I've mentioned this sausage in a few posts on pelletheads, and possibly here. I'm not sure how prevalent this type of pizza sausage is around the country, but many of the mom and pop style pizza places in the Midwest serve a very loose and crumbly sausage that is spread generously over the top of the cheese. I always wondered how they got that unique texture, and how it was spread so heavily without a ton of grease.
It just so happened that a family friend used to run one of those style pizzerias. He very kindly gave me the recipe, and, most importantly, the process. I scaled down their 50 pound batch to a 5 pound version.
2268 grams pork butt
34 grams salt
17 grams fennel
5.5 grams black pepper
4.25 grams red pepper flakes
8 oz textured vegetable protein (tvp)
Cube the pork, freeze for about an hour, then grind with the small plate.
Add the TVP and the rest of the dry ingredients to a food processor. Give it a couple few second bursts.
Mix the ground meat with the dry ingredients
Mix until combined, and a small patty will stick to your inverted palm. Then form into a loaf in a half pan. Leave about 1 inch of space around the perimeter of the pan. Pour water in the pan until it is about halfway up the sides of the pan.
Cover with foil. Cut several slits in the foil.
Bake at 300 until internal temp hits about 160.
Drain the water/grease from pan, then cool overnight in fridge. The next morning break up the loaf into clumps, and grind through the COURSE plate.
Now you have about 5 pounds of delicious, and super fluffy sausage that can be used in a variety of ways. I freeze in 1 pound vac sealed packs.