What are sausages?
We have all seen in the supermarket: Chorizo de bellota, traditional Salchichón, Morcón ibérico, lomo ibérico de bellota, lomito de presa, morcilla ibérica, butifarra de Chiclana…and I am sure we are forgetting many types of sausages. All of them follow a similar process of elaboration in which the base is to stuff a mixture or a noble piece. Hence the origin of its name: sausage. Below we share with you everything we know about sausages.
What types of sausages are there?
We can find fresh sausages and cured sausages. The former require prior cooking at home before consumption. They are the choricillos or black pudding that are so delicious grilled. The cured sausage has already undergone a curing and maturation process that allows its direct consumption.
What is the difference between sausages and cold cuts?
In both cases they agree that cold cuts can be made from whole cooked pieces (cooked ham) or from different cuts of minced meat (chopped, mortadella).
The main difference between sausage and cold meat is that all cold meats are cooked, not cured. The cold cuts are generally protected with a non-edible plastic cover. Artisanal sausages usually use only natural casings from the pig itself to stuff the pieces or minced mixtures.
In addition, cold cuts need to be kept cold, while cured sausages, once cured, can be kept in a cool, dry place.
Finally, cold cuts often include starches, preservatives, stabilizers and flavor enhancers in their ingredients.
In short, at first glance, it would seem that cold cuts are more “processed” than any sausage. However, according to the WHO, both cold cuts and sausages fall into the category of processed meats.
How is the sausage made?
There are three basic ways of manufacturing Iberian sausages.
Marinated sausage
The marinated sausage is usually applied with whole pieces, Iberian loin, head, marinated bacon, Iberian jowl, Iberian bacon, Iberian prey or Iberian tenderloin. The piece is left to macerate for some time with a series of spices. All sausages will always contain garlic and salt, which not only adds flavor but also stabilizes the meat. In this case, nitrites can be added but it is not strictly necessary.
The whole Iberian pieces are usually macerated for 10-12 days and then there are two alternatives: stuffing the Iberian sausage in natural or collagen casing. This is the origin of the name “lomo embuchado” (stuffed loin). Once the sausage is stuffed, it is left to dry for a period of 2-3 months depending on the weight and size of the piece.
Cured sausage
The other option is cured sausage without any type of marinade. It consists of leaving the sausage in the dryer for a natural drying process without any type of previous stuffing. This is very typical with Iberian bacon, which is usually eaten semi-cured with a month and a half or two months of curing.
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Sausage stew
The above applies to whole pieces, now we would move on to stewed sausage. When it comes to chorizo, salchichón, Morcón and other sausages, the process varies from the beginning. In this case we do not work with a whole piece but use lean Iberian pork that is minced and then stewed.
The chopped Iberian lean meat is mixed with different ingredients depending on the final product you want to obtain.
The ideal in an Iberian sausage is to add only lean Iberian pork such as Presa, Secreto, Lagarto, Abanico… There are producers who also mix bacon or Iberian pork fat with the lean meat, but this is not recommended, as any cut of Iberian meat already has its share of fat that provides a certain juiciness to the sausage.
It is easy to tell when the mixture contains excess bacon or bacon. Flavor enhancers (monosodium glutamate) are added to provide the missing flavor to the sausage.
In addition, if the spices are not of high quality, they are also substituted by colorants such as cochineal.
To detect that lesser amount of lean or quality spices you only have to look at the ingredients of the sausage.
When we are going to produce Iberian chorizo, we mix it mainly with paprika. If it is also Pimentón de la Vera, DOP, the result will be much better.
The recipe for making a good Iberian salami is based on garlic and pepper, which each Iberian producer will decide whether to add in grains or ground.
Once the Iberian meat has been minced and mixed with the spices, the mixture is stuffed into natural pork casings, either the small intestine or the large intestine, tripe cular. Other natural casings of larger caliber that come from the stomach or curds are also used to stuff the Iberian morcón (pork sausage).
Nitrites; E-250 and E-252
Another issue is the use of nitrites; E-250 and E-252, which we will see in the list of ingredients of many sausages.
The purpose of nitrifying salts in marinated Iberian cured meats is the same as in the curing of ham; to open the pores of the meat and allow the flavors to enter better. Therefore, its use enhances the natural flavor of the meat while achieving a stabilizing effect on the Iberian meat and avoiding contamination. The percentage of nitrifying salts is very small, about 2% of the total weight of the Iberian sausage. It is also true that as the product cures, the presence of nitrifying salts in the final product decreases. The veterinary inspection controls the use of nitrifying salts in the production process, especially of Iberian pork loin.
In the case of Iberian chorizo, Iberian morcón or Iberian salchichón, the use of these nitrites and nitrates is not so crucial in the case of Iberian chorizo, Iberian morcón or Iberian salchichón, since the dough is minced and seasoned. However, it is necessary to use substances that make it easier for the mixture to be properly collocated. This makes the texture of the slice more uniform. The caking agent par excellence is powdered milk, which can sometimes be substituted by soy proteins.
