The Professional Pastry Association, of which I am a member, recently held a Wine and Dessert Pairing class at the Saint Paul College, Saint Paul, MN. Tucked in the seminar brochure was a handout listing the summer classes being 
offered in the culinary school at the college.
I really enjoy making patés and terrines and I definitely enjoy sausage, so the class that caught my eye was entitled “Fundamentals of Charcuterie.” I wanted to see if I could replicate in any way the flavor of the sausages that I enjoyed when tasting those smoky links at a market in I’lsle sur la Sorgue. This town is in the south of France and one that we visited during our most recent trip across the pond.
This delightful town lies at the foot of the Vaucluse plateau in the plains of Comtat Venaissin. We were there on market day (okay we were actually there twice — once on our way to Avignon and then on our way back to Paris). Anyway, I digress.
The charcuterie class at the college started June 1. It is being taught by Chef Nathan Sartain. We meet four nights a week, three hours a night, for four weeks. Chef Sartain has been stuffing and smoking sausages for about 13 years and after having finish our first week, I know the class is in capable hands.
Our first evening was spent learning about dry cures and wet cures (brining) and believe it or not, how amino acids and peptides interact with salt and sugar. We also learned about the need to record the weight of the protein prior to dry curing and then weighing it again near the end of the estimated curing time. The finished weight determines if the product has been properly cured and ready to enjoy.
We started curing pork belly for bacon, crafting Bresaola, Finnocchiona (Tuscan-Style Salami), Gruanciale, Pancetta and Tasso. We’ll use the Tasso to make Jambalaya a little later in the series. We also started a Bologna and Capocollo Cotto.
If the next three weeks are anything like this first week has been, the class will be a great success. Oh, and I hope to blog on the Dessert and Wine Pairing class that I took recently some time in the future.?
Charcuterie Class – Smokin’ Knackwurst
It’s the end of Week 2 of the Charcuterie Class that I’m taking at Saint Paul College, Saint Paul MN. We spent the week honing the skills that Chef Sartain demonstrated in Week 1. I for one need more practice stuffing sausage casings. Who knew there were so many nuances to get meat into a semi permeable membrane?
For instance, I would have never thought to lube the plunger of the sausage stuffer with food release spray to prevent friction. Friction causes heat which is our enemy at this stage of the game. Then there’s packing the meat filling into the
reservoir in such a way as to prevent air pockets. You’ve got to get the casings on the stuffing tube, again without air pockets, and then get the meat into the casing without a “blow out” and without creating more air pockets. If air pockets do occur, you’ll get what is called “fat-capping”. This is where droplets of fat pool together just under the casing, resulting in poor mouth feel. And, it’s all about mouth feel and eye appeal!
This week, our team ground up more than 20 pounds of boneless leg of lamb. We used a portion to make a Lamb and Rosemary Sausage with fresh Garlic and Grana Padano. We also made Mortadella, an Italian sausage with pistachios
and black peppercorns. We grilled some Kielbasa and overhauled our Bresaola. We prepped half a dozen or so pheasant breasts for making a Moroccan Pheasant Sausage. We’ll confit the legs in duck fat for a terrine next week.
Some of the items the other teams have processed included a Mexican Chorizo, spicy Italian Sausage, Knackwursts (which we smoked), English Bangers, Alsatian Sausage, and Wisconsin-Style Bratwursts.
Team Four is working on Boudin Blanc, a fine–textured white sausage originally eaten at Christmas in the Champagne region of France. The moist sausage is traditionally a fine mixture of meat, eggs, starch, spices and milk or cream. We’re using rice in our application during class.
Next week, we’ll be working on Linguica, a Portuguese sausage with Paprika, garlic and port, amongst other aromatics. We’ve also got, among other items, a Duck Liver Mousse and Proscuitto, Foie Gras Terrine, Pate de Campagne Parisienne and Sopressatta di Calabria to make next week.