How to Make Summer Sausage Out of Deer Meat – A Step-by-Step Guide

Summer sausage made from deer meat, also known as venison summer sausage is a tasty cured sausage that is quite popular among hunters and foodies alike. While you can easily buy venison summer sausage from stores or online making it at home lets you control the ingredients and customize it to your taste. The end result is a tangy, spicy sausage that stores well for months in the refrigerator or freezer.

In this detailed guide, I’ll walk you through the entire process of turning your venison into delicious homemade summer sausage, from start to finish.

What You Need to Get Started

Making summer sausage requires some special equipment beyond your basic kitchen tools Here’s what you’ll need

• Meat grinder – Essential for grinding the venison prior to stuffing. Look for a grinder with both coarse and fine dies.

• Sausage stuffer – You’ll need this separate gear-driven stuffer, not just the grinder’s stuffing tubes, to properly stuff the sausage.

• Natural casings – The collagen or cellulose casings sold for fresh sausage won’t work here. You need hog casings or beef middles.

• Smoker – You’ll only cold smoke the sausage, so even a basic model will suffice.

• Curer’s salt – Also called Prague Powder #1 or pink salt, provides nitrites for safety.

• Starter culture – Helps ferment the sausage. Use Bactoferm F-RM-52 or similar.

• Humidifier or mister – Needed to control humidity during fermenting.

• pH meter – Used to verify fermentation; strips can substitute.

• Curing chamber – A fridge or other space to ferment, smoke, and dry the sausage.

While it looks like a lot of specialized equipment, most of these items can serve double duty for making other charcuterie like salami. For detailed recommendations on equipment, check out this gear guide.

Choosing the Right Venison

You want venison with a good balance of fat to lean meat for proper curing and texture. The best cuts to use are:

• Leg or haunch – The rear legs offer nice marbling.

• Shoulder – Also nicely marbled and inexpensive.

• Backstraps – Very lean, so needs added pork fat.

The meat should first be fully butchered into manageable chunks with all silver skin and connective tissue removed. Expect a yield of 50-60% usable meat from a whole venison leg or shoulder. Freeze any venison trimmings separately to grind for burgers or chili.

If starting with pre-butchered cuts like steaks, choose sirloins or top/bottom round steaks, not super lean backstrap.

Adding Pork for Fat

Deer meat alone is too lean to make good summer sausage. You’ll need to blend in fatty pork – about 25% is ideal. Good options are:

• Pork shoulder – Cheap and nicely marbled.

• Pork belly – Very fatty; a little goes a long way.

• Pork back fat – The best choice for pure white fat.

If your venison already has good marbling, like the haunch, you may only need 10-15% added pork fat. But err on the higher side, as too little fat makes dry, crumbly sausage.

Seasonings and Ingredients

Venison summer sausage is flavored with a blend of spices, along with salt, sugar, and curing salts. Here are some common ingredients:

Salts

• Table salt
• Curing salt (Prague Powder #1)
• Dextrose or white sugar

Spices and Herbs

• Black pepper
• Mustard seed
• Ginger
• Coriander
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Crushed red pepper
• Fennel seed
• Caraway seed
• Allspice (optional)

Other

• Nonfat dry milk powder
• Corn syrup or maple syrup (optional)
• Wine or vinegar (optional)
• Liquid smoke (optional)

You can create your own signature seasoning blend by choosing a few elements from each category above. Just don’t reduce the measured amounts of curing salt.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Follow these steps to make perfect venison summer sausage at home:

1. Prepare the Meat

• Cut the venison and pork into 1-2″ cubes.
• Weigh the meat and calculate percentages.
• Mix in salt, sugar, spices, and curing salt.
• Chill overnight to allow salt to penetrate.

2. Grind and Mix

• Chill grinder parts and meat before grinding.
• Grind meats separately through coarse die.
• Grind together through 4-5mm fine die.
• Mix in starter culture and any other ingredients.

3. Stuff Into Casings

• Soak and rinse casings well. Flush with water while stuffing.
• Keep stuffing pressure very light.
• Tie off or clip every 6-8 inches to make links.

4. Ferment

• Hang sausages in warm (70°F), humid environment.
• Maintain 85-90% humidity for 2-3 days.
• pH should drop to 5.3 or below when done.

5. Cold Smoke

• Smoke at under 90°F for 4-6 hours with light smoke.
• Use ice in smoker’s water pan to keep cool.

6. Dry and Cure

• Hang sausages 50-60°F at 75-80% humidity for 4-6 weeks.
• Weight will drop 30% when fully dried.

Once the venison summer sausage has fully dried, it’s ready to eat! Vacuum pack portions and refrigerate for up to 3 months.

Helpful Tips and Tricks

Here are some additional pointers to help your first batch of venison summer sausage come out perfect:

• Keep everything scrupulously clean and chilled while grinding and mixing.

• Use more starter culture than package directs for safety.

• Mix the meat very thoroughly after adding cure and spices.

• Add a little red wine or vinegar for extra tang.

• Use a needle to prick any air pockets in the stuffed casings.

• Monitor humidity closely during fermenting and drying.

• Weigh and track weight loss to judge when cured.

• Slice off end pieces periodically to check texture.

• Enjoy the sausage sliced thin once it has dried properly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don’t have a dedicated curing chamber?

You can rig up a temporary chamber pretty easily. Use a basement or garage fridge, wine cooler, or even a large cooler. Add humidifier and controllers.

Can I use a food dehydrator instead of hanging to dry?

You can, but the texture will be a bit different. Set at 95-105°F and dry until 30% weight loss.

How long does homemade summer sausage last?

Properly cured and dried sausage will last 3 months refrigerated. It can also be frozen for up to a year.

What casings work best?

For beginners, 38-42mm hog casings are easiest to stuff. Beef middles and larger hog casings also work well.

Can I make summer sausage without starter culture?

It’s possible but not recommended – bad bacteria could grow. Monitor pH and ferment longer to be safe.

Conclusion

Making tasty venison summer sausage requires time, patience, and care, but the payoff is having amazing homemade sausage that will impress your family and friends. Start with a small batch your first time, then expand your flavors and quantities once you get the basic techniques down. The ability to customize your own sausage is extremely rewarding. Just be sure to follow safe handling procedures precisely. Enjoy your venison summer sausage on crackers, sandwiches, pizza and more for months to come!