How to Use Sheep Casings

What do a hot dog, a snack stick, and a Lap Cheong sausage have in common? The short answer is that they’re all packaged with sheep casings, the product behind (and around) some of the most popular sausage products. 

Sausages wrapped with sheep casings are a favorite among large-scale producers and customers alike due to their unmatched fine emulsions and premium mouthfeel. 

To unlock the potential of sheep casings for your business, you must first digest the ins and outs of every stage of production. In this guide, we’ll cover how to use sheep casings, from soaking and salting to stuffing and storing. 

Proper Handling of Sheep Casings

Before they arrive at your production facility, sheep casings are harvested, cleaned, and salted. Where should you go from there?

Soaking & Rinsing 

Sheep casings should undergo soaking and rinsing during various stages of the production process to remove salt and ensure elasticity for stuffing and storing.

Prepare your sheep casings for stuffing with the following procedure:

  1. Rinse and Flush Internally
    Start by rinsing the casings under cold running water to remove surface salt. Next, flush the inside of each casing by slipping one end over a faucet or filling them gently by hand—similar to inflating a water balloon. This process helps eliminate internal salt buildup and reveals any twists or blockages.

  2. Soak to Restore Flexibility
    After rinsing, transfer the casings into a bath of lukewarm water (between 75°F and 90°F). Let them soak for at least 30 minutes to rehydrate and soften. If casings still feel firm after soaking, replace the water and continue soaking until they become fully pliable and ready for use with stuffing equipment.

If you have any extra sheep casings after stuffing your first bulk batch, take the time to store them properly. 

Maintaining Storage Conditions 

When your casings arrive, it’s best to immediately store them in their original sealed packaging and salty brine or coating. Keep their packaging labels intact to refer to their expiration date, and place them in an industrial refrigerator at a temperature of 40°F or below.

If you’ve already soaked your sheep casings, it’s crucial to re-salt and store them the same day. The salt will prevent microbial growth and help your casings last until you need them next. Use an airtight container to store them in an industrial refrigerator. 

We encourage routinely checking and replacing the salt coating since bacteria can grow even in a controlled, cold environment.

Recommended Caliber Sizes and Applications

Another factor to consider with sheep casings is their variety of sizes and shapes. This impacts the products best suited to their caliber (diameter). Sheep casings can potentially package fresh, smoked, dry, or semi-dry sausages.

Here are a few examples of sheep casing usage depending on caliber:

  • 20–22mm – Consider petite sausages, such as the classic breakfast sausage or snack stick. 
  • 22–24mm – This caliber of sheep casing will have your signature hot dogs sold in a snap. 
  • 24–26mm – Go for a dried beef sausage or a dried pork sausage like Lap Cheong. 
  • 26–28mm – Level up to larger links and specialty sausages that are larger in size but just as delectable. 

Importantly, all sheep casings are known for their edibility and permeability. These characteristics give your sausages a mouth-watering smoky flavor and tender but crackling bite.

Equipment Considerations

While the care and preparation of sheep casings is straightforward enough, stuffing them requires more technique and patience. Here are some of our recommendations for smooth loading with no blowouts or air pockets:

  • Maintain moisture — Soaking your sheep casings and equipment right before stuffing will make mounting and removing the casings less challenging.
  • Monitor speed — Since they’re a natural product, sheep casings are limited in withstanding automated, high-speed stuffing. They perform better at lower stuffing speeds.
  • Customize quantity — Utilize an attachment or setting on your stuffer to insert the desired amount of sausage mixture into your sheep casings. Overstuffing will cause breakage and blowouts, while understuffing will lead to air pockets.

Before deciding what product to produce with your sheep casings and for what type of client, take this extra labor and time into account. 

Tips for Maximizing Yield and Consistency

To take full advantage of your sheep casings, steer clear of common sausage production pitfalls. Apply these best practices to your process to successfully stuff (and sell out of) your sausages:,

  • Sufficiently soak casings beforehand 
  • Choose an appropriate casing size for your fine sausage emulsion 
  • Correctly calculate the ideal stuffing quantity 
  • Refrigerate casings instead of freezing them 

These small considerations enable sheep casings to maintain their characteristic elasticity and strength.

Explore the Advantages of Sheep Casings with Oversea Casing

If you’re looking for high-quality sheep casings (or any other casing variety), look no further than industry-leading supplier Oversea Casing. With nearly a century of experience, you can trust us to deliver premium casings to your business—no minimum order required. 

Our sizing tool and reliable customer support are also available to guide you in finding the best sheep casings for your needs. 

Whether you're a large-scale sausage producer or a regional butcher shop, knowing how to use sheep casings has never been simpler with Oversea Casing’s services and support. 

Sources: 

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Layout and Equipment for a Small-Scale Sausage Production Plant. https://www.fao.org/4/x6556e/x6556e01.htm

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Sausage Casings. https://www.fao.org/4/x6556e/X6556E03.htm

For Dummies. Charcuterie: A Word about Sausage Casings. https://www.dummies.com/article/charcuterie-a-word-about-sausage-casings-271062

North Dakota State University. The Art and Practice of Sausage Making. https://www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/extension/publications/art-and-practice-sausage-making#:~:text=on%20the%20packages.-,Grinding%20and%20mixing,and%20mix%20thoroughly%20by%20hand.

Science Direct. Collagen arrangement and strength in sausage casings produced from natural intestines. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0268005X22001321

Science Direct. Collagen use for co-extruded sausage casings – A review. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0924224420305124

Science Direct. Effect of initial mild curing, with additives, of hog and sheep sausage casings on their microbial quality and mechanical properties after storage at different temperatures. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0309174098001181?via%3Dihub

Science Direct. Sausage Casing. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/food-science/sausage-casing

UGA Extension. Basics of Sausage Making: Formulation, Processing & Safety. https://bpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/blogs.cornell.edu/dist/b/2712/files/2021/06/Basics-of-Sausage-Making.pdf