John Myers
Cabanossi is sliceable raw sausages made from beef, pork, and bacon. The pieces of bacon are clearly visible when cut, and the fat content of the sausage is relatively high at 44 percent. The long, thin sausages are seasoned with paprika powder, pepper, salt, and garlic. This gives them a piquant, spicy taste, and the paprika powder also gives them a red color. Cabanossi are commercially available both in pairs as meter sausage and in small format as minicabanossi.
The meat for cabanossi is finely chopped and the bacon is diced. Then the meat is mixed with the pieces of bacon and spices, stuffed into natural casings and hot-smoked. As a result, the sausage can be stored for a long time without refrigeration and is ideal as provisions, for example for longer hikes.
Only Cabanossi from Poland, where they are called Kabanos or Kabanosy, may be given the additional designation “Original”. Since 2011 they have been protected within the EU as a “guaranteed traditional speciality”. The cured meat of specially fattened pigs is processed for Original Kabanosy. They are mainly fed potatoes and have a particularly streaky muscle meat. In Lithuania and north-eastern Poland, the term “kaban” was originally used for these pigs. Hence the aromatic sausage might have got its name.
Cabanossi is eaten pure and cold as a snack or sliced and used as a topping. The sausages are also a tasty ingredient for stews, potato soups, scrambled eggs, pasta salad, pizza toppings, or casseroles. However, the sausages should not be grilled or seared, as they are smoked. In high heat, the nitrite contained in smoked meat can turn into nitrosamines, which are harmful to health.
However, Cabanossi can be consumed without hesitation when cooked or heated together with other ingredients in the oven or pan. Due to the high-fat content of the spicy sausages, moderate consumption is recommended. Tip: For dishes like stews, you can alternatively use low-fat meat, such as that used in the beef stew recipe.
Facebook Comments