Italian Sausage
Ingredients
- 1 pound pork shoulder (aka pork butt), ground coarsely
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- ½ Tbsp paprika
- ½ tsp fennel seeds, toasted and ground
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper, ground
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- ⅛ tsp anise
- 2 tsp parsley flakes
- 1 Tbsp red wine
Directions
- Cube pork into 1 inch (25mm) cubes and grind coarsely
- Toast the fennel seeds in a cast-iron skillet until lightly browned, and then grind them in a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
- Place all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and mix
- Stuff into casings if desired, or form into patties, and grill
Notes
- The ratio of lean and fat in most pork shoulder today is too lean for this sausage, so if you have a little extra fat to add, that will give a better flavor. I generally put in a tablespoon or so of chilled bacon fat.
- The coarser grinding plate on my KitchenAid stand mixer is just about perfect for grinding the pork for this sausage.
- I didn't think the small amount of red wine would make a huge difference in the taste, but it does. Prefer a lighter-bodied and less tannic wine. Chianti (aka Sangiovese) is good. Pinot noir is ok. Cabernet Sauvignon is way too tannic for this.
Discuss...
Reply to this in the fediverse: @davepolaschek@writing.exchange