijack someone's thread, but how do you sausage experts estimate the length of the casings? I have 25m (27yards) of hog casings 28-30mm (~1.15") diameter and plan to stuff 10 pounds of meat. If I cut the casings too long, is it OK to cover it in salt again, vaccuum seal it and re-frigerate it, or just throw it away.

It's not about wasting money, it works out at ~$1/yard, so not a big deal, but, why waste good things? I don't want to be few links short, while in stuffing business and wait extra hour or so to soak another length of casings.

BTW I've seen when cleaning intestines of freshly butchered pigs that people used solution of warm water, vinegar and lots of chopped onions. Old school way.

Cheers


----------



## fishwrestler (Jan 21, 2011)

A little background. When I was in High School I worked at a Mexican Mom and Pop that had a meat Department. I got to learn a lot of cool stuff, one was making the Chorizo. I loved the the flavor and for the life of me cannot duplicate it and can not get a hold of the old owners.  So not giving up yet , but thought i would go another direction and try making some smoked/cured chorizo. This will be my first try so I am doing a small batch. I found several recipes online and combined a few.

The plan was to grind and stuff tonight, but it has been a long work week. So I only go the spices all weighed out will grind and stuff tomorrow them smoke on Sunday.

Here is the recipe and a picture of the ingredients waiting for some meat.

More to come as the weekend moves along

Smoked Chorizo

10 oz. Water
10 oz. white vinegar
6 Tbsp 1 Tsp.  Paprika
5 Tbsp  Red Hawaiian Sea Salt
1 Tbsp 1Tsp Course Ground Black Pepper
5 garlic cloves
1 Tbsp 1Tsp Ground Oregano
5 Tsp Cayenne
2.5 Tsp California Chili Powder
1/2 oz Instacure
12.5 lb boneless pork rib roast


----------



## les3176 (Jan 21, 2011)

Looks like a good start! Looking forward to the finished product!!!


----------



## scarbelly (Jan 22, 2011)

I am looking forward to your results. I have made several batches of Chorizo, none with cure and have not smoked them for long. The results have been tasty and not the greasy mess you get with the store bought stuff. Good luck and I will be following this one

Thanks for sharing


----------



## bamaboy (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds most excellent,I love me some chorizo


----------



## beer-b-q (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds good, looking forward to the finished product...


----------



## mballi3011 (Jan 22, 2011)

I have to agree with everyone here and I'm waiting patiancely also. I would really like a good chorizo recipe


----------



## bakerboy7 (Jan 22, 2011)

Can't wait.  Love Chorizo. Chorizo with eggs, Chorizo with peppers, Chorizo with tortillias, the list goes on...


----------



## fpnmf (Jan 22, 2011)

Sounds great!!

  Craig


----------



## old poi dog (Jan 22, 2011)

Looking forward to the Chorizo .....


----------



## rio_grande (Jan 22, 2011)

Little did I know while chatting last night we share the same plight!!!!!!

I too have been searching for the perfect chriso recipe. I will be watching and may give the recipee a shot. Few spices I will have dificulty finding here though.


----------



## down lowe (Jan 22, 2011)

can't wait to see the finished product.  thanks for sharing the recipe.  it's on my list to try


----------



## chefrob (Jan 22, 2011)

lots of different styles of chorrizo...........want to see how this one comes out as well.


----------



## fishwrestler (Jan 23, 2011)

I let the links sit in the smoker for 1 hour before doing anything to it. Then 2 hours of Mesquite smoke. Then I added heat and it got a little to hot to fast. End result, good flavor but I did not like the texture. Here are some pictures of them in the smoker, being iced and the links, then the slicing. Don't get me wrong they are not horrible just not what I want. I think i need to get to building on that Propane heated smokehouse. So hard to bring the temperature up slowly on a charcoal heated smoker. I asked my wife on a scale of 1-10 what did she give it. She said 4-5, that the italian and Kielbasa I made were 9-10.  The taste was good that the texture was a little grainy, or mealy  and was not chunky and did not hold together like the Kielbasa did. Makes me wonder if I I should have added some powdered Milk. Back to the drawing board boys and girls, IF anyone has any suggestions let me know.

