Smoked Product Too Dry

Shuswap · Post by **Shuswap** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 17:07

I made my first batch of smoked Slim Jims using Len Poli`s recipe and using collagen casings. Only change was using wild boar trim instead of pork trim. I`ll add a bit more heat next time. I`m still learning how to use the new Bradley but am getting the hang of it - need to take more time preheating it then bringing the heat down to the desired temperature.

I have been having trouble with my smoked products being slightly too dry. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I am going to try a larger water pan next time.

Post by **redzed** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 17:15

How long did you smoke the sticks? Total time in smoker?

rgauthier20420 · Post by **rgauthier20420** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 17:18

Yes, a bit more info would help. Temp you cooked at and final temp of the sausage? How did you cool them down after final IT was reached? Water bath or let them bloom and cool? Could the wild bore have been leaner than the expected pork trim and your fat content was too low?

Post by **Bob K** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 18:07

Phil is this the recipe you used? http://lpoli.50webs.com/index_files/Snack%20Sticks.pdf

Aren't Slim Jims (snack sticks) meant to be dryer and a bit chewy? Like Kabonosy

Shuswap · Post by **Shuswap** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 18:16

Oh yes, the details almost as prescribed by Len Poli. Bob K has the recipe url.

The stuffed Jims spent the night in the fridge. Next morning I let them sit at room temperature over breakfast. I preheated the smoker to 135° with the product loaded for one hour. Raised the temp to 145° with smoke for 3 hours. During this period the temp went to 180° for about 1/2 hour before I got it reset to 145°. Then I raised the temp to 160° for an hour. It came out of the smoker with an IT of 135°. I finished in the oven (185°) until an IT of 160° was reached. When the IT of 160° was reached I rinsed each stick off under cold water for about 15 seconds each then let them bloom overnight. As I type this I think it spent too much time resting before hitting the smoker.

The temperature setting dial on the Bradley is finicky - I'm thinkg of modifying it for a digital controller - should have spent the extra $100 to start with.

rgauthier20420 · Post by **rgauthier20420** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 18:23

I think Bob is right and they are meant to be a little dryer. With that said, what are you using as a temp gauge? Are you using a separate thermo than the one on your smoker and your setting on your oven? Electric smokers can vary +-20 degrees and temp variations on home ovens can be even worse. Just a thought at least.

So what you'll need to do is send them all over to me now, and I'll do a thorough analysis with some refreshments to see what the problem is

Post by **Butterbean** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 18:26

Looks like ample fat, good distribution, good bind ..... frankly they look good to me. If you followed the recipe to the letter and they aren't juicy enough for your taste, adding more fat or more milk powder might bump up the juiciness some but like Bob says they are supposed to be chewy. Any chance you are being too critical of your work?

Shuswap · Post by **Shuswap** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 18:45

For temperature, I am using digital thermometers for the smoker and the IT. Being too critical can't be a bad thing as long as I don't give up. As a furniture maker I tend to be quite critical of my work and never express an opinion when someone asks me what I think about my work. When I look in the mirror my wife is standing there with her opinion

You know the saying: practice does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect

Post by **Bob K** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 19:14

Shuswap wrote:As a furniture maker I tend to be quite critical of my work and never express an opinion when someone asks me what I think about my work.

When you are doing woodwork and you know yourself of all the little flaws...its really easy to be critical of your work. No one else usually notices.

Speaking of woodwork next time you feel like making woodchips on the lathe try turning a few dowels to fit the inside diameter of your stuffing tubes. Would make cleaning and getting out the last of the mince a whole lot easier.

Post by **redzed** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 19:17

I looked at Poli's recipe and see no reason for phosphates and s. erythorbate in those sticks. Just because the stuff is in the commercial product does not mean you need to put it into your home made product. Lean beef retains water very well, so if you work it into the farce properly, there is no reason that the sticks should not be moist. Poli's instructions on mixing are wrong. When you mix the meat you start adding the water right at the start, but in a small amount at a time. Mix and Mix until the water is absorbed and then add a little more. Mix the beef and pork separately until each is sticky and then mix the two together. Poli also instructs to mix for 3 minutes. That type of advice is meaningless, you mix until all the water is totally absorbed and the spices are blended in. This could take you 5 minutes or 15 minutes. It also depends on the meat you used, the amount, and whether it was frozen or fresh. And I hope you did not make the sticks out of commercially ground hamburger meat.

But, as already has been pointed out, snack sticks are supposed to be dry and that's why it's usually recommended that they be finished off in the smoker and not cooled with water since they are supposed to have that wrinkled look.

Shuswap · Post by **Shuswap** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 22:48

I really appreciate the time all you have taken to comment on my enquiry - it is why this forum is such a great resource.

Bob said: "Speaking of woodwork next time you feel like making woodchips on the lathe try turning a few dowels to fit the inside diameter of your stuffing tubes. Would make cleaning and getting out the last of the mince a whole lot easier."

Bob, I find it amazing how often I miss the obvious when struggling with an activity as I did clearing the stuffer tube with an artist`s paint brush handle and being frustrated - making the clearing dowel will be done

Red, I appreciate that you don`t like phosphates and s. erythorbate in home made sausage from prior postings. My practice, as young as it is, is to follow a recipe as closely as I can first time around then adapt after. I must say that the s. erythorbate did preserve color. I agree with your comments on mixing. I was taken aback when I first stated to mix the meat with the water there seemed to be so much but eventually the mass became very sticky. You can probably tell that I wasn`t sure about cooling with water which is why it was a mere rinse as opposed to a bath.

Enough, back to the shop where I have some turning to do.

Devo · Post by **Devo** » Tue Feb 10, 2015 22:53

I have made hundreds of pounds of Slim Jims/SnackSticks with my bradley. I start out at 120 for an hour than bump up 10 degrees every hour till I get to 160°F till the IT temp is around 152°F. Usually takes about 8-10 hours for a 10 lbs. load. I do use a PID controller which makes life much easier. The bradley temp controllers are garbage. Get yourself a PID controller as soon as you can justify it. Auber Instruments sell a couple of plug and play ones or if your up to the challenge you can build one with parts from their site.
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_ ... ex&cPath=8

Suyi Liu can answer any questions you might have and they stand behind their product.

Your Slim Jims look very good to me also. I like them dryer and have been known to hang them downstairs for a couple of days to dry out more. Guess it's a matter of taste.

Here is a PID controller I just built for my sous vid cooking. This one has a relay and is kind of noisy but its heavy duty and can control a very large unit if it had to.