Country Chicken Sausage Recipe

I use this chicken sausage recipe when I want to make a country style fresh sausage that is a bit more low-fat than my usual fare.

This is not a "fat free" chicken sausage, but the naturally lower fat content of the chicken meat does make for a healthier end product than typical pork links.

In almost all instances, you can safely substitute turkey for chicken in a sausage recipe, and that is certainly the case here.

As a matter of fact, I probably make more sausage with turkey than I do with chicken--it's usually easier to find it on sale.

Recipe

5 lbs boned chicken or turkey. Make sure to use both light and dark meats and include the skin.

2 tablespoons kosher salt

2 teaspoons fine ground black pepper

2 teaspoons ground or rubbed sage

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon savory

1 cup cold chicken stock or broth

Cut all the meat, including the skin, into small pieces (about 1 inch) and then pass them through the medium disk of your meat grinder.
Add all the spices to the one cup of chicken broth and mix them thoroughly.
Add the broth/spice combination to the ground meat, mix it all briefly by hand, and grind the meat once more, using the fine plate on the meat grinder this time.
Stuff the sausage into natural or collagen casings of your choice. I prefer 32mm collagen casings for this sausage, but any of the smaller sizes would be acceptable.
Refrigerate your sausage links for up to three days. If you don't plan to use them in that amount of time, freeze them for up to four months.

I probably don't need to remind you because the food industry has done a great job of scaring the heck out of the public, but you do need to be extra careful when handling poultry because of the risk of salmonella.

Keep your meat cold, watch for cross contamination, and make sure you do all your cleanup with hot, soapy water.

To be on the safe side, I run my grinder and stuffer parts, cutting boards, bowls etc. through the dish washer. I hand wash my knives.

This is a good practice to use at all times, but it's especially important when making any chicken sausage recipe.