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Uncle Frank Principe's Italian Pork Sausage Recipe

Print Recipe
Course Main Course, Sandwiches
Cuisine Italian

Ingredients
  

  • 24 pounds pork butt with its fat bone removed, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1-3 pounds pork fatback, rind removed, cut into 1-inch cubes ONLY NEED IF THE PORK IS VERY LEAN
  • 1 cup fennel seed
  • 1/3 to 3/4 cup Morton’s table salt start with the lesser amount; Kosher salt, you will need more
  • 1/3 cup freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 1/2 cups freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese
  • 3 tablespoon red pepper flakes optional
  • 3 cup dry red wine
  • 1 container salt-cured sausage casings OPTIONAL ONLY if you are making loose sausage

Instructions
 

THE NIGHT BEFORE YOU PLAN TO MAKE THE SAUSAGE:

  • In a large container, thoroughly toss together the pork, fennel, salt, pepper, Pecorino, and red pepper flakes (if using). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

THE DAY OF SAUSAGE-MAKING:

  • When you are ready to grind the sausage, remove the meat from the refrigerator and add the wine, tossing with your hands to thoroughly distribute.

GRIND THE MEAT:

  • Using a coarse grind setting, grind the pork mixture into a very large container, following the instructions specific to your grinder.

TASTE TEST

  • Form a small amount of your sausage into a patty and fry in a skillet until just cooked through. I don’t mind a bit of pink but feel free to cook to your preference (though over-cooked sausage will be dry). Taste for seasoning and fat content. At this point, if necessary, you can adjust the seasoning of the sausage by thoroughly mixing in the needed ingredient (salt, pepper, cheese, etc.). You can also add in THE ADDITIONAL ground fat back at this point if the sausage is not fatty enough. Repeat the taste test until you have the flavor you like. Refrigerate until you are ready to stuff the casings.

IF YOU ARE NOT USING CASINGS:

  • Divide the sausage meat into portions and either refrigerate to cook within a day or two or freeze.

IF YOU ARE USING CASINGS:

  • Put a medium bowl in the kitchen sink and fill halfway with cool water. Open the container of casings (which are packed in salt) and gently pull them out one at a time, unknotting as you go, and place into the bowl of cool water. The length of casings you need will depend on how full your sausages are. Swish the casings around in the water and then drain the bowl. Refill the bowl and swish again. You are looking for clear water (it will start out very cloudy). Clean about 1/3 of the container, you can always clean more if you find you are running out. Leave the casings in the bowl of water until ready to use.
  • Follow your grinder/sausage extruder instructions to set up the equipment for stuffing sausage. We used olive oil to generously lubricate the funnel end where the casings are loaded. Pull a section of casing out of the water and gently open one end and slide over the funnel, sliding it toward the back of the funnel. Watch for holes. If you come across a hole, cut the casing at that point and use the intact section. Some casings will be longer than others. Leave about 2 inches of casing hanging from the end of the funnel and tie into a double knot before stuffing.
  • Turn the grinder on and place a large tray under the funnel end of the grinder. Load the hopper with the sausage meat and using the plunger, push the meat down the tube. As the meat begins to extrude into the casings, it will push the casing off the funnel. Hold one hand cupped as you guide the sausage out in an even thickness. Once you get to about 4 inches of sausage, twist two or three quick tight rotations to create a link and keep guiding the sausages into the holding container. Watch the length of casing and and stop the flow of sausage once you get to about two inches of casing left. Double knot off that end. Repeat the process until all of the meat has been stuffed into casings. If you have a blowout or other issues, feel free to squeeze the meat back into the hopper and stuff into new casings.
  • Once you have stuffed all of the sausages, refrigerate and cook within a day or two or portion out into either freezer bags or (preferably) vacuum sealed bags and put in the freezer. While these sausage are terrific poached (in water or wine) and then grilled, you can also use them in your favorite recipe.

UNCLE FRANK'S BASIC COOKING METHOD:

  • Put into a pan of cool water, bring heat to a bubble, and poach for 10 minutes. Remove from poaching liquid and grill or saute over medium-low heat (coals) for 20 minutes, turning often.
Keyword family recipe, grilling, Italian, pork, Puglia, sausages