ETYMOLOGY
• The word sausage, from the Latin salsus , which means salted or preserved. In
the days of old people did not have refrigeration to preserve their meat.
• Various forms of sausages were known in ancient Babylonia,
Greece, and Rome; and early North American Indians made pemmican,
a compressed dried meat-and-berry cake. From the Middle Ages,
various European cities became known for the local sausage, with such
types as the frankfurter (Frankfurt am Main), bologna (Bologna, Italy),
and romano (Rome) being named for their places of origin. Salami
(named for the salting process, salare, Italian: “to salt”) is a popular
sausage with many varieties.
TYPES OF SAUSAGE’S
• Molly Watson 2020, said that Sausages are made with ground meat mixed
with fat, salt, and other seasonings (some also contain preservatives and/or
fillers). This mixture is usually stuffed into a casing, although some fresh
sausage is sold as “bulk” or formed into patties. For all that’s in common, not
all sausages are created equal, nor are they made the same. See what
defines the four main types of sausage—fresh, pre-cooked, smoked, and
cured
THE FOUR MAIN TYPES OF SAUSAGES
• 1. Fresh Sausage —such as breakfast links, sausage patties, Italian sausage,
bratwurst, and Mexican chorizo—are made from chopped, ground, or even pureed
uncooked meat. They must be kept refrigerated or frozen until used. Prick the skins
lightly before cooking to avoid exploding sausages. Cook fresh sausages thoroughly,
until no hint of pink thinks about hanging around in the center of the sausage. Fresh
sausages are best grilled, pan-fried, or broiled. Some types of fresh sausage—
particularly “white sausages” made with veal—are traditionally poached or
steamed. Fresh sausages can also be cut up or removed from their casing and
crumbled in order to be sautéed and used in other dishes.
Sausage —such as hot dogs, frankfurters, bologna, mortadella, and many German-
style “wursts” (although not all, be sure to ask your butcher or sausage-maker
whether a sausage is fresh or pre-cooked if you have any doubts)—are usually
made with smooth, even pureed fillings. Sometimes the fillings are partially cooked
before being stuffed into the casing, but in all cases, the sausage is cooked after
filling. You still want to cook these sausages, or at least heat them up to room
temperature to bring out their best flavor. They can be grilled, broiled, pan-seared,
or cut up and added to other dishes. You don’t need to worry about cooking them
through or to temperature, though, since you’re not dealing with raw meat.
3. Smoked Sausages—such as andouille and kielbasa—are, as their name suggests,
smoked to cook them. They are hung in a smoker or smokehouse where a cool fire
is tended to burn slowly and to produce a copious amount of smoke that cooks,
flavors, and preserves the sausages. Smoked sausage can be eaten as-is, heated, or
cut up and used in other dishes. Smoked sausages, like their pre-cooked friends,
are a staple of deli counters and sandwiches.
4. Cured Sausage —are what Italians call salumi and the French call charcuterie.
They are sausages made fresh and then salted and air-dried for weeks or months
depending on the type. The meat gets “cooked” by the salt and air (and, in a way,
time). Spanish chorizo, coppa, and Genoa salami are just a few examples of cured
sausages. Slice cured sausages as thinly as possible and serve at room temperature
for a great appetizer, snack, or sandwich filling.
EQUIPMENT,
INGREDIENTS AND
PROCEDURE IN SAUSAGE
MAKING:
Before you begin you do need some specialized equipment; this is what keeps
many home cooks from bothering with sausage.
1. Meat grinder – for grinding meat, which maybe coarse or fine.
2. Sausage stuffer – Used to stuffed the sausage into casing. Do not stuff your
sausages using the grinder attachment, as it will get the mixture too hot and
can ruin the texture. Either do this right or leave your sausages loose.
3. Casings – is where sausages is stuffed. Most decent butchers make their own
sausages and will sell you hog casings, which are the scrubbed, salted intestines of
a pig. (Don’t feed these sausages to those who cannot eat pork! I once knew a guy
who made a lamb sausage so his Jewish friends could eat it, but forgot and stuffed
them in hog casings. That did not go over too well.)
4. Wooden rack – handy but not vital of some sort to hang your links on, as sausage
links need to tighten in the skins at room temperature for a while, and then
“bloom” overnight in the fridge.
5. Scale – Used to weight sausages. As most sausage recipes use weight, not
volume to properly measure ingredients; a little too much or too little salt in a
sausage can ruin it. Precision matters.
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