Tips for double grinding

Michael54

WKR
Joined
Oct 18, 2019
It seems like putting ground meat back through our grinder is really hard on the grinder. The meat doesn't want to feed and the grinder is working a lot harder than it should be with the ground not feeding properly. We have a 3/4 hp guide series grinder with a 2" throat. Does anyone have any tips on making the re grind go smoother?
 
What are you making? Just burger?

If all you're making is just burger I single grind with a 3/16"-1/4" plate. I actually prefer single grind.

My friend substitutes an electric egg beater instead of a second grind. This also works when mixing in spices for sausage or meatloaf.

Sausages like summer sausage need a double grind.
 
What are you making? Just burger?

If all you're making is just burger I single grind with a 3/16"-1/4" plate. I actually prefer single grind.

My friend substitutes an electric egg beater instead of a second grind. This also works when mixing in spices for sausage or meatloaf.

Sausages like summer sausage need a double grind.
Its for sausage and snack sticks when im adding pork fat. Regular burger and jerky is just a single grind.
 
I double grind everything with a #12 LEM grinder. I have the best luck when I feed in small chunks rather than trying to keep the feed tube full. If I just trickle it in it feeds right through. It takes longer to do the second grind, but makes it much nicer for stuffing. If I'm having to use the plunger to stuff it in I'm feeding too much at a time. LEM does make double grind grinders now that use both plates at the same time.
 
I struggled on the second grind as well. I found it worked a lot better to not fill up the feed tube and just drop chunks right into the auger. I didn't have to use the plunger once I started doing that.
 
Good tips here for next time. Would have saved me some headaches if I'd thought it through this year. Thanks.
 
If your gonna be grinding twice I would try to find a 5/8” or 3/4” grinder plate for the first pass, it will be easier to mix the fat into the meat evenly in bigger pieces than in small ones prior to the second grind. It will also feed a lot easier than meat that’s gone through a 1/4 to 1/8 inch plate first. And if the meat is semi frozen it grinds up beautifully and there is no fat smearing going on.
 
I single grind everything. If making sausage just mix spices with chunked meat. Grind stuff and smoke.

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Double grinding sucks and I single grind if I can. All burger gets a single pass. If grinding twice, as mentioned partially freeze the meat and keep the grinder components cold. LEM does make a dual grind attachment now to grind twice in one pass that may be worth a look.

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Feed smaller handfuls into the grinder. Also, keep the meat as cold as possible by putting it into a freezer for a short time or into a refrigerator for a few hours. You can also add crushed ice after the first grind. Make sure it’s crushed and not the regular square ice pieces.
 
Add cold/ice water. When you grind, you begin to extract out the proteins which makes it "sticky". Around 2 lbs of water (32 oz) for 25 lbs of grind is sufficient for the second grind.
 
Have a big enough neck and HP. 1.0 pushing a agguer in a 22 neck or a 1.5 behind a 32 and you find your second and third grinds way easier
 
Cold, cold, cold per the above:
- freeze meat on baking sheets
- Freeze grinder die plates and augers
- freeze a heavy glass or ceramic bowl to grind into: critical for double grinding

I single grind for burger, double grind for sausage. If you want to incorporate water like @roadrunner just use ice. It will help lower the temperature and lubricate. This is a Runza trick, they grind their burger with ice. One of the best fast food burgers, it’s no In & Out but damn good.
 
I like having a pedal for the grinder. As the feeding is slower it is good to stop rather than running and over-heating the meat when it isn't moving.

Best trick: get a bigger grinder. The larger feed tube helps tremendously. My kids roll up short meat logs so that they drop straight in. The plunger is only used to clear the clogs.
 
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