# Homemade Sausage Quandary



## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

Hi everyone 

I have a recipe I'd like to try from the book, Julia and Jacques, Cooking at Home.  It's a Sausage en Croute and the sausage is made from scratch, then wrapped and cured for a few days.  My question is, the recipe calls for 1/8 tsp of Potassium Nitrate (saltpeter), which keeps the sausage pink while it cures.  

Now, I have read that this can be poisonous in certain amounts, so I was wondering if something like Morton's Quick Tender Salt can be substituted, and will it keep the meat pink like the Potassium Nitrate?  If not, does anyone have a source for a food grade Potassium Nitrate, as I'm assuming 1/8 tsp in about 2 lbs of pork will be ok.


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## Audeo (Nov 16, 2004)

Standby on this one, Lisa.  The resident experts (and there are many) will be here fairly soon to answer this one!

(Looking forward to reading this thread later...!)


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## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

Thanks so much, Audeo..as I know the advice here is golden.  I'm looking forward to it, as is my Thanksgiving appetizer table.


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## choclatechef (Nov 16, 2004)

You do know that this is not necessary to make a good sausage.  The potassium nitrate is only to keep the meat pink, not to flavor the sausage.  You can just leave it out.


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## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

I know..but with this appetizer, presentation is important to me, as I will be having 20 people over for Tday.  It's so beautiful when you slice into the bread and see the deep pink sausage with pine nuts or pistachios studded throughout.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 16, 2004)

You can definitely use the Morton's Quick Tender.  Just use that in place of the salt.  No need to adjust for the amount of salt peter.  In fact, I would use 3/4 the amount and test the batch by cooking a little bit and tasting for saltiness.  The Morton's stuff is very fine and tends to weigh out heavy for the volume.


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## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

So, since my recipe calls for 2 tsps of salt, add a little less than 2 tsps of the Morton's (of course I'll fry up a few spicy sausage meatballs to taste), and forget about the saltpeter measure altogether?


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Nov 16, 2004)

More on Potassium Nitrite.  Yes it is used as a coloring agent, but also performs a much more valuable service in the meat.  Many years ago, before refrigertation, most sausage were dry cured.  It was found that potasium nitrite inhibited the organizm that secretes the botulizm toxin.  Over the years, it was found that  sodium nitrite was a powerful carcinogen.  Studies were therefore undertaken to determine if there was a safe amount of salt peter.  It was found that there was.  And, happily, it still inhibits the microbe at the level considered safe for human consumption.

That is the reason that sausages such as salamies, and pepperonies still contain potasium nitrite.  The same is true for Virginia Hams, and other meats curred slow and low.

When the sausage is cooked, there really isn't a need for the salt peter as the heat kills the microbe.  But if you are curing rather than cooking, it's a good thing to use.

Oh, by the way, the botulizm toxin is the deadliest poison on the planet.  I can't give the exact figures, but I know it's leathal in amounts of singel parts per million.  A bit of searching and I could give you the proper amounts for both the poison toxicity, and for how much salt peter is required to protect without causing cancer.  Btu right now, I've got some other chores to attend.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

Thanks for the informative post!  I'm assuming Morton's Tender Quick contains Potassium Nitrate, but probably not enough to cause any danger, or else it wouldn't be on the market.  I'm still concerned with the amount I should use, though.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 16, 2004)

This is straight from the Morton Home Meat Curing Guide.  

The recipes for sausages says to use 1 1/2 level teaspoon of Morton Tender Quick per pound of meat.  No other salt is used.

BTW, it contains both potassium nitrite and potassium nitrate.  It's interesting how they write about it.  Salt is the preservative, but the potassium nitrite and nitrate are described as curing agents.


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## Lisa110 (Nov 16, 2004)

So that would be 3 tsps total.  Why does that scare me? LOL


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## Psiguyy (Nov 17, 2004)

Lisa110 said:
			
		

> So that would be 3 tsps total.  Why does that scare me? LOL



Does that mean you're using 2 lbs of meat?  If so, I wouldn't use more than 3 tsps.  That would be the upper limit.  In fact, I'd cut that back to 2 tsps and do a taste test.  That's my preference.  Your's may be different.


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## Lisa110 (Nov 17, 2004)

That's exactly what I'm going to do, Psiguyy.  Actually, I checked the recipe again, and it called for 1 1/2 lbs of ground pork butt, so I will probably add 1 tsp, then cook a piece and taste, and see if it needs a little more..and so on..and so on..and so on..although by the strength of this stuff, I highly doubt I'll need much more than one 'so on'. LOL

Thanks so much!


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## Psiguyy (Nov 17, 2004)

Yeah, the first time I used the stuff, I was making a recipe that called for salt.  I figured I'd substitute it 1 for 1.  HAH!  It turned out so darned salty, I had to buy and grind up more meat to cut the saltiness.  

If the recipe calls for 2 tsp salt, start with 1 tsp of the Tender Quick.  

If you were making a dried and cured sausage such as salami, then I'd insist on following the recipe exactly.  Wouldn't want to suffer from botulism.  

The funny thing is the Tender Quick isn't all salt.  It's got sugar and the nitrite and nitrate in it too.  

Let us know how the sausage turned out.


