Homemade chicken sausages. Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman.
Today my Friday cocktail will be a daiquiri here in Palm Beach. Or you could instead sit down with a Lagunitas IPA and a few homemade chicken sausages; this recipe originally appears in Charcuterie.
Chicken Sausage with Basil and Tomatoes
- 3 1⁄2 pounds/1.5 kilograms boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cubed
- 1 1⁄2 pounds/675 grams pork back fat, cubed, diced into 1-inch pieces
- 3 tablespoons/40 grams kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon/3 grams freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons/9 grams minced garlic
- 4 tablespoons/24 grams tightly packed chopped fresh basil
- 1⁄2 cup/100 grams fresh diced roma (plum) tomatoes
- 1⁄4 cup/60 grams diced sun-dried tomatoes
- 1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters red wine vinegar, chilled
- 1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters extra virgin olive oil
- 1⁄4 cup/60 milliliters dry red wine, chilled
- 10 feet/3 meters hog casings, soaked in tepid water for at least 30 minutes and rinsed
- Combine the meat, fat, salt, pepper, garlic, basil, and tomatoes and toss together until evenly mixed. Chill until ready to grind.
- Grind the mixture through the small die into a bowl set in ice.
- Using the paddle attachment of a standing mixer (or a sturdy spoon), mix on low speed (or stir) for 1 minute. Add the vinegar, oil, and wine, increase the speed to medium, and mix for 1 more minute, or until the liquid is incorporated and the sausage has a uniform, sticky appearance.
- Fry a bite-sized portion of the sausage, taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
- Stuff the sausage into the hog casings and twist into 6-inch/15-centimeter links. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to cook.
- Cook the sausage to an internal temperature of 160°F/71°C.Yield: About 5 pounds/2.25 kilograms sausage; about twenty 6-inch/15-centimeter links.
Other great links to check out:
- My books on Schmaltz and Salumi.
- Looking for another cocktail for the holiday? Try party punch, aka Scamper Juice.
- Try making your own bacon at home—it's easier then you think.
- It is key to have a nice grinder at home not just for making sausages, but hamburgers too.
© 2013 Michael Ruhlman. Photo © 2013 Donna Turner Ruhlman. All rights reserved.
CHICKEN sausage made with PORK fat AND Kosher salt is too funny man! Enjoy Palm Beach!!!
sneaky isn't it!
but in schmaltz i make chicken sausage with schmaltz!
Yum, these look so good. Homemade sausages made with love, brings happiness to the table.
Michael- Any suggestions as to making the recipe without using pork fat? Can you substitute schmaltz or un-rendered chicken fat?
To make this without pork, omit the pork fat but retain as much chicken fat on the thighs as possible. You can also use cold butter.
yes, you can use any fat, butter or schmaltz; in the book of schmaltz i have a recipe that uses schmaltz.
I would have thought you would have schmaltz in the recipe instead of pork fat... 🙂
The only thing missing is a tofu-skin casing. Then again, you still have a couple more days until April Fools.
+1 on the Lagunitas IPA. If you ever find yourself in Petaluma, CA, it's worth stopping by their brewery, located in an unassuming strip mall. Then of course since you're in the neighborhood, head up to the Russian River Brewing Company in Santa Rosa for some Pliny the Elder (which you can very occasionally find at Whole Foods, at least out here in California).
Reminds me of a good food story I blogged about from years ago involving Lagunitas, as on my way from NC to CA: A Day in Santa Fe.
And then I was like, I've made that... I think I have that in a book somewhere!
I was in Novato over the weekend, about 20 miles from Petaluma where Lagunitas is made and had the IPA on tap. Very good. Better than the bottle.
Poach the chicken sausage in the IPA!
I've made those sausages - delicious, just as written!