Sausages

Really good sausages are hard to come by. They should be juicy, full of flavour, and with just the right ratio of tender meat to good-tasting fat. The great news is that they are so easy to make, and you’ll be beaming with pride when you serve your sausages made with your own signature spice mix. Add some home-made chutney and you are basically a god.

My favourite sausage is pork and fennel, with a hint of orange zest. I often just leave the sausage as one big coil, instead of making individual links, as I think it looks impressive – but mainly because I can’t be bothered making the links. Play around with the spice mixes and different meats – venison, rabbit, chicken – along with the traditional pork and beef. You can hit up your local butcher to grind the meat for you, or if you have a grinder, just go for it. What you want is a medium grind, consisting of 20–30 per cent good-quality fat.

Take care to read the recipe carefully, as I’ve put in as many tips as I can to ensure you get the best result.

MAKES: 2 kg (4 lb 8 oz)

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

finely grated zest of ½ orange

1.5 kg (3 lb 5 oz) minced (ground) pork shoulder

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) pork fat, minced (ground)

EQUIPMENT

small bowl

large bowl

meat grinder, if grinding the meat yourself

small frying pan

sausage stuffer – I prefer a small hand-cranked stuffer, but you can also use an electric one attached to a stand mixer

2 cm (¾ inch) natural casings; you can buy these from your butcher or online

pin

large airtight container

paper towel

SAUSAGES METHOD

1.

Prepare the spice mix: Place the spices and orange zest in a small bowl and mix well. Grind the meat: If you’re grinding your own meat, spread the pork and pork fat on a tray and freeze for 15–20 minutes to get them really cold; meanwhile, chill the grinder parts in the fridge. (If you use warm utensils and meat, you’ll lose some of the fat and end up with dry sausages!) Grind your meat and fat and place in a large bowl. Season and knead: This is where you’ll need to get a bit messy. Sprinkle the spices over the meat and fat and knead for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is sticky. This will ensure the spices are well incorporated; more importantly, it will develop the proteins in the meat and make for a better-textured sausage. (You can also use a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment if you are feeling lazy.) Palm and pan test: The best way to check if you have kneaded the mixture enough is to take a small amount, form it into a patty and place on your palm. Now turn your hand over. If the mince doesn’t fall off, it is ready. Take a small ball of the seasoned mince and gently fry it in a small frying pan for 3 minutes on each side. Let it rest for a minute, then check. It should have kept its shape and taste delicious.

2.

Clean the casings: Place your sausage casings under the tap and let the water run through them to make sure they are nice and clean, both inside and out, and don’t have any holes. Get your stuffer ready: Place the seasoned mince into the stuffer. Slip the casings onto the nozzle of your sausage stuffer, as though you are putting a stocking on a foot. (Feel free to make crude jokes at this point.) Leave a 10 cm (4 inch) tail at the end. The first thing that will come out of the stuffer is air, so don’t tie the end yet.

3.	Time to stuff: Slowly push the mince out into the casings. It will come out as a big coil. The sausage should be firm to touch, but your finger should still be able to leave a slight indent.

4.

Make the links: When all the meat is in the casings and you have a beautiful big coil, you can either leave it like this – perfect for throwing on the barbecue as an impressive party dish! – or make individual links. If you want to make links, pinch the sausage at 10 cm (4 inch) intervals, twisting in alternate directions at each end. Tie off the end. Check for air bubbles: Take a good look over the sausages. If you see any air bubbles, just prick these with a pin and smooth over. Place the sausages in a sealed container lined with baking paper or paper towel. Leave in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Cook: If they are not destined for the barbecue, I like to fry my sausages over high heat for 3 minutes, then finish them off in a hot oven for another 10 minutes. They are best cooked within 3 days.

HOW TO USE

• Add some breadcrumbs to your sausage mix and shape into burger patties.
• Combine the Pork & fennel sausage mixture with chestnuts, torn bread, sage and butter, and use as a stuffing for chicken.
• Crumble your New York–style Italian sausage mixture on pizzas with some tomato and fresh basil.