Adding fat to ground game meat
- Thread starter regulate34
- Start date
We'll go 50/50 or 60/40 but if the consistency is still dry...we'll give it a little water. Seems to make the sausage easier to stuff into the casing.
A butcher could never do this;it's for private consumption though, no problem there.
A butcher could never do this;it's for private consumption though, no problem there.
Suka
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
We add a little pork to elk and moose for hamburger and some types of sausage. Anywhere from 10-30% depending on the sausage, 30% for hamburger so there's good fat in it for burgers or meatloaf.
If we've got something more rank (gamy) like a big old mule buck we'll go as high as 50%.
OP don't let the smoker stop you from making sausage, just make fresh sausage for bbq'ing, frying or baking (some olive oil on tinfoil, wrap the fresh sausage in it, bake for an hour-1.5 hrs at 350) We commonly do that in the winter and seperately wrapped some olive oil on tinfoil, potato, carrot, onion, zuchini or whatever you have in the oven for 1.5 hrs Sort of a lazy mans supper that's tasty. The potato's take 1.5 hrs, but if you slice them and put them on the bottom in the oil they get a nice crispy edge.
If we've got something more rank (gamy) like a big old mule buck we'll go as high as 50%.
OP don't let the smoker stop you from making sausage, just make fresh sausage for bbq'ing, frying or baking (some olive oil on tinfoil, wrap the fresh sausage in it, bake for an hour-1.5 hrs at 350) We commonly do that in the winter and seperately wrapped some olive oil on tinfoil, potato, carrot, onion, zuchini or whatever you have in the oven for 1.5 hrs Sort of a lazy mans supper that's tasty. The potato's take 1.5 hrs, but if you slice them and put them on the bottom in the oil they get a nice crispy edge.
Northman999
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Yukon
Very clean bear fat is fine to add to just about anything, and is considered a premium fat for making pastries.
Myself, when I add fat to things like moose burger, I go buy a bunch of bacon on sale and add that.
'Cause nobody ever added bacon to anyting and regretted it...
Myself, when I add fat to things like moose burger, I go buy a bunch of bacon on sale and add that.
'Cause nobody ever added bacon to anyting and regretted it...
Bigfoot 870
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Nova Scotia
If I want beef or pork, I'll go shoot a cow or pig 
100% ground venison..........deer or moose!!! Once you learn how to cook it, you'll never look back
100% ground venison..........deer or moose!!! Once you learn how to cook it, you'll never look back
M12shooter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- East St. Paul, mb
Your pure wild ground will stay for year like this if wrapped well. I add extra virgin olive oil to my ground these days. If I want pork in the mix I add lean ground pork at time of cooking...
One must remove all fat from whitetail deer as the fat add a strong gamey flavor...unless you like the taste...I don't. Most bucks are pretty lean in these parts but does can be heavily laden with fat.
I do my moose burger with clean meat , no fat ,silver skin etc. Then mix when I cook with 25-30% ground pork that I pre package to size with my moose . I think it keeps better with pure moose and I have the option to go straight moose if I want . I do my own with no butcher fees , think sausage patties. Figger the grinder paid for itself after first two moose . Fatty bacon (store bought )with hand grinder mixed in makes for fine moose burgers
If I want beef or pork, I'll go shoot a cow or pig
100% ground venison..........deer or moose!!! Once you learn how to cook it, you'll never look back
My opinion exactly
If I want beef or pork, I'll go shoot a cow or pig
100% ground venison..........deer or moose!!! Once you learn how to cook it, you'll never look back
Me too.
I wouldn't dream of contaminating my game meat like that. I have lost track of the number of times that someone has said "Try my deer (or moose or elk) sausage" and when cooked it just oozed and dripped pork fat and tasted like Schneider's pork breakfast sausage. When we use ground wild meat we crack an egg or two into it to make it stick for patties or meatballs.
I have a source at one of my local butchers of pork fat for 20 cents a pound and my wife buys it and renders lard from it, but it sure as heck doesn't find its way into my deer meat.
nowarningshot
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
For my ground i add nothing. Happily buy extra lean domestic, why waste good wild. It would also increase the chance of being "off" if in the freeezer for a while.
Have the equipment but not made sausage, to that i would add pork.
Have the equipment but not made sausage, to that i would add pork.
freddyfour
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Brant County, Ontario
No pork ever touches my beautiful game meat unless I am making sausage.
The best ground we ever had was 19.5 lb. of venison and 3.5 lb. of pork tenderloin.
The worst was 30 lb. of moose and the butcher insisted their ground was best adding 10 lb. of pork fat. The fat was rancid and after on feed we were fed up and out went it all.
A friend makes his sausage using the tenderloins from Costco but the mix remains a secret but I would think some where in the 1 to 6 ratio would be a good starting point.
The worst was 30 lb. of moose and the butcher insisted their ground was best adding 10 lb. of pork fat. The fat was rancid and after on feed we were fed up and out went it all.
A friend makes his sausage using the tenderloins from Costco but the mix remains a secret but I would think some where in the 1 to 6 ratio would be a good starting point.
Got Juice?
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Peoples Republik of Kanukkistan
for sausage, 50/50 pork. Hamburger 40/60
I buy a whole pig and get it butchered, then the fat taken off costs me nothing, and I have fresh piggy in the freezer!
coleman1495
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Whitecourt
Not to hijack the thread but has anyone tried using beef suet in sausage? I seen it for sale in a Superstore and am thinking it might work well for sausage.
Well, take a piece of Beef fat and render it down in a frying pan. Now fry some eggs and potatoes in it and taste them. Do the same with some pork fat...which tastes better?
My sister married into a clan from Porcupine Plain Sask that just ground up the venison and cooked it...borderline un-palatable. Just too dry.
The odd fellow will eat deer fat...emphasis on 'odd'. Most folks strip all the fat off of a deer; which being a wild animal is a bit sparse on inter-muscular marbling...they run to escape their prey.
Deer tallow reminds me of the one time I had mutton...shudder. Why ruin venison by not removing the fat?
And as far as Butchers opinions...my middle daughter just got out of a 5 month meat cutting course. They don't teach them much about cutting up venison apparently, which surprised me. And old school butcher that hunts and consumes wild meat...I may be impressed. But, I also may not.
I do like a tender deer steak seared in a little smoking hot olive oil myself; med rare always, very little salt...lotsa pepper. Been known the drape a roast in bacon strips to keep it moist too. But searing it and cooking it to med-rare is usually a good plan.
Ground venison au naturale ( sans pork)...tough sell IMO
