# Meat to fat ratio when grinding Sausage.



## bobbydsbbq

Hi everybody,

I'm going to try grinding up some homemade bulk sausage using a pork butt along with back fat trimmings from another butt and maybe a brisket. What ratio of lean to fat mixture do you prefer to use when grinding sausage? I was thinking 60/40

Thanks for the help!


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## boykjo

80/20   dont add fat to the butt. its already 80/20

Welcome to SMF Bobby.How about swinging over to roll call and introducing yourself so we can give you a proper welcome and dont forget to fill out your profile

Good luck and happy smoking

Joe


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## BGKYSmoker

What Joe said.


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## daniels

Sorry to break into the thread but I'm new around here and I want to make sure I understand what was said.

Are you saying that I can count on a pork butt having an 80% lean to 20% fat ratio (after removing any tough tissue I assume) and that I can make bulk breakfast sausage out of that by grinding it up and adding my spices?

Thanks.


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## uncle_lar

yes, you can use pork butts to make your sausage with out adding any extra fat.

you do have to buy untrimmed whole pork butts. ask your butcher to sell them to you the way he gets them in.  the ones that are re wrapped in the meat case may have a little of the fat trimmed off.

the ones I usually get come 2 butts per  cyrovac package.

I make all my sausage with them without adding any extra fat.

very little goes to waste.most of the time I fillet out the bone , trim a little of the vein out and into the grinder!


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## daniels

Wow, that would make things quite convenient.  Does the 80:20 ratio apply to the whole shoulder too?


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## alelover

We get Smithfield butts here that are grown real fast and trimmed a bunch. Not a lot of fat on them. I will usually add 1/2 to 1 lb. of fat with these.


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## boykjo

The picnic is a leaner cut of meat but if you want to use a whole shoulder I wouldnt worry about adding fat. I made sausage out of picnics before and they were ok....

Joe


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## daniels

I was wondering about this because I don't have a kitchen scale.  It would be nice to make up some breakfast sausage before I get a scale but maybe I should wait unless I can locate untrimmed pork butt.

Edit:  Can any of you recommend a good kitchen scale?


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## DanMcG

Like some say, 80-20 is good, maybe 30% fat for some things. Go with a butt or a shoulder, it will be in the range you're looking for. Just trim out the bone, connective tissue and soft fat between the muscles.

I can almost guarantee they will be leaner or about the same as what you buy in the store. but will taste better.


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## boykjo

DanielS said:


> I was wondering about this because I don't have a kitchen scale.  It would be nice to make up some breakfast sausage before I get a scale but maybe I should wait unless I can locate untrimmed pork butt.
> 
> Edit:  Can any of you recommend a good kitchen scale?


http://desmoines.craigslist.org/app/2725656670.html

see what model and what r the min max

Joe


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## DanMcG

Here's a great visual of what you want for a grind. I got this from Len Poli's site which is one of the best out there for sausage info.

Ok I spent a half hour of my life trying to post a pic off his web site, way to long . (I'm not real puter smart.0 so here's the page and it's only down a little from the top/

look for 4 pipctures of different grinds. that will show ya what ya want ....then read the rest of the site and you'll more then ya need to about sausage making

http://lpoli.50webs.com/page0001.htm

Holy moly I felt like I was sharing the pipe with Chef JJ for a while there... I need a drink


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## venture

Nearly all the butts we get are fine as they come for the sausages we normally make.  Rarely one might be a little fat or lean.

Good luck and good smoking.


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## sprky

DanMcG said:


> Here's a great visual of what you want for a grind. I got this from Len Poli's site which is one of the best out there for sausage info.
> 
> Ok I spent a half hour of my life trying to post a pic off his web site, way to long . (I'm not real puter smart.0 so here's the page and it's only down a little from the top/
> 
> look for 4 pipctures of different grinds. that will show ya what ya want ....then read the rest of the site and you'll more then ya need to about sausage making
> 
> http://lpoli.50webs.com/page0001.htm
> 
> Holy moly I felt like I was sharing the pipe with Chef JJ for a while there... I need a drink


Thanks for the link Dan That site is a wealth of knowledge got it book marked for future rference


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## pineywoods

I thought untrimmed pork buts were closer to 30% fat


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## DanMcG

Pineywoods said:


> I thought untrimmed pork buts were closer to 30% fat




Probably so Jerry but around here they trim them real tight, so I'd guess between 20%-30%. I mostly go by looks after its ground and add more back fat if it looks lean.


