Homemade pepperoni #1

Name: Homemade pepperoni #1
Cuisine: American, Southern
Ingredients: 5 pounds beef, ground, if homemade grind twice; 6 tsp black pepper, or 1 tsp cayenne; 1 tsp cayenne, if you don't have black pepper; 4 tbsp fennel seed, lightly crushed.; 2 tsp mustard seed, crushed or powder; 2 tbsp paprika, or smoked paprika for more smoke; 2 tsp garlic powder.; 1 to 1.5 tbsp salt.; 2 tbsp honey or sugar.; 3 tsp liquid smoke, optional; 1/2 cup ice water to help mixing.; 1 cup butter or 1 pound lard; 1/4 cup ice water, another

3 steps

This un-cured pepperoni is very good! It can also be smoked and cooked as a crumble. If you want to slice it, be sure that it is well cooled after cooking.

Updated at: Wed, 03 Jun 2026 03:10:48 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Unbalanced

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

Low

Nutrition per serving

Calories255.7 kcal (13%)

Total Fat21.3 g (30%)

Carbs2.4 g (1%)

Sugars1.2 g (1%)

Protein13.4 g (27%)

Sodium284.6 mg (14%)

Fiber0.7 g (2%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

30 servings

For 5 pounds

5 poundsbeef

ground, if homemade grind twice

6 tspblack pepper

1 tspcayenne

if you don't have black pepper

4 Tbspfennel seed

lightly crushed

2 tspmustard seed

crushed or powder

2 Tbsppaprika

or smoked paprika for more smoke

2 tspgarlic powder

1 Tbspsalt

2 Tbsphoney

or sugar

3 tspliquid smoke

optional

½ cupwater

ice, to help mixing

If your meat is very lean

1 cupbutter

or 1 pound lard

¼ cupwater

ice, another

Instructions

Step 1

Mix the seasonings into the cold ground beef until the meat becomes sticky and uniform, then cover and chill overnight or up to 48 hours. A stand mixer with a paddle is the easiest way; the point is to get the spice blend into the meat thoroughly.

Step 2

Since shape does not matter, you can form logs, patties, or crumbles before smoking or baking. If you want a drier, sliceable result, form compact logs on a rack so drippings can fall away during cooking.

Step 3

Because you are not curing, treat this as fresh sausage and cook it all the way through. A common uncured method is a low oven or smoker around 200°F until the sausage firms up and reaches a safe internal temperature, then chill it before slicing. If you're using a smoker, go for flavor first, safety second; smoking alone is not a substitute for curing be sure to store in the fridge or freezer.