Cheesy Chicken Sausage

Ingredients

• 4 lbs Chicken Thighs (boneless, leave skin on)
• 0.5 lb Chicken Fat (ask your butcher)
• 1 lb Pork Belly (skin removed)
• 4 Hatch Green Chilis or Poblano Peppers (charred, skin removed)
• 45 g Kosher Salt
• 17 g Granulated Garlic
• 10 g Granulated Onion
• 12 g Black Pepper
• 15 g Paprika
• 15 g Mustard Powder
• 5 g Dried Parsley
• 70 g Milk Powder
• 7 g Red Pepper Flakes
• 200 g Ice
• 16 oz Pepper Jack Cheese (cubed or shredded)
• 32-38MM Hog Casings (available from The Sausage Maker website)

Equipment

• Meat grinder
• Sausage stuffer (optional)
• Mixing bowl
• Plastic wrap or casings

Instructions

1. Preparation:

   • Cut the chicken, chicken fat, and pork belly into small pieces suitable for grinding. Chill the pieces to near freezing to make a better grind.
   • Char the hatch green chilis or poblano peppers over an open flame or under a broiler until the skin is blackened. Allow them to cool, then remove the skin. Optionally, remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sausage. Cut the peppers into pieces.

2. Grinding:

   • Using a meat grinder with a medium or coarse grind plate, grind the chicken, chicken fat, pork belly, and charred peppers together.
   • Make sure grinding blades and fixtures are cold; put them in the freezer before grinding.
   • Transfer the ground mixture to a large mixing bowl.

3. Mixing:

   • Add the kosher salt, granulated garlic, granulated onion, black pepper, paprika, mustard powder, dried parsley, milk powder, and red pepper flakes into a bowl.  Blend then add to the ground meat mixture.
   • Add the ice to the mixture, saving some to add during grinding.
   • Mix thoroughly by hand or with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until the mixture is sticky and well combined. This will help bind the sausage.

4. Incorporating Cheese:

   • Cut the Pepper Jack cheese into small cubes. You can buy high heat cheese that is already cubed out.
   • Add the Pepper Jack cheese to the meat mixture and gently fold it in until evenly distributed.

5. Stuffing:

   • Soak the 32-38MM hog casings according to the package instructions.
   • Stuff the sausage mixture into the casings using a sausage stuffer, twisting them into links of your desired length.
   • Put in fridge to dry out casings before smoking

6. Cooking:

   • Smoke the sausage with indirect heat at 180 degrees.
   • Add a smoke tube to increase smoke if on pellet smoker
   • Smoke the sausage for around 2-3 hours
   • Pull and cool down in an ice bath.
   • Cook on a grill or hot smoker to at 275 degree until internal temp of 165 degree.

7. Serving:

   • After cooked, slice the sausage and serve with your favorite BBQ.  Enjoy this change of pace on a the traditional sausage served at a BBQ.

Tips

• Keep the meat and equipment cold during grinding to maintain the texture and flavor of the sausage.
• Adjust the seasonings to taste if desired.

This recipe now includes instructions for adding charred hatch green chilis or poblano peppers, enhancing the sausage with a smoky and slightly spicy flavor!