# Meat grinder problem



## wazzuqer (Sep 25, 2013)

I have a cabelas 1/2 HP grinder. Works great on  the Large plate that comes with it,7mm, but when I go to grind the meat again with the smallest plate that comes with it 4.5MM, it really boggs down.  It takes way way longer to grind and you have to put alot more pressure on the supplied stuffing stick to force the meat in the grinder.  Was wondering if this is normal or am I doing something wrong, all three times I have used it i have had this problem...thanks.......


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## daveomak (Sep 25, 2013)

I have found grinding meat a second time doesn't work too well....   the meat squishes around the auger, because it's in very small pieces, and pressure to the plate and knife is pretty much non existent....   Maybe that is not true for meat grinders that have a closer tolerance between the auger and the auger housing...   Cold, almost frozen meat will grind better....  

Any particular reason you are grinding twice ????

Sharpening the blade and surfacing the plate may help.... I use water as a lubricant with a little dish soap in it......    Dave

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     ........ Be sure the surface you use as a backing is FLAT.......













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## wazzuqer (Sep 25, 2013)

Thanks for the help, I figured by grinding it the 2nd time with the 4.5mm plate instead of again with the 7mm plate it would stuff  better in the 19/21mm casings I use for snack sticks. Do I even need to use the 4.5 mm plate? Thanks


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## dward51 (Sep 25, 2013)

2nd grind will also change the texture of the final product.  Some items work better with a 2nd grind in a smaller plate.  You can also regrind in the same size plate as the 1st grind.  It does reduce the final texture, but not as much as a grind through a smaller plate.

Also a dull blade on the cutter will tend to smear the meat on smaller grinds instead of cutting against the plate.  The blade needs to be in tight contact with the plate and there is usually a spacer to ensure this happens.  Check to make sure your grinder has the spacer inserted and the contact between the plate and knife is solid (you will actually notice very faint swirl marks where the blade is pressing on the plate when you clean the grinder up if they are in good contact as it should be "metal to metal" between blade and back of grinding plate).

One more thought.  Make sure the flat side of the blade is against the plate.  If the round side of the blade is against the plate you are mushing and not cutting.


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## daveomak (Sep 25, 2013)

Wazzu,  When I make sausage, I freeze and grind the fat through the small holed plate....   that way you can more uniformly distribute the fat in the sausage...  The meat I grind through a larger holed plate so their is texture in the meat when taking a bite....  

Now all the doesn't hold true when you are trying to get the texture in a hot dog, if that's the texture you are looking for....  Then a grind twice through the med. or small plate is in order or put the meat in a food processor with the blade to emulsify the meat....    Lots of ways to get different texture...   Only grind half the meat in the small plate and half in the large plate...   Dave


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## daricksta (Sep 25, 2013)

The meat has to be very cold, even partially frozen in order to grind easily. When you run it through a grinder the first time, it heats up and may become too warm and soft to run it through a second time unless you chill the meat down again. I've got a Nesco 400 watt food grinder and tho I don't always chill the meat down, I've had no problems running it thru twice.

If you watch cooking shows and/or read recipes, they always recommend keeping the meat in the fridge or the freezer for about 30 mins or so before grinding.


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## tjnamtiw (Sep 25, 2013)

DaveOmak said:


> Wazzu,  When I make sausage, I freeze and grind the fat through the small holed plate....   that way you can more uniformly distribute the fat in the sausage...  The meat I grind through a larger holed plate so their is texture in the meat when taking a bite....
> 
> Now all the doesn't hold true when you are trying to get the texture in a hot dog, if that's the texture you are looking for....  Then a grind twice through the med. or small plate is in order or put the meat in a food processor with the blade to emulsify the meat....    Lots of ways to get different texture...   Only grind half the meat in the small plate and half in the large plate...   Dave


If you're doing hot dogs, for sure, use a food processor adding a little water with each batch so it works.  If you are looking for a smaller grind size, like others said, put it back in the freezer until it's almost frozen.  Also, if you mix the meat with the seasonings after the first grind, there will come a time when the meat takes on a stickier, tackier feel to it.  At that point, the meat is ready to stuff and will lose a lot of its rough texture.  I don't know what that transition is called but it's what you're looking for to know you've mixed enough.


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## unclejoeyv (Sep 26, 2013)

I like to put the ground meat into a baking pan and smush it flat. Then into the freezer. when it's almost frozen pull it out, cut into strips and feed the strips into the feed tube. you won't gum up anymore that way.  If you're making dogs in a food processor you should be adding ice chips, not water!


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## daveomak (Sep 26, 2013)

unclejoeyv said:


> I like to put the ground meat into a baking pan and smush it flat. Then into the freezer. when it's almost frozen pull it out, cut into strips and feed the strips into the feed tube. you won't gum up anymore that way.
> 
> *If you're making dogs in a food processor you should be adding ice chips, not water!*


Excellent point.....


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## wazzuqer (Sep 26, 2013)

Thanks for the help everyone your awesome. Next time I make my snack sticks I will just freeze a little bit and run them through my 7mm plate twice...


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## tjnamtiw (Sep 26, 2013)

DaveOmak said:


> Excellent point.....


Yes, I meant to say 'ice water', but ice chips would be even better since the goal is to keep the meat temp below 40, I think.


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## rio_grande (Dec 31, 2013)

I have the 3/4 hp cabelas and run it through the small one first pass. Unless I want it mush which I never do. 

Make sure the pressure on your nut is as tight as you can get it by hand. Rye freezing it is in my opinion the best bet.


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