Jahtimakkara

Jahtimakkara (Finnish Hunter's Sausage)

A traditional Finnish hunter's sausage with a coarse, rustic texture and a pronounced peppery, smoky character. It is traditionally grilled over an open fire and served with mustard and beer.

Prep

30 min

Cook

25 min

Total

55 min

Serves

6

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •700 g (1½ lb) pork shoulder, with about 20% fat, coarsely ground
• •300 g (10½ oz) pork belly or back fat, coarsely ground
• •20 g (4 tsp) coarse salt, or null
• •8 g (1 tbsp + 1 tsp) ground white pepper, generous; Finnish-style is heavily peppered
• •4 g (2 tsp) ground black pepper, or null
• •3 g (1 tsp) ground allspice, or null
• •3 g (1 tsp) ground ginger, or null
• •3 g (1 tsp) ground marjoram, or null
• •2 g (½ tsp) ground nutmeg, or null
• •1 g (¼ tsp) prague powder #1 / curing salt, optional, for cured version; skip for fresh sausage
• •150 ml (⅔ cup) ice water or cold beer, helps emulsify and keeps mixture cold
• •2 m (6 ft) natural hog casings, about 28-32 mm diameter; soaked in lukewarm water 30 min

Steps

1. 1 Keep all meat and fat very cold (chill in freezer 20-30 minutes). In a large bowl combine the ground pork, pork fat, salt, curing salt (if using), white pepper, black pepper, allspice, ginger, marjoram and nutmeg. Mix by hand for 2-3 minutes, then gradually add the ice water or beer while continuing to mix until the mixture becomes slightly tacky. Do not overmix.
2. 2 Tie a knot at one end of the soaked casing. Fit the open end snugly over the stuffing tube of a meat grinder / sausage stuffer and slide the entire casing onto the tube.
3. 3 Stuff the meat mixture through the tube, using one hand to control the speed so the casing fills firmly but is not overstretched (it should feel like a firm finger when pinched). Leave about 5 cm empty at the end before tying off.
4. 4 Pinch the sausage at 12-15 cm intervals and twist each segment in the opposite direction to form individual links. Prick any air pockets with a fine needle.
5. 5 Rest the sausages uncovered on a tray in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours (ideally overnight, up to 24 h) so the casings dry and the flavors develop. Skip this step only if cooking immediately, but resting gives the best texture and smoke absorption.
6. 6 If smoking (traditional): cold-smoke at 20-25 °C for 4-6 hours, then hot-smoke at 70-80 °C until the internal temperature reaches 72 °C / 160 °F measured in the centre of the thickest link. Home-cook substitution: skip cold-smoking and hot-smoke at 75 °C for about 45 minutes, or pan-grill directly.
7. 7 If grilling fresh (no smoking): preheat grill or cast-iron pan to medium heat. Grill the sausages slowly for 15-20 minutes, turning often, until browned on the outside and the internal temperature reads 72 °C / 160 °F in the centre.
8. 8 If cooking fully fresh (uncured, no smoke): sear on medium-high for 2 minutes per side for color, then lower the heat and cook a further 10-12 minutes until the interior reads 72 °C / 160 °F.
9. 9 Rest the sausages 5 minutes off the heat, then serve hot with Finnish whole-grain mustard, rye bread and a cold lager. The sausage should feel springy when pressed and the juices should run clear or just faintly pink.