Makes about 3 lbs of pepperoni
- Ingredients -
3 lbs pork, cubed
1/2 lb fatback, cubed and frozen
6 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
3 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon anise
2 teaspoons cayenne
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon pink curing salt
Weston Sausage Casings (Natural or collagen will do, and you can make it in any diameter you prefer. We used 33mm collagen casings.)
Wood Smoking Chips
- Tools -
Weston Meat Grinder
Weston Sausage Stuffer
Weston Smoker
Weston Meat Slicer
Run the fat through the coarse plate of your
Weston Meat Grinder while still frozen. Immediately return to the freezer.
Run your pork through the coarse plate. Mix the remaining ingredients (except the fat) into the ground pork. Run through the grinder again, this time through a medium plate.
Just before you're ready to begin stuffing, gently mix the frozen fat into the meat mixture. Keeping the fat frozen and then mixing it in later keeps the fat distinct from the rest of the pepperoni.
Place the meat into your
Weston Sausage Stuffer canister. Attach the funnel, then thread the
Weston Casings onto the funnel. Tie a knot in the end. Now crank the handle to press the pepperoni meat into the casing. Once you have your link, tie off the end.
Soak the woodchips for 30 minutes prior to smoking the pepperoni. Preheat your
Weston Smoker to 175-190 degrees with the water bowl filled. Once preheated, fill the wood chip box and hang the pepperoni onto the sausage hooks. Smoke 3 hours or until the pepperoni reaches 155 degrees F.
Remove and place into an ice bath immediately. After about 30 minutes, when it's back down to room temperature, you can hang it to dry for a few hours.
After it has dried from the ice bath, use a
Weston Meat Slicer to thinly slice it. Then serve.
