Hot answers tagged sausages
14
Here in Argentina is very common to bbq LOTS of sausages for big parties. Just for reference:
To ease the work of turning them, we usually hold them together with metal skewers, that also serve the purpose of draining the fat:
But if you don't prick them (besides of the aforementioned holes), they usually EXPLODE.
Note: here the skins are usually ...
14
A very simple answer why you prick sausages. When the sausages get heated up, the fat content and also air pressure inside start to grow. Pricking sausgaes allow the air and fat to be 'released', otherwise, the skin of the sausages will start to crack which eventually will result in losing more juice and 'fat'.
Yes, Pricking may lead to dry sausages, so you ...
11
It depends on what chorizo you're using. If you're using soft (i.e. uncooked) chorizo then no, you don't need to remove the skin, because it should cook with the sausage. If you are using the cured, ready to eat chorizo you should take the skin off as it will be tough.
This may well vary by brand, incidentally.
10
Use less heat.
It's not clear if you used any fat here. If you do, you have to be aware of the smoke point of whatever oil you're using.
By turning down the heat you'll decrease the amount of fat you are burning, and turning into smoke. If you want to still get a nice crisp exterior you can briefly sear your sausages on high heat prior to fully cooking. ...
9
Pepperoni is a variety of Salami. Salami is a dried sausage which can be made of pork, beef, veal, horse, donkey, poultry or game. Different spices, smoking and vegetable ingredients give the different salame their particular taste.
Pepperoni limits its ingredients to beef pork and poultry and belongs to the more spicy varieties of salame.
8
Generally it's things that have been prepared such that there's some sort of added preservative -- salt, sulfates, sulfides, nitrates, etc. So this would include all hams except 'fresh ham', almost all deli meats, all sausages, bacon, jerky, corned beef, etc.
So yes, sausage is considered a processed meat.
If you want to get all technical about what ...
7
A lower heat.
You should be able to fry them at a comfortable heat (e.g. medium rather than medium high).
Also, if you add any oil to the pan, use a higher smoking point oil like canola. If you have a splatter screen, that can help to trap some of the oil rather than letting it fall back into the pan and burning.
7
I'm assuming you're wanting to make classic dried sausage such as the salamis and saucisson of Italy and France.
Common salt is certainly the key to the drying process and a quarter pound per 10 pounds of meat is a pretty commonly used ratio, but you must also use a curing salt which helps protect against some of the truly nasty food poisoning bugs such as ...
7
The term "dog" has been used as a synonym for sausage since 1884 and accusations that sausage makers used dog meat to at least 1845.
According to a myth, the use of the complete phrase "hot dog" in reference to sausage was coined by a newspaper cartoonist in 1900, but there were several earlier references, but no specifics on the origination of the phrase.
6
I'd say no never prick the sausages if you can help it. the fat inside helps to keep them succulent and moist, and if you have a problem with the splitting and are pricking them to release the pressure as was stated by @foodrules, then I'd say you are cooking them over too high a heat. Lower the heat, or if you are BBQing move them further from the source, ...
6
I always do when pan-frying - it's astonishing how much fat comes out. I prefer the resulting texture. Barbequed sausages really can't be pricked much because of flareups, and I usually try to eat something else if I have a choice, because I find them too greasy. Perhaps my "just right" is someone else's "too dry" - it's certainly true that pricking them ...
6
If you're planning to smoke your sausages, natural casings will allow for greater smoke penetration than many non-natural casings, and they won't impart any odd flavors of their own to the meat. That said, when you first open a container of natural casings, they may have a strong smell because of gas build-up; let them air out (in the fridge!) and they'll be ...
6
I could answer this with the usual "it depends on the sausages" kind of answer, but I think it's important to raise a red flag.
I would advise against trying to make dry sausages with a "seat of the pants" recipe and process. The chances of bacterial infection (botulism, most likely) and/or rot are very high if you don't do things right.
I would be ...
6
So yesterday I tried out the experiment. I made the naked fatty per the normal recipe, and using the gimme lean breakfast sausage. The two primary concerns I had were (a) to ensure the sausage didn't come apart during the smoking process and (b) to ensure a good amount of smokiness was imparted.
With respect to (a), the heat I
worried might denature the ...
