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Friday, December 06, 2013

Boudain (boudin) Balls

This recipe is a slight departure from my original boudain recipe. I omitted the pork kidneys, pork heart and pork liver (because I couldn't purchase those particular items locally). So, without greatly compromising the original, I used the following ingredients:

  •  4 lbs. pork steak, with fat
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped
  • 3 medium onions, chopped
  • 4 cups cooked long grain rice
  • 2 bunches green onions, chopped
  • 1 cup parsley, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper
  • Salt and black pepper to taste

In a 5 quart pot add enough water to cover the first 3 ingredients and boil until tender. With a spoon skim and discard the foam which will surface. Drain the liquid and grind everything together, but reserve a couple cups or so of the broth to moisten the boudain dressing later. I use a small meat hand grinder with a 3/8th inch plate.

Next, add the cooked long grain rice, salt, pepper, green onions and parsley and just enough broth to make a moist dressing. Mix together thoroughly in a large bowl and refrigerate over night. Remove from the refrigerator and roll the boudain into ping pong size balls. You can freeze them until you are ready to serve.

The reason I don't make my boudain balls larger than ping pong size is because anything larger has a tendency to stay frozen in the center during frying. Fry the boudain balls at 375 degrees until a golden-brown color is reached (around 5 or 6 minutes).

It is a good idea to thaw the balls out about half-way before frying so they don't lose their solid texture. This makes the process of coating them in the batter and dredging them in flour much easier. I prefer to double batter them by dipping and dredging twice to get a good coating before frying.

There are a variety of batters which you can use. Mine is very simple: beat together 1 egg and about a 1/4 cup of milk. I usually add a little more seasoning to the all-purpose flour, also,  to suit my particular taste - like sea salt, dried basil and thyme.

Of course you can always take your boudain balls straight out of the freezer and steam them or cook them up in the microwave. It doesn't take long.

This simple recipe does not call for sausage stuffers or animal casings.

Give it try sometime and let me know how it comes out. If you have any questions post them in the comment section below and I will be happy to answer them.

Note: In the past I've tried substituting pork liver with beef liver, but it seems to conflict ... so, you are probably better off eliminating the liver ingredient altogether. You should still come out with a good tasting boudain.

Enjoy!
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11 comments:

  1. Is that what u make the outer part of boudain with animal castings where can i get that at i live in tulsa,ok?

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    Replies
    1. Growing up we butchered our own hogs and made sausage. We purchased the casings from our local meat markets. They came in a vacuum sealed bag and we soaked them in salt water before packing/filling them. Grew up and still live in Southeast Texas. I did this for many many years with my paw. Wish he was still around making his famous sausage, haven't found one that comes close to his old school home made and smoked sausage.

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  2. Hello Anonymous,

    Keep in mind that you don't use animal casings when you prepare 'Boudain Balls".

    To prepare boudain the traditional way you would need animal casings. One place you can find them is by contacting the "Meat Man". The link is in the left column of this blog under "Related Links".

    Hope this helps. Thanks for stopping by.

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  3. I'm so happy to come across this recipe. I'm from Galveston, TX and use to eat Boudain all the time and now that I'm living in McDonough, GA I can't find good Boudain. I will let you know how my Boudain Balls come out.

    Thanks,
    Elicia

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    Replies
    1. Check your local super walmarts -- some of the ones near us (we live in Douglasville, GA) carry Zummos 2-packs in the meat section.

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  4. Hello,

    How many does this make?

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    Replies
    1. Around 8 per pound (or more if you want them smaller). It is a good idea not to make the sausage balls too large. You want to get about 2 average size bites per ball. Hope this answers your question. Thanks!

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    2. I like this recipe is it possible to use ground beef instead of pork?

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  5. Thank you for the great recipe and instructional video on youTube. We just visited New Orleans and come to lean about the Boudain balls from friends. We just loved them so we'll have to try making them from Seattle, Washington.

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    Replies
    1. I recently spent two months in Montana and was surprised to find boudain at the Walmart in Billings. I know that's about 9 hours from where you live. I was just thinking since it's closer than Louisiana maybe you can request your local grocery store to order some for you.

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  6. I just finished making boudin with hog-head and pork steak . Now for the boudin-balls !!!!!Been looking for a recipe using flour , not breadcrumbs . Louisiana "real" Cajun . Thanks !

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