Venison snack stick build along

[Rancid Crabtree]

Next to jerky, snack sticks are the family favorite. Here I will show how I make a 30 pound batch of snack sticks or hot sticks. I start with 80%lean venison and 20% pork trim.
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/sausage3.jpg


I ground the venison first as the fat has a tendency to clog up the grinder

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/IMG_7609.jpg

I mixed the two together by hand and then added the water and spices. I use LEM brand seasonings packets

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/2006_sticks4.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/stuffing_snack_stix.jpg

After mixing the seasonings with the meat I ground it again using a finer hole plate and then packed it away in the cooler overnight to cure. This morning Josh and I stuffed the casings with the cured meat.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/stuffing_snack_stix2.jpg

Each smoke stick holds around 15 or 16 links that are a total of 52 inches long each.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/2006_sticks2.jpg

I preheated the smoker to 125F and hung the sticks at 11:00 am. I spread the sticks in the middle so I get good air flow.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/2006_sticks.jpg

Adding that much cold meat to the smoke brings the temp down to about 115F which is a good starting temp. I will keep them at this temp for about 2 hours

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/2006_sticks5.jpg

After the 2 hour drying time, I add hickory chips to make a heavy smoke.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/sausage/2006_sticks3.jpg

After 5 ½ hours the temp is at 150F and I keep them there until the internal meat temp reaches 165F. I then take them from the smoker and let them cool at room temps. When cool, I put them in the fridg.

After a night in the cooler, I cut them to size I saved a bunch for the family to eat and sealed the rest in about 1/2 pound packs or 12 sticks per pack. This is the point when the scavengers start to show up.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/2006_sticks8.jpg

It really does not look like much for all the hard work.
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c239/212007154/2006_sticks9.jpg

[Paul R]

You're lucky you live on another continent or I'd be one of those scavengers for sure.

[Antarcher]

Mate, all these recipes are awesome. I am going to give them a crack for sure. I only wish we had all those pre mixed goodies over here. unfortunately the game meat processing scene here is nowhere near as popular as in the states. Look out rusa, here I come.

[derek_webster]

what would be an Australian equivalent to that stuff, and I suppose a butcher could supply the casings?

[HOOD]

what Paul said :P

That got my mouth watering and also got me wanting a cold beer.:D