*Meat should be cold before grinding.
*Aim for 20% fat
*Use shoulder
*Order of meat grinding for food safety: beef, pork, lamb, chicken
*Slow and go on the grinding speed. The tougher the meat, the slower the speed.
*2 step process - grind meat first, mix seasoning and grind again.
*Don't overwork meat - tough sausage
*Do 2 lb at a time.
*Salt ratio: 2 lb meat / 2 tbl salt
*After loading casing, before tying off, put a little bit of meat in until it gets to the tip and tie off.
*Prick sausage to let out residual air.
*For making links, push meat towards center, tie off by twirling links, alternate in opposite directions.
*Keeping it linked up for an hour or so before cutting, helps keep things intact.
*For chicken sausage, more separation between links when tying off.