The Original Summer Sausage is the foundation everything else is built on. We take our house recipe — pork and beef, real smoke, salt, and a balanced spice blend — stuff it in collagen casings, and cold smoke it low and slow until it has that deep mahogany color and the texture that makes people steal slices while you’re trying to cut it for a board. This is the one that shows up at every deer camp, every family gathering, and every “I need something that will actually keep in the fridge for a while” situation.
How To Cook It
Ready to eat. Slice cold or lightly grill for warm slices.
Typical timing: No cooking required. 2–3 minutes on a grill if you want it warm.
- 01Pull it out of the fridge 10–15 minutes before serving so it slices cleanly.
- 02Use a sharp knife. Summer sausage this dense will fight a dull blade.
- 03For warm slices (highly recommended): cut into ½-inch rounds and give them 60–90 seconds per side on a hot grill or cast iron.
- 04The fat renders just enough and the smoke flavor blooms. People will fight over the edges.
- 05Store the remainder wrapped in the original vacuum seal or butcher paper in the fridge. It keeps for weeks.
Best for: Hunting camps, holiday charcuterie boards, snacks that don’t require cooking, gifts for people who appreciate real cured meat, anything involving a cooler and a group of people.
What’s In It
Short list. Real ingredients.
Ingredients
- · Pork and beef
- · House spice blend
- · Real hardwood smoke
- · Salt
- · Collagen casing
Sourcing: Meat from the same regional suppliers as our fresh products. Smoked in the Bemidji shop using the same smokehouse we use for everything else.
Properly cured and dried. High protein, stable without refrigeration until opened. Real smoke — not liquid smoke.
Why Butcher Shop Matters
The big brands make summer sausage in enormous batches with liquid smoke and a lot of extenders. Ours is made in much smaller runs, smoked with real wood in a real smokehouse, and the recipe hasn’t been “value engineered” down to the lowest acceptable flavor. When you put this next to a mass-market summer sausage, the difference in aroma, color, and how it feels when you chew it is obvious.
FAQ
Quick answers.
Is this ready to eat straight from the package?
Yes. It is fully cooked and cured. Most people eat it cold. Grilling the slices for a couple minutes makes it even better.
How long does it last once opened?
Wrapped well in the fridge, 3–4 weeks easily. In a hunting camp cooler it will last the whole trip. The low moisture and salt content make it very stable.
Can I freeze it?
Absolutely. Vacuum sealed it freezes beautifully for months. Thaw in the fridge and it’s basically perfect again.
Is this the same recipe you sell at the retail counter?
Exact same product. What we ship is what we sell over the counter in Bemidji every day.