Make Cabanossi yourself – simple & super tasty

In this post I’ll show you how to make cabanossi yourself. It is easy to make and tastes just heavenly good. 

There are many different types of Cabanossi. Both as raw sausage and scalded sausage. Depending on whether they are hot or cold smoked. These differences also exist in the spices, depending on the region.

I’ll show you a Brühwurst version with a purist blend of spices in this post. In the future I will also publish a raw sausage Kabanossi. 

Typical distinguishing feature of my cabanossi is the coarse bacon insert. I use a fat pork belly here.

Here you can find the complete Cabanossi recipe as a video or to read through.

Have fun and good luck making it!

Making your own Cabanossi – What do you need?

Ingredients for your Cabanossi

Ingredients per 1 kg 

• 50 % pork belly (500 g)
• 30 % lean beef (300 g)
• 10 % pork loin fat (100 g)
• 10 % crushed ice (100 g)

Spices per 1 kg 

• 15.5 g salt
• 3 g cutter phosphates
• 2.5 g Cure #1
• 2 g black pepper
• 2 g paprika sweet
• 0.5 g mace

Equipment for making amarican Andouille

Meat grinder

You will need the meat grinder, also called a mincer, to “grind” the meat, meaning the meat is finely ground.

Spice grinder / mortar

To grind your spices, it is best to use a spice mill. Alternatively, a mortar is also suitable. Or you can use already ground spices. I recommend to grind them yourself.

Smoker 

The cabanossi must be smoked before they are cooked. For this reason you need a smoker. Alternatively, you can just scald them, which will result in no smoke flavor on the cabanossi. 

Sausage filler / attachment for the meat grinder / hand filling funnel

You need this to get your meat mass into the casing. For the beginning you can also use a filling attachment for your meat grinder or a hand filling funnel. 

Natural casing

To fill your sausage you need natural casings. I use sheep casings caliber 22/24.

Making Cabanossi yourself – Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Cut the meat and fat into pieces suitable for mincing. You can adjust the size depending on how big your grinder is. Be sure to keep the pork belly separate from the beef and back fat.

2. Let the meat freeze in the freezer for 1 – 2 hours. This will make it easier for you to grind later.

3. Now grind the lean beef and the pork back fat twice through the finest perforated disc. 

4. Then grind the pork belly once through the medium or coarsest perforated disc. 

5. Add half of the spice mixture and half of the nitrite curing salt to the minced meat. 

6. Mix the finely minced meat and fat to a homogeneous sausage meat. Gradually add the cutter aid and crushed ice. You can use a food processor or a hand mixer with a dough hook. Make sure that the mass does not exceed 12 degrees Celsius (53.6°F). 

7. Now lift the coarsely chopped ingredients under the fine sausage meat. It is best to use your hands for this. Make sure that it gets a good binding. 

8. Fill the meat mass into 22/24 caliber sheep casings. Make sure that as little air as possible is trapped and that the casings are not filled too tightly.

9. Now it is time to link your sausages. You can decide for yourself how big you want your Cabanossi to be. Simply twist off one sausage, leave one out and then twist off again.

10. Hang your cabanossi in the smoker and smoke them for 30 – 35 minutes at 70 degrees Celsius (158 °F). 

11. You can then poach the cabanossi at 75 °C (167°F) for another 25 minutes. The poaching time should roughly correspond to the diameter of the sausage casing. If you want to make thicker sausages, you have to adjust it.

12. Then rinse them in ice-cold water. 

13. Optional but recommended. Once the cabanossi are cool, you can cold smoke them over again for 12 hours. This will give them a great color and a nice smoky flavor.

14. Your cabanossis are ready 😄. Enjoy 

What is the shelf life of Cabanossi?

Ready brewed in the refrigerator they can be kept for about 1 week. Vacuum packed in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks. Alternatively, you can also freeze them longer.