The Sausage Thread

robfosters said:
Perfect meat content is 75-79%
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Some premium types go for the angle of super high meat content. Last time I looked at sainsburys premium range it was 95-97%

Very interesting reviews. Obviously ramming a casing with almost solid meat gives a different cooking and eating result, some appreciate it, some don't.
 
Gray2233 said:
Morrison's do some nice in store ones for the price, I think two packs for £4 or thereabouts? Their pork and caramelised onion are probably the best of the bunch, followed by their cheese and black pepper, all around 80% meat I believe.
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I hate to break this to you but the ‘loose’ sausages sold on the Deli counter are made by the same people in Hull who make all the other Morrison’s sausages. They don’t make sausages in-store.
 
Hotwired said:
Some premium types go for the angle of super high meat content. Last time I looked at sainsburys premium range it was 95-97%

Very interesting reviews. Obviously ramming a casing with almost solid meat gives a different cooking and eating result, some appreciate it, some don't.
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It’s not meat, it’s Pork/Beef/Lamb/Chicken that is declared. It’s not quite the same thing. What you tend to find is that they will use different cuts (and even skin in the case of chicken sausages) to give a certain fat content. And the higher meat content tends to mean that there is less use of an open-plate mincer to do the comminution and more use of a bowl-chopper. That means you get a less open texture and something more akin to a hot-dog. J Sainsbury’s sausages are made by the same people in Hull who make Morrison’s.
 
WJA96 said:
It’s not meat, it’s Pork/Beef/Lamb/Chicken that is declared. It’s not quite the same thing. What you tend to find is that they will use different cuts (and even skin in the case of chicken sausages) to give a certain fat content. And the higher meat content tends to mean that there is less use of an open-plate mincer to do the comminution and more use of a bowl-chopper. That means you get a less open texture and something more akin to a hot-dog. J Sainsbury’s sausages are made by the same people in Hull who make Morrison’s.
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I just spotted something on that matter: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/aug/12/know-your-sausages-pork

Martin Heap, the man behind Sainsbury's Taste the Difference sausages, says the supermarket is unusual: "We mince a careful balance of fat and lean prime pork cuts [shoulder and belly] through a 5mm mincing die before briefly mixing with natural seasoning in small batches." This more traditional method of mincing meat gives a superb, succulent texture. Most sausages today are made by placing the meat in a vast industrial bowl and chopping it, rather like a giant food processor. The larger the batch, the more paste-like the texture.

Although a high meat content is desirable, it makes it harder to keep the sausages moist and tender. Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Ultimate Chipolatas, made from outdoor-reared pork (£2.259 for 400g), contain 95% meat, while Marks & Spencer's Pork Chipolatas (£2.69 for 340g) are 97% British pork. To create a balanced texture and to keep them juicy, M&S has adapted the normal bowl-chopping method by mixing the contents with a small amount of pork that has been blitzed into a fine paste.
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Not all using the same strategy or mincing methods.

And Martin Heap is a sausage maker who teamed up with Sainsburys in 1995 to invent/introduce supermarket gourmet sausages it would seem: https://www.thisissecondnature.co.uk/simply-sausages
 
WJA96 said:
I hate to break this to you but the ‘loose’ sausages sold on the Deli counter are made by the same people in Hull who make all the other Morrison’s sausages. They don’t make sausages in-store.
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I didn't think they were made literally in store, I did word it poorly though as I was half asleep and about to hop into bed.

I was speaking of the two for four packs you can get in their fridges.

Out of interest since you seem knowledgeable on the subject of sausage, do any of the supermarkets actually make their own (literally) in store?
 
Gray2233 said:
I didn't think they were made literally in store, I did word it poorly though as I was half asleep and about to hop into bed.

I was speaking of the two for four packs you can get in their fridges.

