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Homemade Pork Italian Sausage Recipe & Process
This homemade pork Italian sausage recipe is a delicious way to season your homegrown pork.
I’ve mentioned it before (and I’ll continue to talk about it again and again), but taking the reins and butchering your own livestock is such an important project and wonderful skill to have. There is definitely a learning curve, but seeing yourself improve year after year is its own reward.
Of course, our main motivation with handling the butcher and slaughter ourselves is the quality control that we have over the end product. We like our pork chops hefty (think 1+” thick) and our roasts fatty- home butchery lets us make that call. Butchering at home also means that grinding and seasoning any trim is totally up to us.
Besides making pounds and pounds of breakfast sausage (find that recipe here) or a batch of chorizo (how I make it here), I like to season a good amount of the trim for Italian sausage. Our homemade pork Italian sausage is the perfect, extra flavorful addition to spaghetti, homemade pizzas, meatballs, and more. I’ve even used it as the base in meat loaf- delicious.
If you’re familiar with grinding meat already, this recipe is a no-brainer.
After dicing and chilling the meat and fat, a single coarse grind will get you on your way.
Add in the seasonings, and after a thorough stirring or re-grind- the sausage is ready to use.
I prefer to package and freeze in 1lb packages. I’ve found that 1lb is just enough for a batch of spaghetti sauce or meatballs- our go-to use for Italian sausage. That said, you could freeze in whatever quantity makes the most sense for your family.
As far as packaging meat for the freezer goes, I use the same basic system for all meat.
Start by wrapping each 1 pound package in plastic wrap. (I buy a large roll of it, like this, from our local restaurant supply store)
Then wrap that with freezer paper. (This giant coated roll of paper is my favorite & lasts a few seasons per roll)
Hold the whole thing closed with good old masking tape.
Label with a sharpie & freeze. Easy.
I know many people swear by their vacuum sealers, bur I like that the plastic wrap-paper method works with any sized cut of meat. The packages can also handle getting dropped or shuffled around in the freezer without getting punctured and freezer burnt.
Now that we have all of this -fantastic- Pork Italian Sausage in the freezer- what are we going to do with it?
My absolute favorite meal centered around our homegrown/home-ground/homemade Italian sausage? Spaghetti squash- grown here- topped with homemade tomato sauce and this Italian sausage.
A close second- cast iron lasagna with homemade noodles, sauce, goat cheese, and, of course, some of this homemade sausage.
If these suggestions don’t have your mouth watering, I don’t know what will! Get ready to fire up that meat grinder and give this recipe a shot.
Thanks for reading & happy cooking!
-Maia
PS After publishing this homemade pork Italian sausage recipe, I concocted a delicious stuffed spaghetti squash recipe, as part of our January pantry challenge. If you’re looking for a tasty way to mix up your weeknight meals, check this recipe out!
Homemade Pork Italian Sausage
Equipment
- Meat grinder with coarse plate
- Measuring spoons & measuring cup
- Large mixing bowls or pots
- Kitchen scale, plastic wrap, freezer paper optional
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Pork fat
- 8 lbs Pork
- 1 1/2 cup Red wine vinegar
- 5 T Salt
- 5 T Pepper
- 7 T Dried parsley
- 6 T Garlic powder
- 6 T Onion powder
- 6 T Dried basil
- 4 T Paprika
- 5 T Red pepper flakes
- 2 T Fennel seed
- 1 T Each of Oregano, Thyme, Marjoram
Instructions
- Weigh out, dice, and chill the pork and fat. We like to use an 80:20 ratio of meat to fat, but you can adjust to your taste.
- Combine all of the dry seasonings.
- Grind the meat and fat through your grinder's coarse plate. Pour the red wine vinegar over the ground meat.
- Add the seasonings to the ground meat. Stir to combine.
- Re-grind the meat-seasoning mixture through your grinder. (Or stir thoroughly by hand to combine)
- Use your kitchen scale, plastic wrap, and freezer paper to weigh out, package, and freeze the sausage. We prefer 1lb portions.