# Help after first try at venison snack sticks



## uofmball1 (Oct 31, 2005)

I tried making venison snack sticks for the first time this past weekend. I stuffed on stick about three feet long and twisted it into 3 1ft sections. I bought a kit from Butcher & Packer and it said to cook in the oven for 1 hour at 175 then two hours at 200. I did this and when I opened the oven after the three hours one end of the stick had the casing split all the way down and the other two had a bunch of air pockets in them. Any suggestions before I cook the rest?


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## MackDog (Nov 13, 2009)

Don't stuff casing too tight, use a pin to poke air bubbles before cooking. Then use a meat thermometer and cook to 165 degrees internal temp, don't over cook them.


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## Waif (Oct 27, 2013)

I don,t have the art of stuffing casings in my repertoire.It is a learned art though.
Wrapping in foil in a bigger stick worth a gamble?
I acquired a jerky shooter a couple years back with attachments for sticks and made some batches of skinless sticks by extruding ground mix on to drying racks directly.
More practice stuffing for you maybe,consistent speed and volume with as long a casing filling run as possible with consistent fill pressure.May result in shorter casings to reduce voids too.If a void is visible after a fill maybe put a twist in stick/link to null its effect.


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## uofmball1 (Oct 31, 2005)

How tight should the casing be?


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## U D (Aug 1, 2012)

Not too tight. Loose enough to expand when heated, but not too loose either. Practice will help you here. Also try to bring the meat up to temp slower in the oven. In other words work the temp up slower try 175, 185 190 then 200. Maybe an hour each. Also a pan a water in the bottom of the oven will help put moisture in the oven and help the casings expand a little. Look for surface air bubble and prick with a needle to allow the air to escape during heating. Also use a meat thermometer and get the sticks out of the heat when they reach 168 degrees F. Do not Over cook!!!


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## uofmball1 (Oct 31, 2005)

Ok thank you I think i had them packed too tight. I did have a pan of water in the bottom but I will try raising the temp slower and checking them. Like I said this was my first try and so I just did what the instructions said and opened the oven after the three hours.


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## old professor (Oct 26, 2008)

We found that it helps to make the meat mixture wetter (soupier), which makes stuffing the casings easier and the casings do not dry out as much when cooking them. We have also gone to using a larger diameter casing, which we like better.


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## boomstick (Aug 31, 2010)

old professor said:


> We found that it helps to make the meat mixture wetter (soupier), which makes stuffing the casings easier and the casings do not dry out as much when cooking them. We have also gone to using a larger diameter casing, which we like better.


Use 1 oz of fluid to every pound of meat. I'm using a convection over. We never go beyond 2 hours of cook time. Internal temp needs to hit 160 to b safe. Lower ur temp back to 170 if u need to go beyond 2 hours. We make 5lb runs at a time. 







Here's what they should look like. I stuff them to the max. 60% pork 40% venison or goose. Wild game will shrinks due to it being lean. Hope it helps.


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## Rat City Hooker (Jan 30, 2003)

old professor said:


> We found that it helps to make the meat mixture wetter (soupier), which makes stuffing the casings easier and the casings do not dry out as much when cooking them. We have also gone to using a larger diameter casing, which we like better.


I use a 1/2 cup of water per pound and smoke them longer and slower because of using regular cheddar cheese. I agree with the larger casing am using 22mm.
Larry


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