I have to admit. I’m a sucker for a good spicy snack stick. I can eat them all day long!! Recently we started a project that involves some of the world’s hottest peppers so I though it would be fun to make the ultimate spicy snack stick. The cheddar was just a bonus😁
Today we are aiming to make not only a spicy snack stick but a tangy one as well!! We are going to achieve those sourly notes in our snack stick by using a product called encapsulated citric acid. This is a great way to get that traditional old fashion tangy flavor with out having to ferment of mess with starter cultures. This product works like a time release to lower the ph of your sausage. You can use it to make summer sausage, pepperoni, or anything that you want a slightly tangy or sourly flavor.
Here’s how it works. The citric acid is coated with hydrogenated cotton seed oil. That cotton seed oil melts between 135F – 150F. So as soon as you start cooking your ECA filled sausage and it reaches an internal temperature of 150F the oil coating will have melted and the citric acid will be released into the meat, lowering the ph. TANGY!!
Encapsulated citric acid is very easy to use and works great if you follow the package directions. ECA (encapsulated citric acid) must be the very last ingredient you add to your meat as you are mixing. If you add it too soon the encapsulation could break, releasing the citric acid into your meat messing up the bind and texture. The other thing to remember about ECA is that it must be cooked the day it’s prepared.
I know that some of you may saying, ” wait a minute. Don’t we have to let the sausage rest in the fridge overnight to allow the cure to work?”. Under normal circumstances you are correct but encapsulated citric acid also works as a cure accelerator so when you use ECA you can cook immediately after stuffing!
I used 18-20mm sheep casings in this recipe but if you happen to have collagen casings those work great as well. Just be sure to dry your snack sticks out before cooking so that the casings can adhere properly and the snack stick can take on that tasty smoke. To dry your casing out simply hang it at room temperature for a couple of hours before smoking or set your smoker to very low (100F-110F) with the baffles wide open or the door slightly ajar. This will speed up the process.
Follow basic sausage preparation practices when making this sausage.
- Clean and Sanitize all of your equipment.
- Keep your meat and grinder parts super cold (below 34F)
- Any liquid that is added to the mince needs to be ice cold
- Mix your very chilled meat till the mince becomes very tacky
- Stuff the mince into sausage casings and prick out any air pockets
- After stuffing, smoke and cook your snack sticks low and slow:
Start at 125F for 1 1/2 hours, 135F for 1 hour, 155F for 1 hour, 165F for 1 hour, then 180F till the internal temp reaches 150F (smoke is being applied lightly through the entire cooking process) - After they finish smoking submerge the snack sticks in ice cold water to cool them off completely
- Finally let them bloom at room temperature for several hours.
- Refrigerate and enjoy!!
Here are a few things you might find useful when making sausage
- High Quality Natural Casings (AA Grade)
- Iodophor Sanitizer
- MK4 Thermapen (Accurate Thermometer)
- Chef Knife – KOTAI
- Boning Knife
- Iwatani Professional Chef Torch
- Insta Cure #1
- Potato Starch
- Sausage Stuffers
- Meat Grinder
- Smokers
- Bella’s Cold Smoke Generator
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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Spicy Cheddar Snack Sticks
Ingredients
- 350 g lean beef
- 350 g lean pork
- 300 g pork pack fat
- 2.5 g insta cure #1
- 17 g kosher salt
- 2.5 g black pepper
- 3 g garlic powder
- 1.5 g onion powder
- 2 g chipotle powder
- 3 g Super spicy pepper flakes Use your favorite spicy pepper flakes. Add to taste
- 1.5 g mustard powder
- 2.5 g granulated sugar
- 100 g extra sharp cheddar cheese cut into small cubes
- 20 g nonfat dry milk powder
- 7.5 g encapsulated citric acid ADD LAST DURING THE FINAL STAGES OF MIXING
- 1/4 cup ice cold water
- Sheep casings 18mm-20mm
Instructions
- Clean your meat of any silver skin, sinew, arteries and cut into small strips or cubes. Place the meat and fat in the freezer for an hour or until the temp reaches 32f – 34F.
- Prepare all of your seasonings (except the encapsulated citric acid), clean and rehydrate your casings
- Grind your very chilled meat and fat on a course plate (12mm). Add all of your seasonings to your course ground meat (except the encapsulated citric acid)
- Regrind your seasoned meat on a 6mm or 4mm plate.
- Add the ice cold water to your seasoned meat and begin to mix till it becomes very tacky. If you grab a small handful it will stick to your hand if you hold your hand upside down. Once that happens add the small cheddar cheese cubes and mix till they are well incorporated. LASTLY ADD THE ENCAPSULATED CITRIC ACID and mix for 20 more seconds till it's well incorporated.
- Stuff your mince meat into the sheep casings and form your links.
