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1) Sausage ingredients depend on the maker
You may shy away from commercially-made sausage fearing not only fat content, but what odds and ends manufacturers dump into the mix. And, rightfully so. But, if you make your own sausage at home, you can ensure only the best ingredients and spices are used, plus control the fat content. Don't make the mistake of thinking sausage is strictly a meat product. Sausage recipes also include seafood and vegetarian sausage blends.
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2) Sausage history
The word sausage comes from the Middle English sausige, which came from sal, Latin for salt. In France they are sausissons and in Germany, wurst. In practice for over a millenia sausage-making was originally a method used to preserve meats, especially lesser cuts.
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3) What is in sausage?
Sausage is defined as ground meat mixed with fat, salt and other seasonings, preservatives and sometimes fillers. Some sausage mixtures are sold in bulk form, and others forced into casings to form links. Sausage is available in fresh form, which needs to be cooked before consumption, and dry or cured form, which are already cooked. Virtually any type of meat can be used in sausage, but most common are pork or pork blends. Variety truly is the spice of life, with spicy, hot sausages and bland sausages, and flavorings running the gamut from garlic to nutmeg. Creative chefs are also making sausages from vegetable and seafood blends for those who eschew meats.
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4) Sausage casings
Traditionally, link sausage is stuffed into natural casings made from the intestines of animals, but artificial (usually collagen) casings are available on the market. (These days most commercial common sausages use synthetic casings.) Some artificial casings require soaking in hot tap water before use, and need to be punctured with a knife point before stuffing to eliminate air pockets.
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