Pepperoni

Was craving some good, homemade Pepperoni to make some pizza in the coming weeks... Came up with this.

• 3 lbs. Pork Cushion
• 2 lbs. Beef Chuck
• 1.5 lbs. Pork Fat (No skin)
• 1/2 Cup Non-fat Milk (Can use dry, I usually do, just was out)
• 3 Tbs. Kosher salt
• 1/2 Cup Malbec or other good dry Spanish wine
• 4 Tbs. Hungarian HOT Paprika (I get it from LaTienda.com)
• 1 Tbs. Dextrose
• 1 Tbs. Binder (You could do without this, I just like how it holds the meat together in the slicer)
• 4 Tsp. Anise seeds (GET FRESH!)
• 1 tsp. Fennel seeds (GET FRESH!)
• 1 Tbs. Black Mustard seeds
• 1 tsp. Cure #2
• 1 Tbs. Cayenne pepper (Or, for better heat, crush up 3 Tbs. dried Chili Pequin)
• 2 Cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 tsp. Starter Culture (I used Bactoferm F-LC for this, as it has quick acidification and works well in smoker)

Semi-Freeze Pork and Beef. Grind though 1/4 plate. Run FROZEN Pork fat through Grinder alternating with a little crushed ice to prevent smearing. Toss in fridge. Add starter culture and a pinch of dextrose to  1/4 cup of bottled water (Tap water Chlorine will hamper the starter).  Grind Seeds coarsely. Mix all dry ingredients together... Put wine and milk if liquid over meat... sprinkle garlic over dispersing well. Add dry ingredients and mix well for 4-5 minutes, or until you can no longer feel your gloved hand. (Note to all reading... I WANT A MEAT MIXER!) Add started culture and mix two more minutes.

I used air-dried hog casing to stuff into this time, however you could also use beef middles (stink!), LARGE 38-40 Hog casings, OR, Edible collagen. I stuffed the air-dried casings into netting to help with supporting them, and because they looked cool.

Hang at 70-80º for 24 hours. Humidity not SUPER important yet, but I wouldn't do it during Santa Ana winds...

Put in smoker at 130º, light smoke (I used some cabernet-hickory) for 5 hours. At this time I put a pobe in the middle one, and set it for 160º. Bring smoker up to 175-180º (Any higher you will melt the fat)... Takes about another 2-3 hours...

Remove and immerse in an ice bath for 3-5 minutes. Hang for 3-5 days, 60-70 degrees, 40-50% humidity...

Freeze for an hour before slicing for best results... Or vacuum seal and fridge for a few months. Good stuff.