WILD BOAR ITALIAN SAUSAGE
This wild boar Italian sausage is a simple bulk sausage made with pork shoulder, fennel, garlic, paprika, herbs, vinegar, and chile flakes. It works as loose sausage for pasta, pizza, or meatballs, and it can also be stuffed into casings for links.
Ingredients
- 5 pounds boneless pork shoulder
- 3 tablespoons coarse kosher salt (40 grams if using a different salt)
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon hot red pepper chili flakes
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 3 tablespoons sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup fresh oregano leaves (or 2 tablespoons dried)
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves (or 2 tablespoons dried)
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- ¾ ice cold water
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients except the vinegar and water into a large bowl. Toss thoroughly to combine.
- Grind the pork mixture through the small die plate into your chilled mixing bowl or a bowl that is sitting over ice.
- Pour the water and the vinegar into the ground meat mixture.
- Using your stand mixer's paddle attachment (or a sturdy spoon), start mixing the ground pork at a low speed. Mix until the liquids are fully combined and the meat has a tacky/sticky appearance. This can take around 2 minutes.
- Check for Seasoning: Fry a small piece of the sausage and taste. Now is the time to add seasoning as you see fit. This could be more salt, red pepper flakes or any other seasoning you see fit. Repeat until you are satisfied with the finished product.
- Refrigerate until needed or freeze for future use.
NOTES
- Keep everything cold. Chill the meat, grinder parts, bowl, and any added fat before you start. Cold meat grinds cleaner and gives the sausage a better texture.
- Use enough fat. Pork shoulder is the best fit here because it already has good fat content. If your meat is leaner, the post notes you can make it juicier with 4 1/2 pounds pork shoulder plus 8 ounces pork fat.
- Add liquids after grinding. Grind the seasoned meat first, then mix in the vinegar and ice-cold water until the sausage looks tacky and sticky. That protein binding is what keeps the sausage from being crumbly.
- Cook a test patty. Fry a small piece before packaging or stuffing the whole batch so you can adjust the salt, heat, or herbs while it is still easy to fix.
- Rest it if possible. The post says the raw sausage holds well in the refrigerator for about 1 week if wrapped tightly, which also gives the seasoning time to settle in.
- Freeze it wrapped well. Wrap tightly in plastic, freezer paper, freezer bags, or vacuum seal it, and use within about 3 months for best quality.
Nutrition
Calories: 616kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 104g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 272mg | Sodium: 4464mg | Potassium: 1946mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2653IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 131mg | Iron: 7mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation. Nutrition is per serving.
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