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## snifferbens

i took a 4 1/2 lb pork roast and 1 lb of fat too make my sweet italian sausage.


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## alelover

My Scale


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## shortend

DanielS said:


> Sorry to break into the thread but I'm new around here and I want to make sure I understand what was said.
> 
> Are you saying that I can count on a pork butt having an 80% lean to 20% fat ratio (after removing any tough tissue I assume) and that I can make bulk breakfast sausage out of that by grinding it up and adding my spices?
> 
> Thanks.


DanielsS

I'm from Iowa too. I usually get my prok butts from Walmart ot Sam's Club. Walmart's come individually KryoVac packed and Sam's come 2 to a KryoVac pack. The 80/20 ratio is usually pretty close. I've had good luck with them. I tried Hy Vee's pork butt, but I found them to be over trimmed and I had to add some fat to it, so I try to avoid theirs if I can. Not sure about Fareway's as I haven't gotten any pork butts there.




DanielS said:


> I was wondering about this because I don't have a kitchen scale.  It would be nice to make up some breakfast sausage before I get a scale but maybe I should wait unless I can locate untrimmed pork butt.
> 
> Edit:  Can any of you recommend a good kitchen scale?


I've got a Salter digital scale that I got from Bed Bath & Beyond. It works very well for me and is reasonably priced.

ShortEnd


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## sausageboy

Pork butts available here vary a lot in fat content, both intermuscular and cap.
Many are well below 20%, which is why I got of the phone with a butcher no more than 30 minutes ago in a search for some back fat.






:sausage:


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## venture

I like my "regular" sausages in the 25% fat range.

At 80/20 it is a little lean for me?  But that is a preference issue.  Look for the texture you like!

Good luck and good smoking.


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## up4smoke

sorry... so if I wanna make venison and pork sausage, say 10 lbs, and wanna use pork butt, how much pork to deer ratio would I use? I recently made my first batch and may have made it too fat. (6#pork butt/4#deer)


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## DanMcG

SausageBoy said:


>




Son of a ....... 

How'd ya do that. Oh never mind I don't want to know.


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## DanMcG

up4smoke said:


> sorry... so if I wanna make venison and pork sausage, say 10 lbs, and wanna use pork butt, how much pork to deer ratio would I use? I recently made my first batch and may have made it too fat. (6#pork butt/4#deer)


That really depends on how much fat is on the butt and how fat you like it. I learned to know what I like by looking at it after the grind.

a 6 pound butt at 30% fat,  has about 2 pounds fat.

add 4 pounds of venison.

you'll have 10 pounds of sausage with 2 pounds of fat, or 20%

some will say that's to lean, others to fat.


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## alelover

I get extra fat at the grocery store. Talk to the butcher. They toss a lot of fat away when they trim the meat for butts, CSRs, steaks and what ever else. I got 3 pounds free from the Food Lion here.


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## up4smoke

That's what I wanted to know. Thanks.I didn't figure my fat/lean content on the butt when figuring weights so i got lucky...


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## venture

Nothing is free here.  Pork fat is now more than we paid for butts a couple of years back.  
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Good luck and good smoking.


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## sausageboy

Venture said:


> Nothing is free here.  Pork fat is now more than we paid for butts a couple of years back.
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> Good luck and good smoking.




Yeah, the butcher I talked with last night wanted $1.50 a pound for fat back, which is ridiculous!!!! I won't pay that!

What I'll continue to do is cut the coppa out of the butt and make cottage ham with that....and I'll make sausage with what's left of the butt, which will have a higher fat percentage with the coppa removed.


:sausage:


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## venture

Actually, I was in the store tonight.  Poor guy was asking for dog bones.  "Butcher" behind the counter said that would be .99 per pound, please?

Good luck and good smoking.


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## sib55

Ditto with ShortEnd,

I am in Nebraska, Sams is where I get my pork busts, come 2 to a package.  I have tried Fareway, similar to SAMs.  Ask them to pull them out of the box they came in and they will have the fat on them.


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## duckybud

I have found that intermuscular fat in shoulders imparts a taste that is not pleasing to me.  I trim all the fat from a shoulder that I can get out of it and add backfat to the desired amount.  I guess I am lucky because I have a butcher that gives me pure backfat for nothing, 20lb at a time, just need to let him know ahead of time needed.  I also like the way the fatback grinds, it seems to stay in more uniform pieces and mixes much better with the lean meet.  Usually add 25% fat, but as others have said, it is a matter of finding what you like.