One other note I left these casing in the refrigerator and did not drain off all the water from rinsing them last week. The casing seemed mushy and they tore a lot. Live and Learn.

Good times.

Robert


----------



## mrsb (Jan 23, 2011)

Sorry it wasn't what you were striving for, but I can tell you it looks 10x better than the store bought chorizo I had with eggs for breakfast.

Keep trying and we'll keep looking!


----------



## chefrob (Jan 23, 2011)

other than spices what else differed from the italian and K-links......... fat/meat ratios....etc.?


----------



## fishwrestler (Jan 25, 2011)

chefrob said:


> other than spices what else differed from the italian and K-links......... fat/meat ratios....etc.?




I used powdered milk in the k links, the K-links had some beef in it. I used the same cut of pork on both of them. I took the casing off the chorizo and asked the wife to taste she gave it a 7-8 with out the casing. I think either letting the casing sit for week in to moist of an environment or the fact I got them to hot to soon. Any thought by you more seasoned sausage makers out there.

Robert


----------



## fpnmf (Jan 25, 2011)

Making sausage is fairly easy.

Making good sausage is an art form.

I am just learning. Have had several ok sausage builds.

And some really good andouille.

I learn more each time.

 Have fun!!

 Craig


----------



## BGKYSmoker (Jan 26, 2011)

I have made many chorizo. I your texture is from to much vinegar and the sea salt. Added with a fat out of the heat to fast. On the casing, rinse good inside and out, soak in luke warm water with 1 Tbs vinegar to the soak water for 45 mins.

Here is my recipe for chorizo.

For 10 lbs

7 lbs lean meat, beef

1 1/2 lb pork butt

1 1/2 lbs pork fat......Grind the meats through the med plate 1 time

4 Tbs non iodized salt

2 Tbs paprika

3 Tbs cayenne pepper

2 Tbs black pepper

3 Tbs garlic granules

1 Tbs mexican oregano

1/4 cup powdered dextrose

1/3 cup white or red wine vinegar

2/3 cup cold distilled water

2 level tsp cure #1

If you want a 5 lbs batch just cut the recipe in half.

Mix the recipe very good into the meat, stuff and smoke starting at 140* ramping to 170* until you have a meat IT of 150-155*. Shower with cold water or let stand at room temp to bloom and get wrinkly.


----------



## boykjo (Jan 26, 2011)

I would add more fat ratio to the mix and when adding water add as little as possible. Just enough to mix the spices in the meat. let sausage rest out of fridge for an hr. start smoke at 160 for 1 hr 180 for 2nd  hr 200- 225 for third hr depending on how much sausage your cooking. a packed cooker takes a higher temp. Stop when internal temp reaches 160 and put in water bath immidiatly. i would grind with a 7mm plate. shorten up the sausage so it doesnt hang too close to the heat source....

one mis hap and sausage will wrinkle. i have made hundreds of batches of sausage and most are wrinkle free now and plump unless i lost control of my process somewhere. its easy to do even with the best of us.... plump wrinkle free sausage is what I like to see sausage presentation

Oh and I also use fresh casings in a salt water brine...


----------



## laszlo (Jan 26, 2011)

Watching this thread with interest.

I'm planning on making csabai (hungarian) style suasage. Very similiar to chorizo, far less ingredients though.

Not to hijack someone's thread, but how do you sausage experts estimate the length of the casings? I have 25m (27yards) of hog casings 28-30mm (~1.15") diameter and plan to stuff 10 pounds of meat. If I cut the casings too long, is it OK to cover it in salt again, vaccuum seal it and re-frigerate it, or just throw it away.

It's not about wasting money, it works out at ~$1/yard, so not a big deal, but, why waste good things? I don't want to be few links short, while in stuffing business and wait extra hour or so to soak another length of casings.

BTW I've seen when cleaning intestines of freshly butchered pigs that people used solution of warm water, vinegar and lots of chopped onions. Old school way.

Cheers


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