6
Since most are pre-cooked (in US Supermarkets anyway), and you are just re-heating, your (still tasty) options are pretty limited with respect to beer brats
From the perspective of UW Madison (self-proclaimed "Brat Capital of the World"):
Simmer in beer first, then grill. For more info here is a post regarding prep; this method would definitely be the ...
5
Well, you don't need to spend hundreds of dollars, but you might need to put in more elbow grease. You can get a hand-crank meat grinder for about $30 or so and a manual sausage stuffer for about the same. You could save on the grinder if you have a food processor or blender that can have its way with the meat.
5
Cheese Kranksy or Kasekrainer is the common sausage with cheese. Around 10% cheese seems typical
They taste great, and are very popular with children
5
You need to let the sausages sit exposed to some air -- refrigerated, of course -- for a few hours (preferably overnight) so that the twisted segments of casing dry out and become tough again. Lay them out on a baking sheet, uncovered, and flip them at some point to make sure the whole surface is drying. If you have space, you can hang them up so that all ...
4
I also find them hard to chew when baked, but they are edible. To make them easier to eat, you want to finish them up using a different method to get a crunch on the outside. I find you can either:
turn the heat up in your oven at the end, or broil them
briefly pan-fry them after they're done cooking in a little bit of oil on a skillet (cast iron ...
4
Pepperoni is simply a variety of hot salami, derived from Italian salami (soppressata from Calabria, or spicy dry sausage from Naples). If there is any difference in the pork/beef ratio, that is not what makes the difference between salami and pepperoni; some variety would use more beef, but that is just a regional difference.
4
It also very much depends on the type of sausage you are using. Some (usually cheap) sausages use an artificial casing which I find makes the sausage at worst leathery and at best a bit chewy.
Assuming you have good quality sausages, the best way to cook them (I find) is to fry them on a cast iron grill pan at a low temperature for a long time, 20-30 ...
4
Generally such health fears will be to do with the amount of additives in "processed meat". The use of Mechanically Reclaimed Meat (MRM) is also rather frowned upon.
At the height of the media coverage of such issues in the UK, Turkey Twizzlers were singled out for particular hatred, the ingredients list almost speaks for itself. (Via: ...
4
The cured chorizo available at my local grocery store actually has a plastic skin so obviously that must be removed in order to make it edible. It also has metal clips holding the ends closed, so it's pretty clear that you're not supposed to eat it.
So, if you do choose to eat the skin, make sure it's not plastic. Again, it should be pretty obvious.
4
Sausages are pretty forgiving. As long as you don't burn them or leave the center raw, they should come out OK. Since they're pretty fatty (at least the good ones are) there's little chance of drying them out, so when in doubt, cook them a little longer. They'll feel firm, not squishy, when they're done.
The easiest way to cook raw sausages is in the oven ...
4
Not 100% sure what you mean by 'evenly', but assuming you mean they brown in some parts and not others then what you need to do is pretty labor intensive. You basically have to stand there with tongs and continue to turn the sausages the entire time they are cooking. If they are not perfectly round they may want to roll over in which case you'll either ...
4
Checking for redness is not a good indicator of doneness. For instance, freezer burned chicken tends to look less red or pink--taking on white spots and a grayish color. Some meats will also stay red no matter what. Think back to every time you saw real pork bacon. Were the meat strips ever any color except red, even when fried to a crisp?
The most ...
4
I can imagine a few ways of doing it based on the texture you're looking for, and what you have to work with.
Remove the meat from the casing and fry the meat in a pan. You'll basically be cooking ground meat which will allow you to easily seasons it and also integrate it into other foods. This method also allows you to season the actual meat if you want ...
4
I know that there is a German meat and cheese sausage called käsewurst/kaesewurst. In the US we also now have "novelty" sausages that combine meat and cheese:
Smoked Cheddar & Chicken
Chicken, Garlic, and Gruyere
Italian Sausage with Cheeses
3
good quality sausages don't contain sodium nitrite.
you can tell, because it looks like ground up meat in a sausage stuffing.
the "processed" meats you're referring to have a different texture & color - think hot dog or deli-meat (pink).
mechanically process is very different from chemically processed. nutritionally, you want to steer clear of the ...
3
Personally I avoid supermarket sausages but if its all you have then usually the premium range are usually alright - as Chad says as long as its 80%+ meat then it should be ok.
I would strongly recommend finding a butcher, ideally one who makes his own (around me - Midlands UK this is fairly common). The specific variety doesn't actually matter that much ...
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