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A generous friend gave me some ground moose! Thanks, Marj. I decided to make something with it and share it with her. I decided to experiment with making German Bologna with moose. It is normally made with a combination of pork and beef but I tried pork and moose.

I have put beef in the recipe because not everyone has a friend who gives them moose.

I actually made two sausages in this cook, German Bologna and Mettwurst. I will post the Mettwurst later.

I started by putting some fibrous casings in warm water to soak. Fibrous casings are often referred to as FB casings. They are a casing used in making salami, summer sausage and other large diameter sausages. They allow smoke to make its way through the casing and flavour the meat. It is not edible and needs to be peeled off the sausage before serving. It should also be soaked in hot water for an hour before use so it is pliable.

A 20 inch by 2 1/2 inch diameter FB casing holds 3 pounds of sausage so I needed one for the German Bologna.

I had about 700 grams (1 1/2 pounds) of moose and cubed the same amount of fatty pork shoulder. I put the meat in the freezer for 20 minutes. Meat grinds better and you get a better consistency in your sausage if you keep the meat cold.

I ground the pork cubes through the fine plate on the grinder attachment of my stand mixer. Then I ran the pork and moose through the grinder again, alternating portions of pork and moose. I put the ground meat in the freezer for 20 minutes.

I made a slurry by mixing the following in a bowl:

  • 15 ml (1 tablespoon) kosher salt
  • 10 ml (2 teaspoons) fine grind black pepper
  • 1 ml (1/4 teaspoon) dry mustard
  • 2 ml (1/2 teaspoon) ground celery seed
  • 1 ml (1/4 teaspoon) garlic powder
  • 1/2 ml (1/8 teaspoon) coriander
  • 1/2 ml (1/8 teaspoon) nutmeg
  • 15 ml (1 tablespoon) light corn syrup
  • 125 ml (1/2 cup) water
  • 75 ml (1/3 cups) dry skim milk powder
  • 4.4 grams (3/5 teaspoon) Prague powder #1
  • 2 ml (1/2 teaspoon) mace
  • 3 ml (1/2 teaspoon) onion powder
  • 17 ml (1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon) paprika

If you have never heard of Prague Powder #1 it is a curing salt. It can come under other names, InstaCure #1, Pink Salt #1 and more. You are looking for a curing salt that is 93.75 % salt and 6.25 % sodium nitrite. This inhibits bacterial growth through the slow smoking and cooking process. It also give the nice red colour to the sausage.

Do not use more or less. Too little will allow the sausage to spoil and too much is bad for you.

I put 1/2 of the slurry and 1/2 of the meat in the bowl of my stand mixer. I put the mixing paddle on and started on low until mixed and then mixed at medium high for 3 minutes.

I took the mixture out and repeated the procedure with the remaining meat and slurry. Then I mixed both batches together by hand.

I used my dedicated sausage stuffer to stuff the FB casing. If your stand mixer has a sausage stuffing attachment, don’t use it. Every time I tried it was a horrible experience.

I tied the open end of the casing off and put the sausage in the fridge overnight. This allows the seasoning and cure to even out in the sausage.

The next day, I used my A-Maze-N pellet smoker to cold smoke the sausage for 4 hours. You can use a smoker to cook the sausage but it takes a low starting temperature and gradual heat increases to cook the sausage. If you cook it too quickly, the fat will render out and give a poor result.

So, if your smoker will operate at 140 to 150 F, feel free to put it in the smoker without cold smoking it. Mine doesn’t go that low so I cold smoked it first.

Put the  sausage in a smoker or oven at 140 to 150 F. Cook for one hour. Increase the temperature by 5 F every 1/2 hour until the smoker or oven is at 180 F.

If your oven or smoker won’t go that low, put them in at the lowest temperature it cooks at, so long as it is not over 180 F. Then cook for one hour and increase to 180 F. I have even done the whole cook at 180 F.

Also, if you don’t have a smoker, you can just cook this in the oven for a fine sausage. It just won’t have that kiss of smoke.

What I did was the cold smoke for 4 hours and then put in at 145 F, cooked for an hour and slowly increased to 180 F every 1/2 hour. It took about 8 hours to cook to an internal temperature of 155 F when it is done.

After the sausage reaches an internal temperature of 155 F, take it out and plunge it in an ice water bath for 10 minutes.  Take it out and let it hang for 2 hours and then refrigerate overnight.

The next day, you are ready to slice it up!

