The Saturday List #326 - My top ten fave sausages

 How on earth did I manage to get to list #326 without doing this? The sausage is without doubt the best food invention ever.  Beteween 1994 and 2000 I was a pescatarian and I can honestly say that the only meat I really missed was when we had a barbeque and there was a sausage on the grill. Sausages are very popular in our household. So here is my journey through the world of sausages.

 

1. The humble Walls Pork Sausage. This is where it all started. My mother was a bit of a food snob. She thought that bangers were common. As a kid I was heavily influenced by the heavy TV promotion of Walls bangers. Mum was also a skinflint, so she'd generally by inferior own brand sausages and boldy state that they were 'just as good but half the price', Dad agreed with me. He'd buy the proper Walls bangers and we'd all secretly cheer, while mum berated him for his wasteful ways.  For many years this would be the sole entry on this list. However my tastes did evolve.

2. Finnish Salami. Sometimes we forget that salami's are sausages. Back in 1982, when our band were touring Scandinavia, I discovered the joy of the Snutburger. We were playing at Club Bastun in Aland, the only food on the menu was the Snutburger. This was a big wedge of cheddar cheese on a slice of Finnish salami, in a roll and cooked in the microwave. It was glorious. It opened my eyes to a whole new, secret world of what could be achieved with sausages.

3. Linda McCartney vegetarian Sausages. As mentioned above, I was a non meat eater for 16 years. The biggest bugbear I had was that vegetarian sausages were awful. Then Linda McCartney released her range of vegetarian sausages. Whilst I  cannot in all honesty compare them with the Walls bangers, they were edible and in truth better than many of the meaty versions. I'd go as far to say that they are better than the cheapo bangers some of my mates would get for their barbies. I saw Linda as a sort of saviour and liberator.

4. Cristin Carnati Cabanos. I've always rather enjoyed salimi's and in the days when I ate pizza's I rather liked the hot sausage pizza. I then realised that you could get the sausages without the horrible gunk underneath. My only problem with these is that when I buy them, the kids eat them before I get the chance.

5. Gerards Chorizo sausages. When I started eating meat again back in 2000, I made a commitment only to eat them once a week and to only buy the very best ones I could. For a while this was Walls Pork bangers, then one day I nipped into Boucherie Gerard and discovered his amazing range of sausages,  I've tried them all, but the Chorizo are the best IMHO.

6. Gerards Cumberland Sausages. A close second are his cumberlands. Generally I'll have one of each on my plate. They are very good,

7. Gerards Pigeon sausages. I have to be honest, these aren't really to my taste, byut my brother Laurie loves them. Earlier in the year, he was really unwell. I dropped a pound of these in and he told me that they were amazing and helped get him through. So how could I fail to mention them.

8. Gerards chicken and apricot sausages. When I do a barbecue, I like a selection of sausages, these are what I consider to be the third part of the holy trinity of Sausages, they are the Holy Spirit of Sausages for those of you from a Roman Catholic background.  They are a tad mysterious to me, but very tasty.

9.  Smoked Chorizo made with wine. Until last month, I suspect this list would have stopped at nine. However we were in  Portugal and on a whim I picked up some of the local chorizo made with Red wine. It had a smokyness to it and was delicious. It is worth a trip back.

10, Pawsley and Co Pigs in Blankets. No, I've not eaten these, but our two doggies love them top death. Anything that makes my family happy makes me happy, so these tick the box!

Have a great weekend.