Understanding Sausages

The term sausage refers to a mixture of seasoned ground meat and fat. Once prepared, this mixture can be further processed into many products of varying form, shape, and production method.

The sausage is both humble and noble. Sausages were originally created to use the trimmings and excess fat that resulted from butchering meat. After the large, tender cuts were removed from the carcass, the smaller, tougher pieces that remained were chopped or ground in order to tenderize them. The resulting mixture was then seasoned with spices and salt, both for flavor and to preserve it. In fact, the English word sausage is derived from the Latin word salsus, a term denoting salted products.