Do you only grind your own wild game?

[flyfisher117]

I am trying to justify buying a meat grinder and learning to process my own game. I am lucky to bag a deer a year, but working on changing that.

It got me questioning if those of you who process your own game also grind your own breakfast sausage or beef burger? Is it a worthwhile adventure? I know it won't necessarily be cheaper but wondering if thr quality difference alone is worth it?

Meat your maker has some grinders on sale, and I was holding off to see what they may have around the first of September. Just wanted to get some feedback and thoughts from those more experienced.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

It's worth it for making your own sausage and such because that's expensive to have made. I also grind whole chicken quarters bones and all for my dog's food. We make Chorizo with lots of wild hog, summer sausage with pork butt and venison but if we didn't have so much wild game you can do all the same with commercial meat. That's assuming you like to cook and get creative with things.

 

[shwacker]

Definitely worth it, if you will use it, IMO. I haven't even played with mixing up sausage.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Definitely worth it. I grind all my own burger and make all my own sausage. I haven't taken any to have made in nearly 10 years as I feel mine is superior. I know exactly what's in it and especially can control the salt content. My suggestion is to not buy something cheap/underpowered. 3/4 HP min would be my suggestion.

 

[flyfisher117]

It's worth it for making your own sausage and such because that's expensive to have made. I also grind whole chicken quarters bones and all for my dog's food. We make Chorizo with lots of wild hog, summer sausage with pork butt and venison but if we didn't have so much wild game you can do all the same with commercial meat. That's assuming you like to cook and get creative with things.

Do you need the sausage stuffer attachments for making your own breakfast sausage? Or are those for summer sausage and the like?

Definitely worth it, if you will use it, IMO. I haven't even played with mixing up sausage.

If I use it is my biggest concern. Don't currently have a ton of space and life for the last 3 years has kept me out of the field. This year was supposed to be my year to get back at it and life again has kept me indoors. Nut if I can also use it with beef then it's easier to justify.

Definitely worth it. I grind all my own burger and make all my own sausage. I haven't taken any to have made in nearly 10 years as I feel mine is superior. I know exactly what's in it and especially can control the salt content. My suggestion is to not buy something cheap/underpowered. 3/4 HP min would be my suggestion.

I was eyeballing the 3/4HP bundle they have right now.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

You will be amazed at how fast a good quality unit can grind. I have a 1 HP and can grind 8-10 lbs per minute. Basically as fast as you can feed it. Well trimmed game meat flies through it.

 

[The Guide]

I cut and debone all my own game. I make my own elk burger and bulk sausage (we don't do deer burger) at home and take meat to the processor I like for stuffed sausage. Depending upon the volume of meat you harvest every year, it may not be the most efficient way to do it as the startup costs can be expensive for a quality long lasting grinder system. Don't go cheap or you'll end up with a product you won't be happy with.

Jay

 

[ScreamingPotato]

Do you need the sausage stuffer attachments for making your own breakfast sausage? Or are those for summer sausage and the like?

If I use it is my biggest concern. Don't currently have a ton of space and life for the last 3 years has kept me out of the field. This year was supposed to be my year to get back at it and life again has kept me indoors. Nut if I can also use it with beef then it's easier to justify.

I was eyeballing the 3/4HP bundle they have right now.

For the Chorizo, no, I vacuum seal that in 1 lb "flats" to stack easily and we pan fry it so no need to stuff. REO chorizo seasoning is the bomb btw just use way more vinegar than it calls for. For summer sausage and link sausage you'll need the stuffer attachments, but an independent stuffer is far superior IMO.

I tried to kill my itty bitty LEM unit for 15 years and never could so I finally just bought a 1 HP Meat for $350ish on sale. If you're doing a deer a year you don't need a large grinder. Yes a bigger grinder is better, but a good brand small grinder will grind just fine. I still have the tiny LEM as a backup and I'll give it to my sons some day when they start doing their own and stop expecting me to do all the processing lol.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Do you need the sausage stuffer attachments for making your own breakfast sausage? Or are those for summer sausage and the like?

If you're going to get serious, I would buy a 10-15 lb sausage stuffer.

 

[The Guide]

If you're going to get serious, I would buy a 10-15 lb sausage stuffer.

That's what I use to even stuff 1 and 2 pound bags.

Jay

 

[Pro953]

Do you have a kitchen aid mixer. I made it by with one of those attachments for years. I think one deer a year would be no problem. I only updated to a dedicated grinder when I started making more sausage from wild boar.

That said for Venison and Elk I do not grind a lot. We prefer larger pieces for assorted stews, braises, taco meat (not ground) etc…

In my opinion it’s a luxury but not a necessity. Especially if you have challenges with space.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NRA4LIFE]

I got bye with the Kitchenaid attachment on my wife's mixer for quite some time until the unit started smoking. Wife was not happy and that was the excuse to buy a dedicated grinder. Replaced the motor, wife was happy again. Funny, because now we use it again for grinding but only for a couple pounds at a time for specialty stuff. Saves time to not get out the 85 lb beast to grind only a small lot.

