After some prodding from a couple from here and other sites here is the pepperoni recipe
Pepperoni sticks
3 1/2 pounds venison
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
3 tbsp. course salt
2 tbsp. paprika
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. cayenne
1 tsp crushed anise
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp thyme
8 cloves pressed garlic ( or 6 tsp granulated )
1 tbsp. liquid smoke if not using a smoker
1 cup red wine
1 1/2 tsp FS cure ( 8 grams) or whatever cure of your choice but follow the directions
These can be made with this recipe or use any of the commercial mixes that you can buy
Processing Pepperoni
Pretty much the same process in the oven or smoker ( just like the summer sausage )
Oven Processing
take the sausage out of the refrigerator and let it warm to room temperature ( can take up to 2 hours)
preheat the oven to 150-170 degrees
spread out the sausages so they are not touching
insert a temperature probe into one of the sausages and bring the internal temperature up to around 130 degrees ( around 1/2 hour to 45 minutes)
put in a tray of water in the bottom of the oven so the cases don't dry out too much and remember to turn the sausages so the bottoms don't over cook
when the internal temperature is reached increase the oven temperature to 180 -200 degrees and bring the internal temperature of the sausage to 155 degrees.
Take the sausages out and dip in ice cold water for at least 10 minutes. This helps to set the fat in the sausages.
Hang the sausages and let them air dry for a couple hours then put them in the refrigerator to cool down overnight before packaging.
Smoking
Preheat smoker to around 140 degrees
Hang the sausages from your smoker rods and insert your temperature probe into one of them
Cook the sausages until the internal temperature comes up to around 90 degrees
start your smoke and add in a tray of water to prevent the casings from drying out
reset the temperature to around 150 to 170 degrees and cook till the internal temperature reaches about 140 degrees
when that temperature has been reached turn up the smoker to around 180 degrees and bring the internal temperature of the sausage to 155 degrees
Take the sausages out of the smoker and dip in ice water for at least 10 minutes
Hang for a couple hours to air dry then put them in the fridge to cool down overnight before packaging
With either process you can continue to dry them out further if that's what you want to have drier sausages
You can even put them in a dehydrator after they reach the required internal temperature to dry or keep them in the oven or smoker to dry more
