Casing

(1) Salt casing

The processing process of salt casings is roughly as follows: clean the fresh intestines, soak them for 18-24 hours, and then peel them. Then, wash it clean, fill water for inspection, cut off the damaged sausage sections with holes, make a pair of them every 5 or 10 pieces (about 90 meters in total length), and use about 0.5 kg of refined salt to salt for one day and night, which will become semi-finished smooth sausage. The sausage is further processed into a finished product through rinsing, inspection, scraping, salinization, draining, etc.

(2) Dry casing

The processing process of dry casings is similar to that of salt casings. After stripping, add 2.5 liters of 5% sodium hydroxide solution to every 70-80 casings and stir them evenly to remove grease; After rinsing, salt with 0.8~1kg refined salt every 100 meters for 12~24 hours, then wash and desalte with water, dry in the air, flatten, then wrap up into bundles and pack them for sale. The pig intestines with good quality are thin, tough, transparent and even (the sheep intestines are thicker); Salt casings are light red, white or milky white. Dry casings are mostly light yellow; It has a certain aroma.

1. There are always some white fat, mucous membrane or fat on the outside of the intestines bought. These things are unusable. You should tear them off with your hands first, and try to tear them clean.

2. Put the cleaned intestines on the tap, then turn on the tap switch and start flushing. When you see the water coming out of the other end of the intestines becomes very clean, you will start to turn the intestines over little by little, while turning over, flush with water until the whole intestines are turned over.

3. Rinse the turned intestines again, and then put them into a basin to start scrubbing. When scrubbing, you can add some salt or starch, or use both salt and starch at the same time, so that the intestines can be scrubbed cleaner. Wash it three or four times over and over again. It's OK to see that the water is clean.

4. The next step is to scrape the casings. Many online tutorials say that it is better to scrape casings with chopsticks, but I personally feel that chopsticks are not easy to pick up, so I use the plastic spoon that is used to hold rice in an electric cooker, which is more convenient to scrape

5. Rub the scraped casings with salt to clean them, then use flour to clean them, and then use vinegar to clean them. What you see now should be transparent casings. If you feel that they are not very good, scrub them again, because everyone scrubs them differently.

6. Rinse the finished casings with clean water, and then turn the intestines over again while flushing as in the second step. Because the inside of the intestines is slippery, it will be easier to pour meat.

7. Check whether there is any damage. Blow the casing to see if there is any damage or air leakage. If there is no damage, it is a complete success. Then put the casings in a clean container, add some fine salt, mix well and marinate them, and store them in the refrigerator. When necessary, take them out and wash the salt away.

The evaluation of casing quality is a systematic project, and the following "14 quality evaluation items" can be reasonably used as the basis for the evaluation of casing quality.

1. Barrier property of casings: refers to the degree of barrier to oxygen, water vapor and fragrance. Good barrier property can provide a longer shelf life and shelf life for sausages, avoid return due to deterioration of sausages during the shelf life, and improve/increase the freshness and aroma of sausages without loss.

2. Rationality of casing structure: reasonable structural design of casing can provide an ideal package for sausage.

3. Casing film strength: good mechanical strength can meet the requirements of various filling punch machines, thus reducing the consumption of casing film during use.

4. Stability of shrinkage rate: it refers to the consistency of the shrinkage rate of the same roll or batch of casings. If the shrinkage rate fluctuates more, it will lead to uneven length and thickness of sausage of the same specification, which will bring you a lot of trouble in packing and sales.

5. Color uniformity: For colored casings, even color can add luster to the appearance quality of sausage, make it beautiful and attract consumers' attention.

6. Openness of casings: good or bad openness is very important for sausage filling. If the opening is not good, the casing and filling will be difficult, which will directly affect the working efficiency of operators.

7. Specification accuracy: it means that the deviation of casing diameter and thickness should be controlled within a strict range. On the one hand, inaccurate specifications will cause uneven thickness of sausage, and excessive thickness deviation will also cause sausage bending and performance degradation.

8. Transparency of casing film: for transparent casing film, good transparency is very important for high-quality sausage. It can make consumers clearly see the meat texture of sausage, attract consumers to purchase, and enhance consumers' impression of the product.

9. Soft and hard handle: good handle will make it easy for you to use. After filling, sausage has a strong meat feeling. For molded ham, soft casings can make its shape sharp and smooth. On the contrary, if the edges and corners are sharp and hard, it is easy to make the product water out.

10. Brightness of casing film: make sausage very bright and dazzling on the shelf, which is easy to attract customers.

11. Meat stickiness of casing film:

(1) Refers to the meat stickiness of the casing film, which can reduce the folding of water in the sausage and prevent the taste of the sausage from getting worse.

(2) It refers to the degree of adhesion between the layers of the casing film, which makes the casing structure stable and the performance stable.

12. Bonding effect between layers: refers to the degree of bonding between layers of the casing film, which makes the casing structure stable and performance stable.

13. Film roll flatness: reflects the thickness uniformity of the casing film, but can give a comprehensive evaluation of the product.

14. Packing tightness: the outer packing of casings should be tightly sealed on the one hand to prevent moisture absorption of casings; The box is solid and reliable to prevent the casing from being damaged and keep the casing under good protection.

For sausage processing, casing may be a step on the sausage production and processing line, but ignoring its importance may cause many troubles. Then you must take comprehensive consideration on the choice of casings. On the one hand, choose high-quality casings with good cost performance, and on the other hand, choose casings that meet the requirements of your sausage production. At the same time, pay attention to the use method to make the casings play their due role and bring you considerable economic benefits.