This smoked wild game bologna has excellent flavor. Lightly smoky & garlicky and otherwise traditional, this is one of those recipes that will turn you away from store-bought for good.
Makes 2 lbs
- Ingredients -
2 lbs elk, cubed (or beef)
1/2 lb pork fatback, cubed and kept extra cold
4 tablespoons kosher salt
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon marjoram
1/2 teaspoon pink cure
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon white peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/4 cup dried milk powder
- Tools -
Weston Meat Grinder
Weston Meat Lug
Weston Sausage Stuffer
Weston 2.5" mahogany casings
Weston Hog Ring Pliers
Weston Smoker
hickory wood chips
Weston Meat Slicer
Sausage Making
Grind the fat through the coarse plate of your
meat grinder, then place into the freezer. Next, place the meat in a
meat lug with the remaining ingredients, except the fat and milk powder. Hand mix well. Grind the mixture through the coarse plate of your meat grinder, then again through the fine plate.
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| Finely ground elk and spices |
Hand mix the milk powder into the meat well, but quickly as you want your meat to stay as cold as possible. Finally, mix the fat into the mixture.
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| Yes, we know, not particularly pretty, but that fine, pasty texture will make for a nice bologna. |
*If you don't want your fat to be distinct, you can simply grind it along with the meat rather than grinding it separately and freezing.
Fill your
sausage stuffer with the meat mixture and thread the
casing over your sausage stuffing funnel. Turn the handle to fill the casing. Once full, use
Hog Ring Pliers to close off the end.
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| Filling a 2.5" mahogany casing with our elk bologna mixture |
For fuller flavor, vacuum seal the bologna and let it refrigerate overnight. Alternately, you can smoke it immediately and it will still be flavorful.
Smoking
Soak your woodchips for at least 30 minutes before smoking. Preheat your
smoker to 250 degrees and fill your water bowl. Once preheated, place the wood chips in the smoking box and smoke the bologna for 2-3 hours or until the internal temp in the absolute center of the bologna is 150 degrees F.
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| Our bologna hangs from the sausage hooks of a Weston Vertical Propane smoker, just about done |
Slicing
After smoking, place your bologna into an ice bath and allow it to bloom for about 45 minutes. Hang it for a couple hour to dry afterward. Once dry, use a
meat slicer to slice the bologna as thick or as thin as you like.
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| Fresh sliced bologna. The nice thing about having your own meat slicer is that you can cut your deli meats as thick or thin as you like. Or if you family is divided, cut it in a variety of thicknesses. |
