Homemade Spicy Pepperoni

Submitted by gailanng

"Lean and dense and freezable. From Tammy's recipes."

 

• Ready In: 8hrs 15mins
• Ingredients: 10
• Yields: 1 pound

ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef (85% lean or leaner)
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 3⁄4 - 1 teaspoon fennel seed, lightly crushed
• 1⁄2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1⁄4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon paprika
• 1⁄4 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon morton's tender quick curing salt (regular salt will turn the meat brown)

directions

1. Combine seasonings and meat and mix thoroughly, using hands; cover and refrigerate for 48-72 hours.
2. Form meat into two long logs or rolls. Place a rack (or pan/sheet with drainage) on a cookie sheet and put the logs onto rack. Bake at 200 degrees for 8 hours, rotating logs every 2 hours.
3. Logs will be a bright pink when they are finished, and should be fairly dry and firm. Wipe off excess grease and allow meat to cool. Chill and then slice thinly. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for longer storage.

Reviews

[wesmac68]

It’s a good recipe. I use it to make venison pepperoni. I don’t put It in the oven I like to put it in my pellet smoker at 200 until internal temp reaches 165.

 

[vin l.]

I followed the recipe exactly. I used 90% (10% fat) beef. The finished pepperoni was VERY dry. The inside was beautifully red. The outside was very hard and dark brown. The taste, while dry, was much better than the appearance. The appearance could be quite disturbing. After eight hours at 200 degrees, it unfortunately looked like something you try not to step in at a dog park. This is really a shame since the taste is so interesting.

 

[PookeyLumLum]

NOTE: We use this recipe to make VEGAN PEPPERONI out of SEMI-DEHYDRATED TOMATOES! We make the recipe as written without the Tender Quick as it's unnecessary since we're just using it on tomatoes. Sprinkle it on thinly-sliced tomatoes and put in a dehydrator at 105 F for 8-12 hours. The results are chewy, "meaty" and delicious! Dehydrating at 105 degrees assures all of the enzymes are still alive and wonderful! THANKS!