Made my first Brats. It went….kind of ok?

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daniel craig

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So. I tried my hand at making brats. Venison mixed with pork. Bought some generic stuff, Mountain house or something like that.

Things actually went rather well EXCEPT at the end I took the grinder apart and saw that a good portion of the seasoning was left behind. That’s annoying.

I also realized that I should have bought freezer bags or butcher paper BEFORE I started and not after.


OMG THEY ARE DELICIOUS. The recipe called for more pork than venison but I went the other way. I’m sooo glad I did. You can actually taste the venison.
 
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Yeah, a grinder makes a poor mixer. Use the stand mixer and a dough hook to blend.
I like to mix in a pound of smoked bacon with the pork.
Good job though! If you have a smoker it will do a good job on those brats.
Next try making a pastrami from a venison ham. Yummy!
 
Atavar said:
Yeah, a grinder makes a poor mixer. Use the stand mixer and a dough hook to blend.
I like to mix in a pound of smoked bacon with the pork.
Good job though! If you have a smoker it will do a good job on those brats.
Next try making a pastrami from a venison ham. Yummy!
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Bro. I didn’t even THINK OF USING THE MIXER. I mixed it all by hand *face palm*
 
daniel craig said:
Bro. I didn’t even THINK OF USING THE MIXER. I mixed it all by hand *face palm*
Click to expand...

Mixing by hand, if done properly, is really all you need. Over mixing can turn the ground meat into mush of you are not careful. I like to season my meat, and let it stand in the 'fridge for a few hours for the seasoning to be absorbed. This also cools the meat back down from room temp and it will go thru the grinder better.
 
Thanks for posting. I decided this year I'd try to make Brats, and I won't say it's gone wonderfully so far. I've just been using some do-it-yourself spice blends that Google found, and my results have been so-so at best. I tried some mixtures that didn't use powdered milk because I wasn't sure how much/often I wanted to do this. Maybe I need to break down and just buy some powdered milk before I go at it again.
Anyway, as you've observed, it's a learning experience. I mix the seasoning in by hand and it's worked okay. I just haven't found the right recipe yet.
Keep at it!
 
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Throw in a handful of fresh chopped garlic and even a splash of dark beer or red wine if you like.
I am of the camp that only puts the meat through the grinder once with my coarsest dies. I prefer a little more texture to the meat. Others prefer to grind two or three times with finer dies to produce a more hotdog like texture.
 
When SWMBO bought a Kitchen Aid, (the very same one you have) I made sure she got the grinder for it. Haven't got any venision lately, but I have some from my son from last year that I could test it out with....

daniel craig said:
Bro. I didn’t even THINK OF USING THE MIXER. I mixed it all by hand *face palm*
Click to expand...
:p I'd have probably done the same thing. Now I won't have to! ;)
 
Mix by hand with all the spices, but then CHILL the mix as the fat will grind better.
I have the same grinder only it was my Mothers and is really really old.

Edit: Maybe cut the pieces a little smaller, grind easier. I make bulk breakfast sausage and just make patties,
 
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entropy said:
When SWMBO bought a Kitchen Aid, (the very same one you have) I made sure she got the grinder for it. Haven't got any venision lately, but I have some from my son from last year that I could test it out with....


:p I'd have probably done the same thing. Now I won't have to! ;)
Click to expand...
It’s actually the mixer of a family member. They use it maybe once a year so they let me hold on to it. My previous partner had an older one from like the 60s. That thing put this one to shame.
 
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