This wonderful “old school” recipe came to us by way of my friend Sonny “Santino” over at the You Tube channel That’s Aroma! Arrusti e Mangia Mangia. I have to admit I had a little trouble writing this one out, so I created 2 versions of this recipe. The first version is exactly how Sonny explained it in his video. Remember the pepper sauce that Sonny used was a 980 grams jar. I tried to find that exact brand but apparently, it’s only sold at Costco in Canada. If you follow Sonny’s recipe, you’ll need to take that into consideration. Below Sonny’s recipe, you’ll find my version. My version is a 1 kilo batch, but you can adjust the amount that you want to make in the “Servings Box”. 2.2 pounds – 1000 grams, 5 pounds = 2270 grams, and 10 pounds = 4540 grams. You can literally plug in any number and the recipe will automatically make the adjustments. for you. I’ve also precisely calculated the spices that Sonny used in his recipe. So have fun with this sausage and if you make it let me know what you think!! Enjoy.
Follow basic sausage preparation practices when making this sausage.
- Clean and Sanitize all of your equipment.
- Chill your meat to below 34f or 1c before grinding.
- Mix your very chilled meat (under 34f or 1c), liquid, and seasonings till the mince becomes very tacky.
- Stuff the mince into sausage casings and prick out any air pockets or just make sausage patties.
- Cook till the internal temperature reaches 155F
Here are a few things you might find useful when making sausage
- High Quality Natural Casings (AA Grade)
- Iodophor Sanitizer
- MK4 Thermapen (Accurate Thermometer)
- Sausage Pricker
- Kotai Chef Knife
- Sausage Stuffers
- Meat Grinder
- Meat Mixers
- Stuffing Horn Cleaner
- Butcher Twine & Dispenser
- Small accurate Scale for spices
- Large Capacity Scale (33 pounds)
- Drying rack and tray
- Custom Cutting Board
- Hand Held Vacuum SealerHeavy Duty Kitchen Vacuum Sealer
Enjoy the video and the recipe. If you have any questions, feel free to ask away. If you make this at home, I’d love to hear about how it came out!!
If you want to see the different things that we use in operation our be sure to check out our new Amazon Store.
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Sicilian Calabrese Sausage (Sonny’s Version makes 15 pounds)
Ingredients
Sonny's Old School Version
- 10 pounds pork shoulder
- 5 pounds lean pork
- 2½ handful kosher salt
- 3 handful black pepper
- 1 handful red chili flakes
- 1 handful fennel seed
- 1½ handful paprika add to taste
- 1/2 jar Italian Vegetable and Pepper Sauce 980 gram jar
- 29-32mm hog casings
Instructions
- Clean your meat of any silver skin, sinew, arteries and cut into small strips or cubes. Place in the freezer for an hour or until the temp reaches 32f – 34F. (0c-1c)
- Grind your very chilled meat on a medium plate (6mm)
- Mix the chilled meat, spices, and the pepper sauce till it becomes very tacky. If you grab a small handful, it will stick to your hand if you hold your hand upside down. If the meat mixture seems dry, then add a little extra pepper sauce.
- Fry up a patty and taste for spices.
- Stuff your sausage into it's casing. (I like to refrigerate my sausage overnight but with a fresh sausage it's not necessary.)
- Cook your sausage to an internal of 155f (68c)
Storage Instructions
- Fresh sausages are more perishable than cured sausages. So, refrigerate them and eat them within 1-2 days.
- You can also place these sausages in a vacuum sealed bag and freeze for later.
Sicilian Calabrese Sausage (Eric’s Version)
Ingredients
Eric's New School Version
- 600 g pork shoulder
- 280 g lean pork
- 120 g pork back fat
- 15 g kosher salt
- 8 g black pepper
- 2 g red chili flakes
- 3 g fennel seed
- 7 g paprika to taste
- 70 g Vegetable and Pepper Sauce
- 29-32mm hog casings
Instructions
- Clean your meat of any silver skin, sinew, arteries and cut into small strips or cubes. Place in the freezer for an hour or until the temp reaches 32f – 34F. (0c-1c)
- Grind your very chilled meat on a medium plate (6mm)
- Mix the chilled meat, spices, and the pepper sauce till it becomes very tacky. If you grab a small handful, it will stick to your hand if you hold your hand upside down. If the meat mixture seems dry, then add a little extra pepper sauce.
- Fry up a patty and taste for spices.
- Stuff your sausage into it's casing. (I like to refrigerate my sausage overnight but with a fresh sausage it's not necessary.)
- Cook your sausage to an internal of 155f (68c)
Storage Instructions
- Fresh sausages are more perishable than cured sausages. So, refrigerate them and eat them within 1-2 days.
- You can also place these sausages in a vacuum sealed bag and freeze for later.
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I made this last night with Eric’s version. Had it for breakfast with my bow hunting buddies and they wanted me to more next week, like 25 lbs.
Excellent!!
Eric,
Love the channel. I’ve tried multiple Italian sausage recipes, but not in love with any, so I’m excited to try yours/Sonny’s. The only real difference that I see – other than that Sonny cooks like an Italian (doesn’t measure) and probably sings better than you :) – is that you use pork back fat as well. Why not eliminate the lean pork and pork back fat and just use all pork butt?
You can certainly do that.
Aloha
is there a substitute for that calabrian pepper sauce?
not really that’s the backbone of this recipe. With that being said, you could technically use any pepper sauce but the flavor will be totally different