# Venison Summer Sausage in Oven



## lindsay herring (Dec 1, 2015)

I am a deer processor in NC and am experimenting with summer sausage. I have a summer sausage season pack for 25 lbs along  with fibrous casings that are about 2 1/2 inches in diameter    I believe the casings are 20 inches long it will hold about 3 pounds of meat.  I am thinking about  making two logs out of one casing so it would have somewhere between 1 pound and 1.5 pounds of meat inside each log.  To cook in the oven inside the casing how long and what temperature do I need to cook the log at ?   I am for familiar with the appendix A that FSIS  uses as a guideline for cooking temperatures


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## crankybuzzard (Dec 1, 2015)

Welcome!

A few questions.  Are you using a cure?  Will you be adding liquid smoke?

If you're using a cure, you'll want to slowly cook the chubs at low temps so as not to have a fat out situation.  When I smoke, I go 120° for 2 hours to dry the exterior and preheat a bit, then bump to 130° with smoke for 30 minutes, and then bump up 10 degrees every 30 minutes until I get to a pit temperature of 170°.  I hold at 170° until I get an internal temperature of 152° on the chubs.  Even without smoke, that would be a good way to go about it since it will provide a slow and even cook.

As for cooking time, I hate to say it, but cook it until it's done...  I know, not the best answer, but cooking times vary.  I've had SS done in 7 hours and also had it take upwards of 12.

Without cure, you may have to cook a bit hotter than normal to get to temp and may lose some fat, which would affect the texture of the final product.


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## lindsay herring (Dec 1, 2015)

Yes. I was planning on using the cure. I was just simple going to put it in a conventional oven and set at "x" temperature for "x" amount of time. 

Any suggestions.


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## driedstick (Dec 1, 2015)

I also suggest cure,,Cranky Buzzard has you covered 

Most ovens will go as low as 170*,,Keep door cracked open with a wooden spoon or something of that sort,,,,,for first 2hrs so sausages can dry,,, 

Times will Vary!!! make sure you have a good thermometer to check for it being done. 

Here are some ideas for you. 

Take IT Temp of the sausages to a min of 152* when they are done put them in a water bath till IT goes down below 90* or so (this stops the cooking) then hang at room temp for a couple hours, then in the fridge overnight,,,next day vac pac and freeze. 

Good luck and let us know 

A full smoker is a happy smoker 

DS


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## crankybuzzard (Dec 1, 2015)

Lindsay Herring said:


> Yes. I was planning on using the cure. I was just simple going to put it in a conventional oven and set at "x" temperature for "x" amount of time.
> 
> Any suggestions.


_*"When you're making BBQ and sausages, the only thing you need with numbers on it is a thermometer".*_  

That's what my old Pappy (grandfather) used to say to me when I'd ask how much longer something had left to go on the pit.

Like we've said, there may be some baselines out there, but I've had the times run all over the place.  A batch last week may have taken 7 hours and then this week it took 11.  It can seriously vary that much.

More than likely, you're going to be busy doing other things, so I'd suggest a GOOD remote probe thermometer with a temp alarm on it.  Set the alarm for 5 degrees earlier than you want the final IT to be.  When the alarm goes off, check your product in a different spot (different sausage link), and if it's at, or close, to the same temp, reset the alarm for the final IT.  Now, that final 5 degrees may take 2-4 hours!  SS is a stubborn critter!

Then, like @driedstick said, drop them into  an ice water bath and allow the IT to drop to ~90°, hang a room temp for a couple, then into the frig for 8 hours or overnight, then package up...


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