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## daniels

ShortEnd said:


> DanielsS
> 
> I'm from Iowa too. I usually get my prok butts from Walmart ot Sam's Club. Walmart's come individually KryoVac packed and Sam's come 2 to a KryoVac pack. The 80/20 ratio is usually pretty close. I've had good luck with them. I tried Hy Vee's pork butt, but I found them to be over trimmed and I had to add some fat to it, so I try to avoid theirs if I can. Not sure about Fareway's as I haven't gotten any pork butts there.
> 
> I've got a Salter digital scale that I got from Bed Bath & Beyond. It works very well for me and is reasonably priced.
> 
> ShortEnd


Hi ShortEnd.

I found some very good reviews on the OXO scale so I picked up one a couple days ago but thanks for the reply.

Around here Hy-Vee meats are so-so.  I'm sure it depends upon the particular store but I went into one looking for a pork roast and all of the roasts were well beyond the last sale date.  Same with baloney, hot dogs, dairy products, etc.  I avoid Hy-Vee if I can.  I see Hy-Vee managers I know shopping for groceries at Wal-Mart so that tells you something.

If I can I get stuff at COSTCO.  We have a very good one near where I work.  I walk over there at lunch time some days.  I can't beat that.

Anyway, I've got a ton of stuff to learn.

Thanks again,

Dan


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## shortend

DanielS said:


> Hi ShortEnd.
> 
> I found some very good reviews on the OXO scale so I picked up one a couple days ago but thanks for the reply.
> 
> Around here Hy-Vee meats are so-so.  I'm sure it depends upon the particular store but I went into one looking for a pork roast and all of the roasts were well beyond the last sale date.  Same with baloney, hot dogs, dairy products, etc.  I avoid Hy-Vee if I can.  I see Hy-Vee managers I know shopping for groceries at Wal-Mart so that tells you something.
> 
> If I can I get stuff at COSTCO.  We have a very good one near where I work.  I walk over there at lunch time some days.  I can't beat that.
> 
> Anyway, I've got a ton of stuff to learn.
> 
> Thanks again,
> 
> Dan


Dan, glad you found a good scale. OXO makes good quality products. Your gonna use it constantly and won't know how you ever got along without it. Sorry to here your Hy Vee's aren't too good down there. Not too bad here, but a bit pricey and not many cuts I usually use for sausage or smoking, although, I do like they're Eye of Rounds for Dried Beef and Jerky. We don't have a COSTCO, but I have heard they are similar to Sam's Club. Lots of smokin' folks I know shop there for their meats and seem to be satisfied You should be good to go.

ShortEnd


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## Ada

boykjo said:


> 80/20   dont add fat to the butt. its already 80/20
> 
> Welcome to SMF Bobby.How about swinging over to roll call and introducing yourself so we can give you a proper welcome and dont forget to fill out your profile
> 
> Good luck and happy smoking
> 
> Joe


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## Ada

What about using extremely lean meat with little animal fat and using coconut oil?


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## Rings Я Us

:D
Oh, sausage! Oops!


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## tallbm

Ada said:


> What about using extremely lean meat with little animal fat and using coconut oil?



Hi there and welcome!

I'm quite sure that would not work because the coconut oil would begin turning into a liquid at temps where fat would not.  Same goes for using butter.

I use very lean meat (venison) and buy trimmed pork back fat or use trimmed beef fat from briskets.  I mix the meat and the fat in 80% meat to 20% fat ratio and consistently make great sausage or sandwich meat from it.

I hope this info helps :)


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## JMcGraw47

danmcg said:


> Here's a great visual of what you want for a grind. I got this from Len Poli's site which is one of the best out there for sausage info.
> 
> Ok I spent a half hour of my life trying to post a pic off his web site, way to long . (I'm not real puter smart.0 so here's the page and it's only down a little from the top/
> 
> look for 4 pipctures of different grinds. that will show ya what ya want ....then read the rest of the site and you'll more then ya need to about sausage making
> 
> http://lpoli.50webs.com/page0001.htm
> 
> Holy moly I felt like I was sharing the pipe with Chef JJ for a while there... I need a drink



Good read Dan, Thanx!


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