Larry's sausage lab
Italian Sausage Seasoning Calculator
This is the exact blend from Larry's Italian sausage seasoning recipe, scaled to your batch. Tell it how much ground pork you're working with and whether you want sweet or hot — it gives you teaspoons, tablespoons and grams for every spice.
Your 5 lb sweet batch
| Spice | Kitchen measure | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Kosher salt | 1 Tbsp + 2 tsp | 30 g |
| Fennel seed, toasted & crackedthe signature flavor | 1 Tbsp + 2 tsp | 10 g |
| Coarse black pepper | 2½ tsp | 5.8 g |
| Granulated garlic | 2½ tsp | 7.5 g |
| Sweet paprika | 2 tsp | 4.6 g |
| Dried oregano | 1 tsp | 1.0 g |
| Ice wateradd at mixing time | 1¼ cups | 295 ml |
Larry's rule: fry a small test patty and taste it before you stuff or portion anything. Salt and fennel are easy to adjust now — impossible after the casings go on.
How to use the blend
- 1
Keep the meat cold
Season pork straight from the fridge — or cubes firmed up in the freezer for 30 minutes. Warm fat smears instead of holding the spice.
- 2
Toast and crack the fennel
A minute in a dry skillet until it smells like a deli, then crack it under a heavy pan. Big pieces of fennel are the signature flavor.
- 3
Mix cold, mix wet
Toss the blend through the pork with the ice water and mix 60 to 90 seconds, until the meat turns tacky and clings to your hand upside down.
- 4
Rest it overnight
Cover and refrigerate. The fennel and garlic bloom into the fat, and day-two sausage tastes twice as seasoned as day one.
Seasoning questions
Frequently asked questions
- How much seasoning do you use per pound of Italian sausage?
- About 1 tablespoon of the total dry blend per pound of ground pork — that works out to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon fennel seed, ½ teaspoon each black pepper and granulated garlic, plus paprika and oregano. More than that and the salt takes over; less and it tastes like plain breakfast sausage.
- What's the difference between sweet and hot Italian sausage seasoning?
- Crushed red pepper — that's the whole difference. The base blend is identical. Add about ½ teaspoon of flakes per pound for a mild kick and up to ¾ teaspoon per pound for properly hot sausage.
- Can I use table salt instead of kosher salt?
- Yes, but cut the amount roughly in half. Table salt crystals are much finer, so a teaspoon of it weighs nearly twice as much as a teaspoon of kosher salt and will oversalt the batch. When in doubt, weigh the salt — you want about 6 grams per pound of pork.
- Can I season store-bought ground pork with this blend?
- That's exactly what it's for. Buy plain ground pork (not pre-seasoned), toss it very cold with the blend and ¼ cup ice water per pound, mix 60 to 90 seconds until tacky, and fry a small test patty before committing the whole batch.
- How long should seasoned sausage rest before cooking?
- Overnight in the fridge is ideal. The fennel and garlic bloom into the fat, and day-two sausage tastes twice as seasoned as the day you mixed it. Two hours is the workable minimum.