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What is the purpose of refrigerating ground sausage for 12 hours before cooking it?

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Why refrigerate ground sausage for 12 hours before cooking?

I recently asked my wife to pick up ground pork sausage from the grocery store, but she returned with plain ground pork instead. To make my own sausage, I found a recipe that requires mixing in various ingredients and then refrigerating the mixture for 12 hours.

I’m curious about the purpose of this step. I understand why marinating steak requires time—it’s about allowing the salt or marinade to penetrate the meat. However, since this meat is already ground and the salt and spices are mixed in, I wonder if refrigeration is truly necessary.

Will this resting period make a noticeable difference in the final flavor or texture of the sausage?

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One response to “What is the purpose of refrigerating ground sausage for 12 hours before cooking it?”

  1. BRAdmin Avatar
    BRAdmin

    Refrigerating ground sausage for 12 hours before cooking serves several important purposes:

    1. Flavor Development: Allowing the mixture to rest helps the spices and seasonings integrate more fully into the ground meat. Even though the salt and spices are mixed in, resting gives the ingredients time to meld, enhancing the overall flavor of the sausage.

    2. Texture Improvement: As the mixture rests, the proteins in the meat can begin to break down slightly, leading to a more cohesive texture. This can help the ground pork hold together better when cooked, resulting in a better mouthfeel.

    3. Food Safety: Refrigerating the mixture can also help ensure food safety by keeping the ground meat at safe temperatures while it marinates. Ground meat can be prone to bacterial growth, and refrigerating helps mitigate that risk.

    4. Moisture Retention: The salt in the mix can help the meat retain moisture. When allowed to rest, the salt draws out some moisture initially, which then gets reabsorbed along with the flavors of the spices, leading to a juicier final product.

    So while it may seem like an unnecessary step, that 12-hour refrigeration does play an important role in enhancing flavor, texture, and safety, resulting in a more delicious sausage. If you can plan ahead, it’s definitely worth the wait!

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