Home Made Sichuan Pepper Pork Sausage
This home-made pork sausage contains the magic of Sichuan pepper, star anise and cardamom.
Equipment
- Meat grinder, keep it in your fridge or freezer 24hrs ahead of time
- Sausage-making attachment, see above
- Metal bowl, see above
- Drug scales
- Sausage casings, very thoroughly rinsed and soaked in clean water for 2 hours
- Needle
Ingredients
- 9 oz - 250 gr pork fat chin or pork belly are fine, do not use back fat
- 9 oz - 250 gr pork meat shoulder or trimmings work best
- 1 1/2 t - 7.5 gr fine salt
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 3/4 t - 3 gr Sichuan peppercorns black seeds removed, husks dry roasted and crushed
- 1/2 t - 2 gr ground white pepper
- 1/2 t - 2 gr star anise powder
- 1/2 t - 2 gr cardamom powder
- 1 1/2 t - 7.5 gr corn starch
- 2 spring onions thinly sliced
- 1/2 t - 2 ml fish sauce
- 3/4 t - 3 ml soy sauce
- 5 ft - 1.5 meters sausage casing
- sunflower oil for frying
Instructions
The day before, if making your own mince
- Cut up 9 oz - 250 gr of pork fat and 9 oz - 250 gr of pork shoulder cuttings into walnut sized chunks, mix with 1 1/2 t - 7.5 gr of salt and place in your fridge overnight.
- As working with cold materials is vital for sausage-making, this is a good time to place your mixing bowl, meat grinder and sausage machine in the fridge or freezer as well.
The day of
- Be sure to remember to place everything that you're not using back in the fridge any time you take a break from working with the meat.
- Take your meat out of the fridge and mix in 2 minced garlic cloves, 3/4 t - 1.5 gr of Sichuan peppercorns and 1/2 t - 2 gr of white pepper, star anise and cardamom powder before running it through the grinder.
- Once the meat has all been ground, add the remainder of the Sichuan peppercorns, 1 1/2 t - 7.5 gr of cornstarch, 1 1/2 t - 7.5 ml of ice cold water, 2 finely chopped spring onions, 1/2 t - 2 ml of fish and 3/4 t- 3 ml of soy sauce.
- Mix aggressively by hand for at least 5 minutes, until your meat has a nice even consistency and has started to come together in a ball.
- If you want to do a taste test, take a piece of the meat and fry it up. See what it's like and add more seasoning to taste.
- Remember to place your meat in the fridge while you set up your sausage machine!
- Now use your sausage machine to fill your casing. It's best to fill the casing in one go. Then use a needle* to poke tiny holes in it all over at regular intervals and then twist to your desired sausage size when done.
- Fry in oil for 15-20 minutes and enjoy.
Notes
If you don't have a meat grinder available, just get some pork mince and use the spice mix to make a burger. Stick it on a bao bun.
These sausages will keep in the freezer for 3 months.
*I don't know why you should poke your sausage with a needle at the end of the filling process, but according to Meneer Wateetons they do this in Italy and it works. The main thing is, use an actual needle. Do not under any circumstances use a skewer, tooth pick or anything of that size that you may feel sounds 'more sensible'. It isn't.