KuneKune Pork Italian Sausage from Raising ’em Right Homestead, Hastings, Michigan
At Valor Provisions, we partner with American farms that can show you exactly how the animal was raised. Raising ’em Right Homestead in Hastings, Michigan is a first-generation family farm raising purebred KuneKune pigs on 30 acres of rolling pasture. This is their Pork Italian Sausage: ground heritage pork seasoned Italian-style, from a slow-grown, grass-grazing breed with the richest fat in the pork world.
What KuneKune Does for Italian Sausage
Good Italian sausage lives or dies on the fat. KuneKune fat is silky, clean and faintly sweet, and the Rausers keep it that way with a daily fermented ration of non-GMO barley, wheat, oats, alfalfa and beets, with no corn. In the pan it renders slow and carries the fennel and garlic instead of drowning them. The meat is deep red and comes from pigs that take roughly two years on pasture to reach weight. Brown it loose for a ragu, stuff it into peppers, crumble it over a pizza, or form it into patties for a sausage and egg sandwich that will ruin you for the drive-through.
Why You’ll Love It
Heritage KuneKune Pork – KPPA certified purebred herd, every pig with its own pedigree.
Pasture Raised and Rotationally Grazed – 30 acres of Michigan hills, managed to rebuild the soil, not strip it.
Non-GMO, Corn-Free Ration – Fermented barley, wheat, oats, alfalfa and beets.
Versatile Bulk Sausage – Pasta, pizza, stuffed peppers, meatballs, breakfast; one pack covers the week.
Family Raised – Josh and Jessica Rauser and their four kids, first-generation farmers since 2020.
How to Cook It
Thaw overnight in the fridge. Brown loose in a skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks, until no pink remains and it reaches 160°F, about 8 to 10 minutes. For patties, form by hand and cook 4 to 5 minutes per side. Always cook sausage thoroughly before serving. 1 lb pack.
Ingredients
[Ingredient statement pending from the farm. Do not publish until filled.]
The Raising ’em Right Story
Josh and Jessica Rauser were city kids. In 2020 they moved their growing family out of Minneapolis and started over on seven wooded acres in central Michigan with a garden, a couple of goats and a few KuneKune pigs. They outgrew it fast and settled on 30 acres in Hastings, where they now run one of a small number of KPPA certified, AKKPS registered KuneKune farms in the country. They opened a store on the property so more than 30 neighboring families could sell what they grow and make. Every pack keeps a Michigan family farm, and the community around it, in business. That is the Valor mission on a plate.