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## pst1can (Nov 19, 2004)

Lisa110...this has been a very interested post, I have considered to try make my own sausage before but have never got around to it. Please post again with your results....I would really be interested. Thanks Pst 8)


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## scott123 (Nov 20, 2004)

Lisa, the nitrates in the quick tender, as choclatechef mentioned, are strictly for aesthetics.  You should cook a piece and look at it, not taste it. Other than the additional salt you're adding, tasting it will mean mean very little.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 20, 2004)

scott123 said:
			
		

> Lisa, the nitrates in the quick tender, as choclatechef mentioned, are strictly for aesthetics.  You should cook a piece and look at it, not taste it. Other than the additional salt you're adding, tasting it will mean mean very little.



Not necessarily.  According to Morton, the Nitrates and Nitrites are there to cure the meat.  I've seen their recipes for corned beef and salami, so it's not only for aesthetics, although in many cases, it is.


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## scott123 (Nov 20, 2004)

Psiguyy, you're right.  If Lisa is utilizing it for curing, though, then cooking it/tasting it will be equally as meaningless.

Nitrates, for anyone interested, aren't, by themselves, carcinogens.  Nitrate cured meat, when heated to high temps forms nitrosamines.  Those are the bad guys.  And the operative word here is high temps.  Boiled cured meats (corned beef, hot dogs) are relative benign from a perspective of nitrosamines. Browned cured meats like bacon are where you find the most nitrosamine formation.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 20, 2004)

All I know is, I sure wish they'd make the "carcinogenic" bacon instead of the safe kind they make now.  I miss the old sliced bacon that gets super crispy instead of the kind that just gets hard like they do these days.


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## scott123 (Nov 20, 2004)

Psiguyy, have you tried changing the temperature you cook your bacon at? I've noticed that if I cook the same batch at different temperatures one will be stringy/jerky-like, another will be hard as a rock, and yet occasionally I achieve a melt in your mouth flaky/crispy. For the longest time I thought slow and low was the secret.  Now I'm not sure.  I do know that a shift in temp changes the outcome pretty dramatically.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 20, 2004)

You know, I've tried everything and once in a great while, I'll get the perfect tender crisp bacon.  The next time I do it the same way, I get break-your-teeth knock-your-fillings-out hard planks of wood.  

I fry at low temps.  I fry at higher temps.  I even bake them.  Baking works the best, but still not as good as the bacon I remember while I was growing up.  

The crazy thing is the pre-cooked stuff that doesn't require refrigeration is the closest thing to old fashioned bacon that I've found.  I wish I knew how they did that.  It's very thin, tender, and somewhat crisp.


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## scott123 (Nov 20, 2004)

Yup, I'm in the same boat.  Maybe about 1/4 of the time I end up with crispy bacon and I have absolutely no clue why.

I'm hoping that eventually I will stumble on to the secret for perfect bacon every time. Until then I'm just going keep fumbling in the dark.


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## AllenOK (Nov 21, 2004)

I had to do a research paper on preserving meats while I was in college.  One thing I learned is that nitrates are used to cure meats, by inhibiting the growth of harmful bacteria.  A by-product of this, is a chemical reaction between the nitrate itself, and the protein in the meat.  It turns the protein that lovely shade of pink.

This is why cured meats, like bacon, corned beef, ham, etc., are pink.  Also, if you have a really good BBQ place nearby that actually smokes their products for hours on end, go and order some sliced brisket (really good with some sauce, texas toast, etc.   ).  You should notice a "pink ring" just under the outside surface of the meat, extending from 1/8 to 1/4" into the meat.  This is evidence of the nitrates in the wood smoke reacting with the protein in the brisket.


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## Psiguyy (Nov 21, 2004)

Allen, thanks for the info.  I never really knew it was nitrates from wood smoke that turned smoked meat pink.


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## Lifter (Dec 18, 2004)

What would turn ham, chicken, turkey, fish or whatever else "pink" when its "smoked"?

OOPS!

That sounds sorta "impolite", and its not meant so...maybe you've not experienced the "delight"of "double smoked" bacon, etc...a really different and deliscious taste, well worth the extra nickles to purchase...believe there are hams of the same characteristics, though these will be priced above "nickles" a pound to buy...

Lifter


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## Psiguyy (Dec 18, 2004)

Lifter said:
			
		

> What would turn ham, chicken, turkey, fish or whatever else "pink" when its "smoked"?
> 
> OOPS!
> 
> ...



Oh buzz off.  I know smoke made the meat red.  I know about smoke rings.  I've smoked more fish and meat than you can imagine.  What I didn't know or even bother to think about was what was in the smoke that made the meat red.


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## mjsorkin (Dec 20, 2004)

It's the Potassium in potasssium nitrate which can be poisonous.  Potassium is crucial in the body for regulating smooth (cardiac) muscle contraction.  Taking too much potassium, or taking it too quickly, can cause the heart to stop beating.  In the hospital setting potassium is one of the most dangerous, and carefully regulated drugs given.  A single undiluted dose of potassium given via the intravenous route is fatal.  

That's the only danger I can see with using the potassum nitrate.  As long as you don't eat it pure, or leave it where children or pets can get to it, then I think it is perfectly safe.  It's less relevent in this case to worry about cancer risk, because in that context you would be thinking about long term exposure rather than a single occasion.  Carcinogens generally require lot's of contact over a long period of time to do their job.  With that in mind, I would follow the recipe and use the called for ingredient....just not every day.


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