Sausages

[retired baker]

fed up with the typical italien sausages in America I made some cumberland bangers and chinese hanging sausage.
When I was a teenager back in the UK I was an apprentice butcher, we made thousands of hand linked bangers for other butcher shops in the area, I'd deliver them on an old bicycle with a big basket on the front. No string is used to link in this style. Each link contains 3 sausages.

 

[retired baker]

also made air dried cantonese sausage, very fragrant , like soppresata.
Its cooked by slicing it thin and used in stir fry dishes.
I had to order the red yeast powder from China to make this style.

 

[Norcalbaker59]

What does the red yeast powder do?

 

[retired baker]

helps cure the pork, made from red rice I think.
these sausages contain a lot of alcohol too, they say use any as long as its 40 proof.
Red yeast is sold in the US in capsule form, its medicinal for chloresterol.

 

[Norcalbaker59]

helps cure the pork, made from red rice I think.
these sausages contain a lot of alcohol too, they say use any as long as its 40 proof.
Red yeast is sold in the US in capsule form, its medicinal for chloresterol.

Yes I was aware about the cholesterol, I used to take it for that. That‘s why I was curious as to what it did for sausage. My brother, sister and I just ordered 1/2 a steer from a local rancher. The rancher is a 5th generation rancher who practices ethical and statainable ranching. They free range the cattle and just coax them along so as not to cause them undue stress. The rancher harvested it on the ranch, then sent it to the butcher a couple of weeks ago. We just worked with the butcher to decide on the cuts. It was an interesting experience. I did a lot of research on what cuts come from the various sections so when we conferred with the butcher we at least has some idea of where to begin. Butchering is an art.

 

[retired baker]

I was a butchers apprentice when I was 16, like all trades it takes a few years to acquire the skill.
Sausage and pates was part of the training. I didn't care for the work but the training came in useful later on.

 

[Mona]

Wow, that sounds like such a cool experience! Making sausages by hand and delivering them by bicycle must have been a unique and memorable part of your apprenticeship. Cumberland bangers and Chinese hanging sausages sound like a fantastic departure from the usual fare here in the States. I’d love to hear more about the differences in the sausage-making techniques and flavors between the UK and the US. Do you have any tips or recipes you could share for those of us wanting to try making these at home?

 

[retired baker]

Wow, that sounds like such a cool experience! Making sausages by hand and delivering them by bicycle must have been a unique and memorable part of your apprenticeship. Cumberland bangers and Chinese hanging sausages sound like a fantastic departure from the usual fare here in the States. I’d love to hear more about the differences in the sausage-making techniques and flavors between the UK and the US. Do you have any tips or recipes you could share for those of us wanting to try making these at home?

The predominant flavor in cumberland sausage is white pepper.

• 700 g lean pork
• 200 g pork belly
• 100 g pork back fat
• 50 g rusk
• 15 g salt
• 5 g white pepper
• 2 g dried rubbed sage
• .5 g dried thyme
• .5 g nutmeg
• .25 g mace
• 118 ml ice-cold water
• 28mm sheep intestine for casing.

use panko instead of rusk, add the water to the panko and let it soak the water up, add to the ground meat. knead it in a big bowl until it becomes a paste. i use pork fat back or salt pork trim skin off and soak in cold water to get rid of the salt.

i tried to make a video but its difficult to capture the linking technique on phone camera.

 

[Justfoodandlife]

also made air dried cantonese sausage, very fragrant , like soppresata.
Its cooked by slicing it thin and used in stir fry dishes.
I had to order the red yeast powder from China to make this style.
View attachment 3101

You can also steam the Cantonese sausage on top of the rice or make claypot rice with it – a childhood dish of mine, and it's yum!