 

[flyfisher117]

I cut and debone all my own game. I make my own elk burger and bulk sausage (we don't do deer burger) at home and take meat to the processor I like for stuffed sausage. Depending upon the volume of meat you harvest every year, it may not be the most efficient way to do it as the startup costs can be expensive for a quality long lasting grinder system. Don't go cheap or you'll end up with a product you won't be happy with.

Jay

Thanks yeah the grinders arent cheap. Neither was my $575 deer processing fee.. shot a deer last weekend of the season. My usual 2 guys were full. Had to take it to the next closest processor and I didn't really bother to ask price.. I should have but lesson learned. That's what started me on this rabbit hole and got me thinking.

I got bye with the Kitchenaid attachment on my wife's mixer for quite some time until the unit started smoking. Wife was not happy and that was the excuse to buy a dedicated grinder. Replaced the motor, wife was happy again. Funny, because now we use it again for grinding but only for a couple pounds at a time for specialty stuff. Saves time to not get out the 85 lb beast to grind only a small lot.

I do have a kitchenaid, we got it for our wedding. It's actually in storage at my in-laws just because we didn't have a real use for it right away. We don't do a lot of baking or other kitchenaid tasks so maybe grinding would be enough reason to open it.. I can't remember which size we got I do remember dad burning up my mother's trying to make pronghorn sausage as a child so I always assumed wrong tool for the job lol

 

[roadrunner]

Yes, it's worth the hassle. Aside from doing wildgame, you can experiment with different seasoning blends and flavors on sausage, and you'll always have homemade of your liking on hand.

As mentioned minimum 3/4 horse and I'll add no smaller than a #22 plate.

Mine is a 1 hp, #22 with a dual grind head/auger.

 

[The Guide]

Thanks yeah the grinders arent cheap. Neither was my $575 deer processing fee.. shot a deer last weekend of the season. My usual 2 guys were full. Had to take it to the next closest processor and I didn't really bother to ask price.. I should have but lesson learned. That's what started me on this rabbit hole and got me thinking.

How much of that was custom sausage? That's what kills a guy. I'm in a Northern state where I gut, skin, quarter, debone, and process almost all of my own game and I still will pay over $300 a year for cheddarworst, polish, bratwurst, kielbasa, and some snack sticks to be made. For someone to cut and grind (burger and steaks only) your whole carcass (gutted and skinned turned in clean) antelope is $100 to $125, deer are $125 to $150, and elk is $150 to $250. Expect to pay $3 to $6 a pound finish weight for sausage to be made. The price you paid seems outlandish to me. I can see why you are looking at moving in this direction.

Jay

 

[NRA4LIFE]

$575 would buy you a real nice grinder.

 

[flyfisher117]

How much of that was custom sausage? That's what kills a guy. I'm in a Northern state where I gut, skin, quarter, debone, and process almost all of my own game and I still will pay over $300 a year for cheddarworst, polish, bratwurst, kielbasa, and some snack sticks to be made. For someone to cut and grind (burger and steaks only) your whole carcass (gutted and skinned turned in clean) antelope is $100 to $125, deer are $125 to $150, and elk is $150 to $250. Expect to pay $3 to $6 a pound finish weight for sausage to be made. The price you paid seems outlandish to me. I can see why you are looking at moving in this direction.

Jay

Zero sausage. I kept the best steaks then burger for the rest of it.


When you guys process youe nest is there a minimum ammount you do to keep it worthwhile to set up the equipment? Just trying to forward think and see roughly how many lbs one should do in a sitting and how long that would last my wife and I.

 

[TimberRunner]

When I process my meat, I debone, cut roasts/steaks and freeze then I trim all my grind meat so it essentially ready to grind and I freeze it in 5 lb bags. This above process took me almost 7 hours for last elk. For a deer, its just a couple of hours.

Then on another day, I grind. The meat that I froze in those 5# bags is ready to go right into the grinder. You can buy or mix your own sausage seasonings. A 5 lb stuffer is enough for me, I usually don't make more than 10 lbs of sausage at a time and with breakfast sausage, I tend to do loose grind. My last elk netted almost 40# of burger (some with fat, some without) and 10# of breakfast sausage.

 

[Jimbee]

I have a 1hp Cabelas grinder. I'm on my second 1000 count box of meat bags. I grind directly into the meat bags via a stuffer tube. I now use small zip ties to close the bags. Same thing with any sausage. When I make sausage I just cube whatever semi frozen meat I'm using and mix it with the seasoning and grind into the bag. Easy peasy.
Also, get a foot controlled switch!

 

[MallardSX2]

$575 would buy you a real nice grinder.

^^^ This and if you keep your eyes open, you can get aq hell of a grinder for a lot less than that.