North America · Volume 35, Tex-Mex, the Rio Grande and the Desert Southwest
Elgin hot guts sausage
Texas
Illustration
- Time
- Hands on 3 hours · Waiting 8 hours
- Researched
- 26 sources cited
Coarsely ground beef in natural casing, seasoned simply with salt, black pepper and cayenne, smoked and served hot rather than pre-packaged, the Central Texas meat market's other great contribution alongside brisket. Texas Monthly
As tradition built it
Makes about 12 links. About 3 hours, plus overnight curing.
Ingredients
- 1.5kg beef chuck, cubed
- 500g beef fat, cubed
- 30g coarse salt
- 10g curing salt (Cure #1)
- 15g coarse black pepper
- 5g cayenne pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- enough for about 12 links, soaked natural beef casings, soaked
Method
- Chill the beef and fat thoroughly, then coarsely grind together through a mincer.
- Mix in the coarse salt, curing salt, pepper, cayenne and garlic, working the mixture just until it becomes slightly sticky and binds.
- Stuff into soaked natural casings, twisting into 15cm links, and refrigerate overnight to let the cure set.
- Smoke over post oak (or English oak) at around 110°C until the internal temperature reaches 65 to 68°C, about 2 to 3 hours.
- Serve immediately, hot off the smoker, with crackers and no sauce.
What a modern chef changes
The cure and the smoke, both made more precise.
Rung uncited, a controlled-cure logic drawn from the same principle as the brisket rung
Method
- Cure the ground meat under vacuum for 24 hours before stuffing, ensuring even salt and cure penetration through the whole batch rather than relying on a short overnight rest.
- Finish the smoked sausage briefly on a very hot plancha before serving, crisping the natural casing's exterior snap without further cooking the interior.