Out of interest since you seem knowledgeable on the subject of sausage, do any of the supermarkets actually make their own (literally) in store?
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No, there are no supermarkets that make their own in-store. It’s a local authority licensing issue. To make sausages you need to be a licenced meat processor and it’s just not cost-effective. Morrison’s do have their own slaughter facilities and they make most of their own pies, bacon, minced beef, lamb etc. all done in Morrison’s owned and operated factories.

Where local butchers really have a huge advantage is they are licenced to prepare meat and meat preparations (sausages etc.) and they can basically have stock recipes they always have in stock and then if they do have a bit of something excess, they can open their recipe book and make a limited run from it.

There are only really 3 big sausage factories in the UK, unsurprisingly owned by the three biggest pork producers (Cranswick, Tulip and Danish Crown) and they pack for all the retailers. Tesco Finest are made in a special factory in Norfolk. The meat that goes in varies - breed, outdoor bred (the pigs are born in an arc in a field and spend their first 8-10 weeks outdoors), outdoor reared (they grow to full slaughter weight outdoors - but they may not have been born outdoors), organic etc. but the processes are all pretty similar and the retailers put the work out to tender every 12-18 months and the suppliers bid to see who gets the business. This usually comes at the same time as a range refresh or a packaging change.

As has been said several times in this thread, if you want a particular sausage, speak to your butcher. Independent butchers not only make their own sausages but also retail other independent butchers’ sausages so if they don’t make what you want, they can probably get it in for you.

Supermarkets are great, they sell decent food and fairly cheaply. If you want something that is genuinely different and better though, it really has to come from a butchers. My own personal favourites are Cowman’s in Clitheroe and McCartney’s in Moira. Both make their own rusk and seasoning packs so you’re getting something truly unique.
 
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Gray2233 said:
Out of interest since you seem knowledgeable on the subject of sausage, do any of the supermarkets actually make their own (literally) in store?
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This might be a good time to mention that over the last year or two the major supermarkets have chucked their "counters" sections in the bin but the light butchery they were doing didn't involve mincing and stuffing sausages. Fridges out the back for vac pack pre-cut joints and cutting boards out the front to get smaller pieces and steaks was about it.

Tesco appears to have kept 10% of theirs and Morrisons is holding out to keep counter service as their niche but in modern times they were the most butcher-like of the supermarkets. I suppose they still are now the competition has bailed.

The most industrial part of a (physically large site) supermarket is the bakery which makes products from scratch using large commercial equipment. (Smaller sites with a "bakery" are likely to be a freezer and an oven.)

Heh, I take another look and someone's snitched that Tesco is not only thinking about closing the last of its counters to join Sainsburys and Asda but has tabled changing its bakeries from scratch baking to from frozen only.

Sign of the times, less processing being done in stores to save money.
 
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@WJA96 @Hotwired

Very informative, thanks!

It's a shame most supermarkets are doing away with the counter related produce, although I almost exclusively shop at Morrisons now as far as supermarkets go. I've an excellent local butcher just down the road from me who I visit as often as I'm able, that should be increasing with the easing of lockdown, I must admit I've been using supermarkets a lot more during the lockdown for their delivery services.
 
Always get this when I have to go to Costco
FVs1hR
 
With anything like this, dig out your local butchers. Support a local business and go and talk to them. More often than not, they will all have better quality cuts of meat in them, higher meat content and yes they are more expensive but worth it. My local butchers do some fabulous sausages that are around 7-9 inches long (erm...), don't shrink (erm...) and taste spot on.

In a supermarket you'll pay around 2.50 for 6. In a butchers I pay 4.50 for 6. An extra 2 quid but well worth it.
 
One of the butchers in the town my in laws live does epic sausages. Absolutely epic. Great taste and texture (I hate sausage filling that's minced to the point it's a puree) and a bargain at about £3 for 6.

He does quite a few different varieties but we normally get the black pepper ones. The name is a bit deceptive as they don't taste overly of black pepper but they're definitely well seasoned. The pork & black pudding and greek style are fantastic too.

We've usually got a few Kg of them in our freezer. We had some for dinner on Thursday and they really are delicious.
 
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