Venison Bratwurst
User Reviews
5
70 reviews
Excellent
-
Prep Time
1 hr
-
Smoking Time
3 hrs
-
Total Time
4 hrs
-
Servings
20 servings
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Calories
154 kcal
-
Course
Main Course, Appetizer, Lunch
Venison Bratwurst
Report
Venison bratwurst combines lean venison with fatty pork shoulder or belly to create a balanced sausage with at least 25% fat content for juiciness and texture. The meat is seasoned with salt, curing salt, sugar, powdered milk, garlic, black pepper, mustard seed, mace or nutmeg, sage, and cold lager beer, then stuffed into hog casings. Curing salt is included for safety, and powdered milk helps retain moisture and prevent shrinkage during cooking and smoking.
Description
The venison bratwurst recipe uses a mixture of venison and pork shoulder or belly to achieve desirable fat content for a tender, juicy sausage. The meat is cut into chunks, mixed with curing salt and seasonings, and refrigerated overnight to help binding. Grinding is done in two stages, starting coarse then finer, while keeping all components cold for optimum texture. The seasoning blend of garlic, black pepper, mustard seed, mace, nutmeg, sage, and beer adds complex savory and aromatic notes without overwhelming the meat’s natural flavor.
The sausages are then stuffed into soaked hog casings, suitably prepared and inspected for integrity. The blend of spices complements venison’s earthy flavor and pork’s richness. This bratwurst can be enjoyed fresh or smoked, serving well grilled or pan-fried as a hearty protein option.
Variations can include using different wild game meats such as elk, antelope, or moose, as well as other fatty meats like sheep or goat. Maintaining sufficient fat—around 25-35% by weight—is crucial for quality texture. Powdered milk absorbs moisture and reduces shrinkage, while salt and curing salt ensure safety and help preserve the sausage.
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Ingredients
- 3 pounds venison
- 2 pounds pork shoulder very fatty, or pork belly
- 34 grams kosher salt
- 4 grams Instacure No. 1
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 25 grams powdered milk
- 3 tablespoons garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon black pepper freshly ground
- 2 teaspoons mustard seed coarsely ground
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground mace or nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoons sage dried
- 1/2 cup lager beer cold
- Hog casings
Instructions
- Get out about 10 to 15 feet of hog casings and soak them in warm water. If you don’t trust your source, run water through them to check for punctures or weak spots.
- Cut the venison and pork into chunks that will fit into your grinder. Mix with the salt, sugar, and curing salt (Instacure No. 1) and refrigerate overnight. Doing this helps the sausage bind to itself later. You can skip the overnight rest, but your sausage will not be as firm in the casing.
- When you are ready to make the sausage, freeze your grinder’s grinding plate and blades, and the bowl you will put the meat into for 30 minutes to an hour. Do the same for the meat and fat. When everything’s nice and cold—no warmer than 38°F — mix the meat and fat with the powdered milk and all the spices.
- Grind it all through a coarse plate; I use a 7 mm plate. Test the temperature of the mixture, and if it’s 35°F or colder, go ahead and grind half the mixture again through a fine die, like a 4.5 mm or some such. Set it back with the rest of the ground meat mixture. If it’s warmer than 35°F, put the mix back in the freezer to chill. This might take an hour or so if you’ve let the meat warm up too much. Use the time to clean up.
- Once the sausage has been ground twice, test the temperature again to make sure it’s 35°F or colder. I prefer to chill the mix down to 28°F to 32°F for this next stage. Chill the mix and when it’s cold enough, take it out and add the beer. Now, mix and knead this all up in a big bin or bowl with your (very clean) hands for a solid 2 minutes — your hands will ache with cold, which is good. You want everything to almost emulsify.
- Stuff the sausage into hog casings rather loosely. Do this in a coil before you make the links. I like this sausage in links of about 6 to 8 inches long, but it’s your choice. To twist them into individual sausages, tie off one end of the coil you just made. Pinch off links with your two hands and roll the link between them forward a few times. Move down the coil and repeat, only this time roll backwards a few times. Repeat until you do the whole coil. (This video shows how I do it.)
- Now look at the links, which will probably have air pockets in them. Use a sterile needle or sausage pricker (set it aglow in your stovetop flame) to puncture the casing over all the air pockets. Gently compress the links together to squeeze out the air pockets and rotate the links a bit more to tighten; this takes practice.
- Dry your links in a cool place for at least 24 hours and up to 3 days. I hang mine in a curing fridge set to 55°F, with about 75 percent humidity. The curing salt will protect them during this time. If you haven’t used curing salt, dry the sausage uncovered in the fridge for a day.
- To smoke the links, hang in a cool smoker and let the heat come up slowly until it hits about 200°F. Smoke the links until their internal temperature hits 150°F. This may be less than 3 hours, but internal temperature is more important. As soon as the sausages are cooked, submerge them in an ice water bath until cool. Pat dry and store in the fridge.
Notes
- This sausage recipe works with a variety of red game meats including elk, moose, antelope, sheep, and goats.
- Ensure the fat content is at least 25%, ideally 35%, to keep the sausages juicy and prevent drying out.
- Powdered milk helps absorb moisture to reduce shrinkage when cooking or smoking the sausages.
- Salt and curing salt are essential for food safety, so do not reduce these even if adjusting spice flavors.
Nutrition Information
Show Details
Calories
154kcal
(8%)
Carbohydrates
2g
(1%)
Protein
26g
(52%)
Fat
4g
(6%)
Saturated Fat
1g
(5%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
1g
(6%)
Monounsaturated Fat
1g
(5%)
Trans Fat
1g
(50%)
Cholesterol
86mg
(29%)
Sodium
723mg
(30%)
Potassium
416mg
(9%)
Fiber
1g
(4%)
Sugar
1g
(2%)
Vitamin A
15IU
(0%)
Vitamin C
1mg
(1%)
Calcium
23mg
(2%)
Iron
3mg
(17%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 20servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 154 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 154kcal | 8% |
| Carbohydrates | 2g | 1% |
| Protein | 26g | 52% |
| Fat | 4g | 6% |
| Saturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Trans Fat | 1g | 50% |
| Cholesterol | 86mg | 29% |
| Sodium | 723mg | 30% |
| Potassium | 416mg | 9% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 1g | 2% |
| Vitamin A | 15IU | 0% |
| Vitamin C | 1mg | 1% |
| Calcium | 23mg | 2% |
| Iron | 3mg | 17% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
70 reviews
Excellent
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