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Homemade Kielbasa Recipe

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This Homemade Kielbasa recipe guides you through creating traditional Polish sausage using a blend of cubed pork, ground pork, and ground beef, seasoned with garlic, pepper, and Morton’s Tender Quick Meat Cure. After mixing and stuffing the meat into casings (or shaping manually), the sausages are refrigerated to set and cure before being baked to juicy, flavorful perfection.

Ingredients

Scale

Meat

  • 2 lbs. cubed pork, ½” cubes
  • 1.5 lbs. ground pork
  • 1.5 lbs. ground beef

Seasoning & Cure

  • 0.2 oz. garlic
  • 1.25 oz. salt
  • 0.25 oz. Morton’s Tender Quick Meat Cure
  • 0.15 oz. pepper
  • 1 drop liquid smoke (optional)
  • Water (as needed for blending and mixing)

Instructions

  1. Puree garlic: Use a blender to puree the garlic with 2 tablespoons of water, setting this mixture aside temporarily.
  2. Dissolve cure mixture: In a small bowl, add 2 tablespoons of water and dissolve the salt and Morton’s Tender Quick Meat Cure completely.
  3. Combine seasoning mixture: Add the salt and cure mixture to the garlic puree. Then add pepper and liquid smoke (if using) into this combined mixture.
  4. Mix meats: Combine the cubed pork, ground pork, and ground beef in a large mixing bowl thoroughly.
  5. Add seasoning blend: Pour the garlic-pepper-salt-cure-water mixture into the meat and mix using your hands until evenly distributed.
  6. Adjust texture: Continue combining the mixture with your hands, adding water one teaspoon at a time until the mixture becomes sticky and adheres to your hands. The test is if a handful held and inverted does not fall off.
  7. Stuff sausages: Place the sticky meat mixture into a sausage stuffer and fill casings according to the stuffer’s instructions, making sausage cylinders about 1½ inches in diameter and 12 inches long. Alternatively, shape into cylinders without equipment.
  8. Refrigerate to cure: Refrigerate the formed sausages in a single layer, whether in casings or wrapped in plastic and foil, for 24 hours to let the cure penetrate and the sausage shape to set.
  9. Preheat oven: Preheat your oven to 325°F (163°C).
  10. Prepare sausages for baking: Remove any foil or plastic wrap from the sausage cylinders if used instead of casings. Place sausages carefully on an oven-safe rack set over a baking sheet to catch drippings.
  11. Bake sausages: Bake in the preheated oven for 45-60 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F (71°C) as measured with an instant-read thermometer.
  12. Cool and serve: Remove the sausages from the oven and allow them to cool slightly before slicing and enjoying.

Notes

  • If you do not have sausage casings or a stuffer, you can shape the meat mixture into cylinders by hand and freeze or wrap tightly before baking.
  • Liquid smoke is optional but adds a classic smoky flavor reminiscent of traditional smoked kielbasa.
  • Ensure the internal temperature reaches 160°F to guarantee safe consumption of pork and beef.
  • Use Morton’s Tender Quick Meat Cure for curing — it contains salt and sodium nitrite for flavor and preservation.
  • Adding water gradually is important to achieve the ideal sticky texture for proper binding of the sausage.

Keywords: Homemade Kielbasa, Polish Sausage, Sausage Recipe, Cured Sausage, Baked Kielbasa, Morton’s Tender Quick

Find it online: https://tastygenius.com/homemade-kielbasa-recipe/