A romatic orange zest joined with herbs, wine, tomato, and mushrooms invigorate the taste and texture of delicate veal. This sausage is an excellent way to top a salad.
Medium hog sausage casings (optional)
11/2 pounds veal shoulder or boneless veal breast
1/2 pound veal fat or beef fat
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large shallot, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 pound white mushrooms, wiped with a damp paper towel and chopped
1/4 cup dry vermouth or dry white wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
11/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
1. If using sausage casings, prepare them as directed.
2. Cut veal and fat into 1-inch cubes. Place cubes on a sheet of plastic wrap on a plate and freeze for 30 minutes, or until very firm.
3. While meat chills, heat butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallot, garlic, and mushrooms, and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, or until mushrooms soften and liquid evaporates. Set aside. Combine vermouth and tomato paste in a small cup, and stir to dissolve tomato paste.
4. Grind veal and fat through the coarse disk of a meat grinder, or in small batches in a food processor fitted with the steel blade using the on-and-off pulse button. If using a food processor, do not process into a paste, but ingredients should be very finely chopped.
5. Combine ground meat, mushroom mixture, vermouth mixture, parsley, orange zest, salt, pepper, thyme, and tarragon in a mixing bowl, and knead mixture until well blended. Fry 1 tablespoon of mixture in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
6. Stuff mixture into casings as described, if using, and twist off into 5-inch links; prick air bubbles with a straight pin or skewer. If time permits, arrange links on a wire rack over a baking sheet and air-dry uncovered in the refrigerator for 1 day before cooking. Alternately, if keeping sausage in bulk, refrigerate mixture for at least 30 minutes to blend flavors.
7. Cook sausages as directed to an internal temperature of 160°F when pierced with an instant-read thermometer or as directed in a specific recipe.
Note: Sausages can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen up to 2 months. Once cooked, they can be refrigerated up to 3 days.