# Mushy Hot Sticks?



## Cjs180 (May 13, 2018)

Posted this question on another forum but it may not get seen. You guys who have made hot sticks or snack sticks, any advice on how to get a decent consistency/texture with the meat? I did 5 lbs this past weekend and ended up with what I would call a bunch of mush. Talked to a guy here at work who has been trying to make sticks the past few years on his smoker and he ends up with a mushy stick as well. I used 20% pork fat mixed in with my meat. 

When I pulled the sticks out of the smoker they were at 160*F - 165*F. I did pulll a couple out around 155*F and they were mushy as well. Used the LEM hot stick seasoning.


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## sureshot006 (Sep 8, 2010)

How much did you grind them before stuffing?


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## Waif (Oct 27, 2013)

After confirming not being over ground , check temp of meat,and grinder head.
Your second grind should (depending who you believe) be your last. And still , too fine a plate for example ,combined with heat, and you'll get more pate/liver paste texture..


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## sureshot006 (Sep 8, 2010)

Waif said:


> After confirming not being over ground , check temp of meat,and grinder head.
> Your second grind should (depending who you believe) be your last. And still , too fine a plate for example ,combined with heat, and you'll get more pate/liver paste texture..
> View attachment 467401


Exactly. You want snack sticks not branschwagger.


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## iFishy (Mar 31, 2014)

To add to Waif, freeze your grinder horn, stuffing tube and plates - everything you can. Put your meat in the freezer too - not frozen, but very - very cold - this is hard to describe. What you want to prevent is the smearing of the fat (and meat to a lesser extent) as its ground.


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## Cjs180 (May 13, 2018)

I used the regular grind plate that I use for all my burger. Not sure of the size but you can just push a q-tip through it. I would guess around 1/8”. The meat would have been double ground using that size plate. Possibly I should be using one of those larger holed grind plates for my first grind? There was some pheasant breast mixed in there as well. I use that blend to make jerky and it comes out well. I don’t put any pork fat in the jerky.


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## Cjs180 (May 13, 2018)

Here is the grind plate I use. It is for a #10 plate.


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## maddiedog (Nov 21, 2008)

I don't really use any fat for sticks. I save that for sausage. Just grind a pork butt with whatever fat.


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## sureshot006 (Sep 8, 2010)

One thing you can do to avoid mashing it too much is use a stuffer or "jerky gun" to fill cases instead of putting it through a grinder again.


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## Huntahalic (Feb 9, 2010)

Make sure you cutter is good and sharp. A dull cutter will press the meat through the holes in the plate. I us a 30% lean pork mix and grind verry very cold. Warm meat does not grind well at all. Also for sticks a single grind will give you a more meaty texture.


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## Cjs180 (May 13, 2018)

Used a jerky gun. The 2nd grind was to grind in the pork fat. I put a 10mm grinder plate on my list to buy before next deer season. Everything in my freezer now is ground to fine. 

Next year I will grind in the pork right when I grind the meat with the 10mm plate. Maybe over the winter I will pick up a cheap piece of beef and try it for a trial run prior to next deer season. 

The meat was fairly warm yet this year when I ground it. Deer was only dead about 4 hours before it hit the grinder!

Thanks for the help everyone.


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## Cjs180 (May 13, 2018)

Thanks for the tips everyone. I tried again this week with a larger plate and ground the meat when it was partially frozen. Works great that way and the hot sticks came out like they should.


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