Hello Adam. I have one of those Steiners you are talking about. I THINK its got a grinder on one end and a coffee grinder on the other. I'll see if I have a picture of it.
Also, its not as hard to do as you might think. Its really pretty easy in fact. You just load your grinder hopper full of meat to be ground. And then you grind your meat into a pan. Season your meat in chunks before you grind it. Then grind it.
Then put any water you want into it, it makes it easier to stuff. (hidden message here, water is called 'butchers gold' by the way) If I have to explain that to anybody somebody else can tell you. :o ;D
I've told this at least a thousand times on here but I worked in the meat industry for 40, forty, fortie, 480 months, however you want to say it. I started when I was twelve years old. My point is you can believe what I am saying.
Now back to the sausage. So you got it in your pan, its ground once, its already been seasoned, and you have added water (butchers gold) to make it easier to stuff, cough cough, (easier to stuff), nah I'm just kidding about some of this.
BUT it does make it easier to stuff because it slides through the casing easier. OH, I don't know for sure, but somebody told me once that it makes the sausage weigh more. But I can't (won't) confirm that.
Now bare in mind most people usually just fill their hopper up with the chunks, maybe not even seasoned, and then put the casing right on the grinder stuffer tube, run it into the tube, and they are done.
That is the lazy mans way and also the wrong way. If you want GOOD SAUSAGE, and there is a hell of a difference. For example, does anybody know what % of fat and other ingredients is allowed by Federal Law and it still be ALLOWED to be labeled/called 'sausage'?
If you read that slow you will understand the question. And don't ask me what kind of 'sausage'. For this question, sausage is sausage is sausage, smoked, fresh, bulk, Italian, and I could very easily name twenty more, but you get the idea.
Now getting back to the sausage to be finished. You now take that pan of ground meat, if you WANT to call it sausage you can, because it is. And you dump it back up into your hopper and THEN you run it through the casing. So you are grinding it, running it through the grinder twice, once as chunks with seasonings.
I like natural casings because they are easy to use, readily available, and you can eat them and it is very easy to digest. Sausage casings are from a hog. They also use casings from sheep, ‘first prophylactic was made from a sheep casing, check it out if you don't believe me, the French made it, I am not surprised, IF there is a way to get it done, the FRENCH will find it'.
So you slide your casing on over your stuffer tube, takes about two minutes if you are slow. I don't know about synthetic casings, they are alright, and I have used them when I was forced to use them. But natural are easier to use.
I don't know if everybody that has problems with casings know how to properly use them. Only take out what you think you are going to use, now I am talking about natural casings. Soak them overnight in water in the fridge, in a nice big container of water.
For artificial casings, they are all one length. So you cut the desired lengths. Be sure you soak them just like you do the natural ones. The artificial ones come like a garden hose rolled up at the store when you buy it. So yes, be sure and soak them in water for much much much easier use, yes I said it three times. In case you were not listening the first time and second time.
And before you use them, ahead of time, open them up on one end and use two fingers to spread them open, while they are still in the bucket of water, so you have that one end open, now dip that down into your water, put about six, eight, whatever, but no less that six or eight inches of water into your casing.
Remember I said how the artificial ones came all rolled up and nice and neat like a garden hose. The natural ones, how do they come? WELL, think about your own natural casings. Do they come in a nice rolled up neat and orderly way a garden hose comes?
HINT: Mine don't come that way. If you see a little sarcasm in some of what I say, there is. And if you don't like it don't read it. Just kidding. If it bothers you please accept my apology. Really. :) :) :) :) :)
I feel like Joel Schiff tonight. I'll explain that later if needed.
So you have six or eight inches of your casing full of water, now squeeze the end closed, the end where your two fingers are. And then you keep sliding your water through the casing keeping the short end choked off.
As you progress through the casing put it back into another container of water. And do that to all your casings that you will be using, or think you will be using the next day.
What you don't use, you can pitch them, feed them to the dog, throw them in the neighbors yard or whatever.
And if you want to you can freeze them till later in the season and use them then. What you did not take out of the container that you bought them in, leave them in the container refrigerated, they will last very easily two years, maybe three, but I know they will last two years.
Where I worked we got them from Chicago. They came in 55 gallon wooden oak barrels. The same kind they use for whisky. And they came in 'hanks', so many hanks to the barrell.
Please don't ask me how many hanks in a barrell? But in case anybody is wondering. The answer is I don't know and I don't care. But one hank would stuff one hundred and twenty pounds of sausage.
If you ask your meat market for a hank of casings he will ask you did you learn that on the internet. If they are twenty to thirty years old they will give you the deer in the headlights look.
If he asks you do you know yourself, tell him/her no, thats why I am asking you. That means one of two things.
Either he is going to know what they are, or he is going to tell you some big BS story knowing full well that since you don't know yourself he can tell you anything and you will believe him.
Whatever he tells you, you will know, if he tells you some big lie, just nod and tell him he is correct and leave it at that. MAYBE he will put less 'butchers gold' in your sausage the next time he makes it. NAH, that ain't gonna happen,.he won't do that. LOL
When I worked at the meat market I looked at it this way. The more money I make for my boss the more he has to pay me.