The Verdict

This is way better than any Bologna you have had before. There is a greater depth of flavour from the spices. The texture isn’t as rubbery. With beef, it has a nicely spiced tender meat flavour. With the moose, it has a touch of game taste I really liked.

Have a great Bologna sandwich, try this!

The Old Fat Guy

German Bologna

German Bologna

Ingredients

  • 700 grams (1 1/2 pounds) lean ground beef (may substitute game meat)
  • 700 grams (1 1/2 pounds) fatty pork shoulder
  • 1 20 by 2 1/2 inch Fibrous Sausage Casing
  • 15 ml (1 tablespoon) kosher salt
  • 10 ml (2 teaspoons) fine grind black pepper
  • 1 ml (1/4 teaspoon) dry mustard
  • 2 ml (1/2 teaspoon) ground celery seed
  • 1 ml (1/4 teaspoon) garlic powder
  • 1/2 ml (1/8 teaspoon) coriander
  • 1/2 ml (1/8 teaspoon) nutmeg
  • 15 ml (1 tablespoon) light corn syrup
  • 125 ml (1/2 cup) water
  • 75 ml (1/3 cups) dry skim milk powder
  • 4.4 grams (3/5 teaspoon) Prague powder #1
  • 2 ml (1/2 teaspoon) mace
  • 3 ml (1/2 teaspoon) onion powder
  • 17 ml (1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon) paprika

Instructions

  1. Soak the fibrous casing in warm water for an hour.
  2. Put the meat in the freezer for 20 minutes.
  3. Grind the pork through a fine plate on a grinder.
  4. Run beef and pork through the fine plate again.
  5. Put the meat in the freezer for 20 minutes.
  6. Make a slurry by mixing the remaining ingredients.
  7. Put 1/2 of the meat and slurry in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix slowly until combined and then beat at medium high speed for 3 minutes.
  8. Mix the second 1/2 of the meat and slurry the same way.
  9. Mix the two batches together.
  10. Stuff into the casing and tie off the open end.
  11. Put the sausage in the fridge overnight.
  12. Cold smoke for 4 hours.
  13. Put the sausage in an oven at 140 to 150 F (you can cook at 180 F for the whole cook but will have a tougher texture). Cook for 1 hour.
  14. Increase the temperature by 5 F every half hour until the oven reaches 180 F.
  15. Cook until the internal temperature of the sausage is 155 F, seven to eight hours.
  16. Plunge into an ice water bath for 10 minutes.
  17. Hang for 2 hours.
  18. Put in the fridge overnight before serving.
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14 Responses

      1. What a coincidence, I just pulled 10Lbs of moose out of the freezer to do something with, and came immediately upon your article(which I haven’t read yet). I normally mix pork 50/50 with wild meat for sausages, but was considering going straight moose, this time. What usually gets me when I’m trying to make the smaller diameter sausages is they come out too dry because I’m trying to lower the fat content near zero, which doesn’t seem to matter with three inch skins. Maybe I’ll have some questions for you after reading the article, if you’re still on the web.

        1. I have never been happy with 100% game meat in cured sausages although, I admit, I haven’t had it with moose. The problem is that the fat content close to zero doesn’t give a texture I like. The lowest I have tried that I like is a buddy who made venison summer sausage with 20 % pork. It was pretty good!

  1. I noticed you are using a LEM sausage stuffer. What model is it and where did you find a 2 1/2” sausage tube?

    Thanks

    1. I am sorry. I don’t remember the model number for my Stuffer as it is several years old. It is a 3 pound capacity stuffer with metal gears. As for the tube, I have never seen a 2 1/2 inch horn. When you are stuffing large fibrous casings, you push the casing on the largest horn you have and wrap your hand around the horn. As you crank, allow the pressure of the meat to force the casing off the horn.

  2. I made this earlier this year and it is awesome. Plan to do it again next week. After cold smoking for 4 hours, do you finish cooking it with or without smoke.
    I bought your book and enjoy it. It is full of good info.
    Thanks for great recipe’s

    1. Thanks so much for the kind words. You can cold smoke for 4 hours and finish with or without smoke depending how much smoke flavour you want in your finished product. I would prefer no smoke after cold smoking as the boss isn’t into heavy smoke.

  3. Can I leave the in cooked stuffed bologna in the fridge for more than 1 day,I couldn’t smoke it because of an unexpected emergency?

    1. My apologies for not getting back to you. My wife passed away and I am just getting back in the saddle. Yes you can leave the bologna in the fridge for a couple of days.

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