Making Sausage???

Pepper Monkey BBQ

Anyone make sausage using a kitchenaid mixer with meat grinder and sausage stuffer attachment??? Thinking that is going to be my next ... or near future ... eggsperiment. Wondering if it is the best route to take since we already have the kitchenaid.

mattrapp

The Kitchenaid grinder/stuffer is fine if you are doing small, occasional batches of sausage. If you are going to do any type of volume production it could get pretty annoying. The KA setup is also an economical way to get started, and then if you decide you want to really get into it, you can invest in the right equipment for bigger production.

AZRP

As long as you aren't trying to make large batches of sausage, 15 lbs plus, the KA works very well. -RP

Pepper Monkey BBQ

There are only two of us ... and the sausage would mostly be for BBQs and to have something stashed in the freezer ... it just sounds like fun to make some personalized smoked sausages.

Thanks for the tip!

Morro Bay Rich

Every once in awhile this topic raises its head here on the Forum. I suspect a search will bring up several posts.
Many will say the KA will do fine (my opinion) and others will recommend a grinder the size of a cement mixer which will allow for making a thousand pounds at a whack. That would certainly be the way to go if you are starting a sausage business. :unsure:

AZRP

Also once you grind your own hamburger you won't want to buy it anymore. Ribeye burgers are fabulous. -RP

Pepper Monkey BBQ

Agreed ... that would be part of the plan!!!

GB Packers Fan

Randy, How much do the attachments cost?

AZRP

Del. about $50. -RP
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/kitchenaid-food-grinder-attachment.html

thirdeye

I've been using a KA grinder for years. My mixer is 25 years old and is probably the smallest wattage one out there. If your meat is properly cut and partially frozen you can grind it at a rate of one pound per minute all day long. This is not a bad pace at all, especially if you don't have a helper. 20 or 25 pound batches are usually my norm because my stuffer has a 5# barrel and I make 3 or 4 different flavors each time I do sausage. At Christmas I will do 60 or 70 pounds, which is about all the room I can spare in the beer fridge. :laugh:

The KA is handy for small batches too, tomorrow, I'm grinding 8 pounds of pork butt for green chili.

I don't care for the stuffer attachment, but can hold my own with the stuffer I have.

emilluca

The KA can and does work as others have said to do 10 lbs of link or stuffed sausage is a chore. The feed hole is just to small for a bulk stuffing. I use it to make pan sausage and fatties [no casings. I bought a water powered sausage stuffer that works great if I want to stuff. It does 10 lbs FAST.
check out www.sausagesource.com for stuff you need. I do not have any interest in the place other then they ship fast, have great seasoning and kits to make bologna, summer sausage and other goodies.
E

stike

the kitchen-aid grinder works fine for say, 5 pounds, maybe 10.

but the stuffer is a pain in the brah-shoons [translation: it svcks pondwater]

if you want to do anything more than a few pounds on a regular basis, get a decent dedicated stuffer. i haven't pulled the trigger yet, as a decent stuffer is the priciest thing in the equation.

making sausage is a fun way to hang out with the spouse. and kids like it too.

...was supposed to make some bratwurst yesterday, but got caught up in goofing around

stike

what's yer stuffer, boss? and did it cost three hunnerd bucks?

stike

you'll love it.

my kielbasa was the hit of the party.
(funny, in college when i used to say that it had a whole different meaning....)

thirdeye

Mine is from The Sausage Maker, but it's older than my KA mixer. I'm sure I gave around 100 for it, but that was in 1980 dollars. Heheee. It has the old style wooden handle grip, metal gears that need white grease and a machined metal plunger. I've never had a lick of trouble out of it. It spits out sausage as fast as you can turn the handle. I considered a #10 one, but the 5# one is handy if you are making several kinds. (plus I have access to a #15 pound stuffer when I'm packaging one pound logs or making huge batches of one flavor)

I just looked at the comparable model on their web site...wow, very streamlined, a pressure relief device, o-ring seal and all stainless yoke. I would buy another in a heartbeat. And it's $300

stike

rrrrats. i can buy a lotta sausage for three hunnerd bucks.

gah!