Oily Rag - Simply Sausage

 Read more Oily Rag articles by Frank and Muriel Newman 

Lots of people are writing in with recipes so we thought we would show that something as simple as the humble sausage can be made into a tasty delight.  

There are an infinite number of possibilities for those that want to make their own. Anything can be stuffed into a sausage.  Just mash it up and bung it in the casing (these are available from butchers). Pork and beef fillings are the most common, but any meat can be used - mutton, venison, kangaroo,  ‘possum(!), and it does not have to be meat based - a vegetarian mix will work just as well. Likewise with flavour: more common additions include garlic, pineapple, tomato, onion and cheese, but you can experiment with your own permutations (or mutations!). Put them to the family test - if the family absentee rate soars at dinner time you might like to try something else!

A sausage-based meal can be as simple as a fried or boiled sausage between two slices of bread, but here are some other suggestions:

• Bangers a la topped. For an easy dinner, cook sausages in boiling water, split top, place thin slices of cheese and tomato in each split, and grill until cheese bubbles. Serve with a salad and potatoes.

• Bangers a la crumbed. Simmer your favourite sausages for about five minutes. Allow to cool then peel off the skins. Roll the now skinless sausage in seasoned flour, dip in the slightly beaten egg, roll in breadcrumbs and fry until golden brown.

• Bangers a la kebab (otherwise known as a sausage on a stick).  To make a la kebab you need  sausages, small tomatoes, button mushrooms, and anything else you want to throw on like pineapple pieces, marshmallows (okay maybe not!), pepper pieces. Cut sausages into bite-sized pieces, cut the tomatoes into halves, and thread sausages, tomatoes, mushrooms, and other bits onto skewers. Grill under a hot grill or over a barbecue for about five minutes until cooked.

• To make something a little fancy try this fried sausages with apples recipe. You will need: 450 g of any sausage, a splash of oil, two Granny Smith apples, about 750 g potatoes, 2 tablespoons cream plus salt and pepper. Peel and boil the spuds. Brown sausages in a frying pan and keep warm while you fry the peeled, cored apple slices until tender. Drain and mash the potatoes with butter, cream, salt and pepper. Arrange the spuds in a circle around the outside of a serving dish and pile the sausages in the centre. Decorate with apple rings.

• C.K. from Christchurch has a slow-cook curry sausages recipe. Turn crock-pot onto high for about 20 minutes and heat while preparing the rest. You will need 500-750 grams (precooked) sausages, two sliced onions, two teaspoons curry powder, a 440 gram can chopped tomatoes ( the budget variety or whatever is the cheapest), one or two 440 gram  cans  baked beans or chilli beans (the cheap ones again), and one or two tablespoons brown sugar. Put the onions in the crock-pot, add the sausages, the tomatoes beans and curry powder and brown sugar and mix. Turn crock pot onto low and cook for between six and eight hours.

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