# Snack Stick/Casing Question



## thebig1 (Nov 24, 2018)

It’s my first time attempting to smoke snack sticks so I’m just going super basic before getting fancy like all of you.

I bought a pack of Lem’s Backwoods and just mixed up the meat and seasoning/cure to sit overnight.

I noticed that the casings are dry. I’m assuming that I need to soak them but there is no direction on the package related to this step.

1.  If I’m correct about soaking the casings prior to attempting to stuff, how long do I soak?

2.  Another question that I have is about smoker temp. I’ve read how some start low and bump 10 degrees every hour. Lem says to just smoke at 180, which should I do and why?

3.  Snack sticks aren’t like a large piece of meat. I have a TP20 thermometer and am wondering how to place it into the stick to measure the temperature?


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## tom987 (Nov 25, 2018)

Read this, it’s found in the sausage sticky.

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/best-practices-for-sausage-making.255662/

If you are talking about the casings that came in the package they are probably collagen casing and should not be soaked.  This will make them weak.  Put them in the fridge for a day or so,  that should give them some moisture.  

Read the article above about smoking temperatures,  I prefer to ramp up the temp.

Personally I would not use a leave in thermometer for snack sticks.  I would use a good quality instinct read like a ThermoWorks Thermopop.   I think the heat would just travel down the metal road and throw off your temp.  I’m not sure what your smoking on but you may need to rotate your sticks every couple hours to get uniform doneness.  A good way to make sure they all get down in the same time is to use a water bath.  You could use a electric roaster or Sous Vide.  I have even used an electric skillet before and it worked great.  When I did it I just put the sticks right into the water with no packaging and they turned out just fine.  Others say to prepackage/seal them and put them into the water like you would when you Sous Vide.  I don’t know when they would bloom if you did it this way.

If you didn’t package them, leave them out on the counter for a bit and they will take on a deeper color(bloom)


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## crazymoon (Nov 25, 2018)

TB1, No soaking collagen casings and your temp should not go above 170 .You may have the fat run out at higher temps and I would bump the temps as it may prevent case hardening i.e. the outside getting a bit of a crust from cooking quicker than the inside. Your temp probe will have to be exactly in the middle of the stick to get an accurate temperature.Have fun !


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## thebig1 (Nov 25, 2018)

Thank you very much guys. Tom, thank you for providing the link, that was some great information.


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## thebig1 (Nov 25, 2018)

Today was a bust. Tried to stuff with my Kitchenaid stuffer attachment. It was less than impressive. So I put the meat in the freezer, ordered a Lem 5lb manual stuffer, and will do it next weekend.


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## Braz (Nov 25, 2018)

thebig1 said:


> Today was a bust. Tried to stuff with my Kitchenaid stuffer attachment. It was less than impressive. So I put the meat in the freezer, ordered a Lem 5lb manual stuffer, and will do it next weekend.


Good call. You will be happier.


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