kitchenAid vs. Hand Griner

[gdkaufmann]

Apologies in advance if this has be covered in pieces and parts in other posts, but my scan of the forum didn't find an answer to this exact question:


I'm completely new to sausage making (except for a few hand mixed lamb sausage patties), but am thinking about getting serious about making more of my own sausage. I already own a KitchenAid stand mixer, but don't have the grinder stuffer attachment.I also only have one good hand to work with

I'm curious to know what peoples' preferences are for the KitchenAid grinder stuffer kit versus a counter-mounted hand grinder/stuffer. I've heard that the KitchenAid version can overheat the meat during grinding. But I've also heard that you should always freeze your grinding disks before grinding (whether you are using a mechanical or a hand grinder). I've also heard that grinding and stuffing generally takes two people to do effectively, so I'd probably need an extra person regardless which unit I choose, and regardless of my one-handedness.

Also, I'm curious to know if anybody has some tips for one-handed link tying.

I'm planning on starting with uncured breakfast sausage and merguez, and then progressing to cured salami, etc.

Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions.

Cheers,
-Glenn

[johngaltsmotor]

I may be wrong, but I think a big problem with the KitchenAid grinder is the small capacity. When you have to stop to fill the holding tray if you leave the mixer running it is creating heat.
If you think you are going to get into this as a regular hobby you would be better off getting a dedicated grinder. A hand crank is okay to start, but you'll quickly find that making sausage isn't as much fun when it's a lot of work.
I built a water powered stuffer which makes it pretty easy. A foot pedal operates the solenoid valve so theoretically you could stuff one handed (using that hand to regulate how fast it feeds off casing). Use your foot to stop when you wanted to link, then start up again. I've never been very good at getting links to stay twisted so when I'm concerned I butcher twine them each.

[herjac]

I started with a KitchenAid but there are problems. Few cutting plate sizes and they are not interchangeable with any other machines. The machine sits high and when stuffing meat into the hopper there is a chance that the machine will tip over. Don't ask me how I know this..... Stuffing is poor as well.

For what I paid for the grinding attachment a few dollars more would have purchased a proper grinder. I ended up selling the KitchenAid grinder attachment and purchasing a dedicated piston stuffer and motorized grinder. Much happier now!

[ducksoup]

I bought a Kitchenaid grinder attachment and wasn't real happy with it. It worked ok but because of the small size of the mouth you were forced to cut your meat into very small pieces. Plus it took a long time to grind any quantaties over 5# or so. My problem with the hand grinders is that most of them are cheap knock off chinese import junk that don't work worth a darn. A quality made one will cost close to the same as one of the many small home kitchen electrics on the market. I purchased one of the small electric models. It's an STX3000 from Amazon for under $150 US dollars and have been very happy with it so far. It's a size #12 and My only complaint is not being able to find extra grinding plates for it. But it has plenty of power and my last batch of sausage i was able to whip through two large pork butts of about 12# to 14# each in around 15 minutes. I've also heard good thing about the small #12 grinders from Weston, Wareing and Northern tool. One thing worth mentioning is that most of these smaller grinders are extremely loud so be prepared! I use a 5# dedicated vertical stuffer I purchased from Grizzley and love it. I got mine for about $65 US but they've gone up since then but still well under $100. After using a vertical stuffer I'd never go back to stuffing from the grinder! One handed stuffing would be hard even if you used an electric grinder. You just need a sausage making buddy to share with! I always try and rope one of my sons into helping me by bribeing them with some of the finished sausage. Works every time!