- After you form your links place the sticks in your smoker and let them dry out for 1 hour. I keep a low 100F temp with the door slightly open.
Cooking Schedule
- Start cooking at 125F for 1 1/2 hours, 135F for 1 hour, 155F for 1 hour, 165F for 1 hours then 180 till the internal temp reaches 150F (smoke is being applied lightly through the entire cooking process)
- Once finished cooking submerge in ice cold water and hang to bloom for 4-8 hours
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Would regular citric acid work?
no. citric acid will acidify the meat immediatly messing up the bind and the texture. The encapsulated element keeps that from happening till it’s cooked 😀
Glad to know this before I did it. Thanks.
Can this recipe be doubled or tripled?
Sure. In the “servings” box just type in how much you want to make in grams. 5 pounds = 2270, 10 pounds = 4540 and the recipe will automatically figure it out for you.
hi Eric
can food dehydrator substitute the smoking?
if so, temp and time?
Not if you want them to come out like mine. You could use a food dehydrator but the end result will be more like a jerky
Hi Eric, I’ve been watching your videos for a while and am FINALLY getting to making some sausage. We did the UmaiDry salami kit and were pleased with the results. I want to make some Jalapeño and cheese snack sticks and was wondering if I should use fresh, canned (not pickled), or dehydrated peppers. I already have some high temp cheese but it seems as though I won’t necessarily need it. Thanks in advance!
fresh peppers or canned peppers are good to go. Pickled peppers might cause an issue
There is no reason this recipe won’t work if I leave out the encapsulated citrate and do an old fashioned ferment is there?… I’m a fan of tspx (mostly as it’s the culture I have).
Nope. That’s actually the way I prefer to do it. To get that tangy flavor though you’ll want to drop the pH to 4.6. That means ferment a little hotter and add 1% dextrose. It’s not really the way TSPX is meant to be used but it’ll work. Here’s a post I did on naturally fermented snack sticks.. https://twoguysandacooler.com/snack-sticks/
The recipe makes it sound like regular cheddar diced up will work in this… No high temp cheese necessary?
That is correct. Just cook slowly and when the internal temp reaches 150F it’s finished
Hi Eric,
I’m not big on spicy part of these snack sticks. So if I left out the chipotle powder and the pepper flakes would I have to increase anything to make up for the 5 gram lost?
Hi Tim. Nope. Just leave it out and you’ll be fine…
Well, I left out the chipotle powder and the Super spicy pepper flakes. I used 350g of ground chuck and 650g of ground pork. They turned out excellent!
Will this recipe work for venison?
I am thinking of using 650g of venison and 350g of ground pork. What do you think.
Great news!! This recipe will work for venison. Just make sure you add enough fat. 30% should be fine..
Thanks
Hi Eric,
I made the snack sticks with venison and ground pork. I’m not sure what happen. The collagen casing falling off the meat. I followed your cook schedule. I have made them before with no problem.
Any idea what I did wrong? They taste great but don’t look so good.
Hey Tim. If the collagen casing is falling off the meat it means the casings didn’t have a chance to adhere properly. This might be due to fat smearing or some other bizarre issue. After I stuff I generally allow the sausage to remain at room temp for several hours to let the casing adhere. Even when I go to smoke it I let the sausage come to room temp them let it hang out at 90F for several hours just to let the casing stick. My best guess would be it’s a fat issue..
Eric,
I think that is what happen. I know I was in a rush to get them into the smoker. They were stuffed and were into the smoker with in an hour.
Thanks for the help.
PS Did I mention that your recipe is a big hit.
Tim
LOL. I’ve had plenty of “Naked” snack sticks for that same reason😁.
Hi Eric,
Can I make these snack sticks without the encapsulated citrate? I don’t want the tangy flavor.
Thank you!
Linda
yes. Keep everything else the same just omit the ECA. If you plan on using cure in the recipe you’ll want to let it rest overnight before cooking
Thank you for you for your response! I really appreciate you sharing your tips and techniques. Many Blessings!
Great recipe. I used Antelope and pork belly and the result was amazing. One word of warning, using the “prescribed dose” of ghost pepper flakes makes these VERY spicy (which I love!)
LOL Yes it does😅😅
Eric can I use hog casing instead of sheep
Sure, That would be great!!
Could I use 19mm Collagen Tube for this recipe?
sure
I find myself with a lot of fresh garlic on hand from my garden. Is there any reason that crushed fresh garlic couldn’t be substituted for the garlic powder in this recipe, either for safety or texture/bind reasons?
Fresh garlic would be great for this recipe!!
Since this is a one day cook, would it be prudent to use sodium erythorbate in the recipe to make sure everything is cured properly?
you could but the ECA (encapsulated citric acid) acts as a cure accelerator in this recipe.