Meat+Poultry - February 2024 - 29

LEARNING THE ROPES
Growing up in a small town in North Texas,
Dumas spent a lot of his childhood with his
grandfather, a salesman in the apparel industry
who became known for his prowess as a
pitmaster, specializing in cooking chickens
and making homemade barbecue sauce.
Dumas shadowed him and learned about
cooking barbecue during those years and
especially when that side business took off
after his grandfather retired from his day job
and became deeply ensconced in the Texas
barbecue culture.
As a young man, Dumas went on to serve
in the military as a US Marine and later would
work as an over-the-road truck driver for years
as well as working as an HVAC technician
and several other odd jobs. In 2012, following
the death of his son, he decided to immerse
himself in the world of barbecue and apply his
time and effort to master a craft he'd always
been passionate about.
About 10 years ago, Dumas went to work
at Smokey Denmark's Sausage Co., leading
the Austin-based iconic eatery's foray into the
food truck business. He said it was there that
he honed his skills as a sausage maker working
in a federally inspected sausage processing
facility that distributed products all over
North America. The food truck venture was
successful beyond expectations, he said, and
it opened his eyes to the endless possibilities
that could be realized with sausage products.
Experimenting with the possibilities spilled
over into what Smokey Denmark's sold and
took it to the next level of success, Dumas said.
" Not just pushing the products that were
made within the production facility themselves,
for which we certainly did daily, " he said, " but
we also started pushing the envelope of what
sausage could be. "
He said once he learned the fundamental
components and food science behind the
creation of a general meat emulsion as a
culinary medium, developing new flavor
profiles and products was simplified. He
learned how to blend recipes for various dishes
into sausage emulsion and manipulate that
meaty medium into a new product.
" In that regard, the emulsion is simply your
blank canvas, and you can push the boundaries
of what this humble food item is; you can start
creating all kinds of crazy things, " he said.
" Sausage production operates within the
same spectrum as artisanal baking, " he said.
" Specific meat-to-fat ratios must be precise,
salt ratios must be precise, and how you handle
the product or don't handle the product also
plays into that same paradigm. The sky's the
limit once you realize that. "
CREATIVITY RULES
For Dumas, the standard flavors he makes
consistently for the restaurant typically
include traditional Texas beef sausage, brisket
boudin and jalapeño and cheese sausage.
But his creativity and innovative culinary
style really shines with some of his novelty
creations that are specials featured on the
menu, which have included unique creations
like: peach cobbler sausage; Louisiana
crawfish boil sausage; mac and cheese
sausage; pimento cheese sausage; and Reuben
sandwich sausage. In years past he has also
experimented with game meats, including
zebra and python used as the main protein.
His production process starts on Tuesday
during a typical week and the smoked and
cured sausage products are ready to sell
on Saturday. Volumes vary from 700 lbs to
1,200 lbs per week depending on any special
features that are planned for the menu and the
amount of business expected in a given week.
While the sky is the limit for the variety
of sausage flavors Dumas can create, he is
limited in the volume he can produce. He's
had discussions about producing his products
commercially with potential processing
partners in Texas, but so far, none are able
or willing to adhere to his non-negotiable
techniques and proven production practices.
" I would love to put some stuff out there
on the market to the wider public, but the
challenge is trying to find that right partnership
to adhere to some of my policies and the way I
do things process wise versus, what a normal
commercial [processor] might do, " he said.
Dumas said his method for producing
product is a three-day process, whether that is
to make 3 lbs or 3,000 lbs, which isn't feasible
for most traditional sausage processing plants.
" I'm not sure that my process or my
headspace or the way that I do things would
be applicable in a commercial application, "
he said. " If there's someone out there that can
help me do it, I'm all ears. "
" The emulsion
is simply
your blank
canvas and
you can push
the boundaries
of what this
humble food
item is. "
- BILL DUMAS
www.meatpoultry.com | 02.24 | MEAT+POULTRY 29
http://www.meatpoultry.com
Meat+Poultry - February 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meat+Poultry - February 2024
