Recipe: Homemade Italian Sausage (4)

From Frugal Gourmet-Jeff Smith

Italian Sausage
2 lb coarse-ground lean pork
1 tablespoon coarse-ground fennel*
2 bay leaves, crushed
1 tablespoon dried parsley
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/8 teaspoon hot dried red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
4 tablespoons water

Mix together all the ingredients, and let rest in refrigerator for 1 hour. Then mix again.
Stuff into casings, or use as is. Makes 2 pounds of sausage.

*Buy whole fennel seed, and pound it up in a mortar and pestle or small electric coffee
grinder.

Home Sausage Making by Charles Reavis (an excellent book for sausage)

Northern Italian-Style
Hot or Sweet Sausage
This variety is extremely simple to make and is delicious roasted or used to flavor tomato
sauce. To make three pounds

2 1/2 lb lean pork butt, cubed
1/2 lb pork fat, cubed
3 teaspoon coarse salt
2 teaspoon coarsely ground fresh black pepper
2 teaspoon finely ground coriander
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon or more, to taste, crushed red pepper for hot sausage

Grind the meat and fat together through the coarse disk.
Mix the remaining ingredients with the meat.
Stuff into casings (if you want-3 feet medium hog casings)
Refrigerate and use within three days, or wrap into single use portions and freeze.

Luganega
"Luganega is the mildest Italian sausage you will encounter. It is Northern Italian in origin
and in this country you would be luck to find it anywhere except in the kitchen of an Italian
home. To make four pounds of luganega".

3 lb lean pork butt, cubed
1 lb pork fat, cubed
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp finely ground coriander
1/2 tsp grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp grated orange peel
1 tsp freshly fine-ground black pepper
1 small clove garlic, finely chopped
3 tsp salt
1/2 cup dry vermouth

1. Prepare the casings.4 feet medium hog casings
2. Grind the pork and fat together through the fine disk.
3. Sprinkle the remaining ingredients over the meat and mix well.
4. Stuff the mixture into casings (4 feet medium hog casings-if you want) and twist off into
eight- or ten-inch links.
5. Separate the links and allow them to dry in a cool place for two or 3 hours.
6. Refrigerate and use with two or three days or wrap separately and freeze. (The flavor of
the lemon and orange is intensified by freezing, so the sausage is best when used fresh.)

Sicilian-Style Sausage

4 lb lean pork butt, cubed
1 lb pork fat, cubed
5 tsp coarse salt
3 tsp fresh black pepper, coarsely ground
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 1/2 tsp fennel seed
1 tsp anise seed
Crushed red pepper to taste

Grind the meat through a coarse disk. Mix the remaining ingredients with the ground meat
and fat. (Stuff as with others, if you wish)
Refriegerate and use within three days....