Safety

Linkulator is a guide, not a guarantee of safety. These are the basics for smoked, cooked sausage.

Curing salt is toxic in large amounts. Weigh it on a gram scale, never by spoon. Keep it away from children and pets, and mix it evenly through the meat.

Cooking

Cook until the centre of the thickest sausage reaches at least 71 °C / 160 °F (the USDA minimum for ground meat); 75 °C is the usual Irish target. Measure the sausage with a probe thermometer, not the smoker.

Keep any low-temperature smoke stage short, then go straight on to the hot cook. Curing salt slows some bacteria but doesn't make a slow warm-up safe.

Chilling and storage

Cool quickly once cooked: an ice bath works well.
Keep in the fridge at 5 °C / 40 °F or below and eat within 3–4 days, or freeze.
Vacuum packed in the fridge: eat within 10 days, or freeze for longer.
Don't partly cook sausages, chill them and finish cooking later.

What the status labels mean

Label	Meaning
Calculated	The maths is done and nothing needs your attention.
Needs verification	The maths works, but something depends on details Linkulator can't check, such as which rules apply to your product.
Invalid	Something doesn't work, such as too much salt or a cure level over the limit. The note tells you how to fix it.

Linkulator never says a recipe is "safe" or "approved". It can't check your actual process.

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