Tuesday 30 June 2015

Tuscan Sausage - Eastbourne Village Meats

Tuscan Sausage – Eastbourne Village Meats

The friendly butcher did not mention this sausage when I asked what sausages they had in the shop, and they were not in the display cabinet. After I had purchased the third variety he mentioned the Tuscan sausage that was in the chiller out the back. This was made from a recipe that someone had bought into the shop.

I like a coarsely ground sausage and that’s what this was. It cooked up well and the flavours of this sausage are great. It is a  mildly flavoured sausage with elements of garlic and white wine along with a slight taste of pepper.

I had three of these sausages. I ate two of them after cooking, and one cold the next day. All the sausages I ate hot had multiple pieces of gristle. The cold one I had the next day had a very large lump, it was half the size of my little finger nail. The tactile experience of chewing on hard lumps of indigestible something did detract from what could have been an excellent snarler.

I would not purchase this sausage again, unless I could be assured that there were no hard lumpy bits contained within the casing.

Eastbourne Village Meats are well worth a visit if you are out Eastbourne way. My favourite is still the Louisiana Reds and I also recommend the black pudding. However your individual taste will dictate which variety you prefer. Enjoy the trip around the harbour.

Wednesday 24 June 2015

Pork and Cider Sausages - Eastbounre Village Meats

Pork and Cider Sausages – Eastbourne Village Meats

These sausages are a very nice snarler. I purchased four of these. These are a fine to medium ground sausage. The sweetness of the pork is complemented with a slightly tart taste of the cider. There are also elements of sweetness in the cider too.

Sausage Boy liked these sausages, and no one else in the family even got a look in! They are sausage that would appeal to those who enjoy a simply flavoured snarler.

I would buy these again.

Monday 22 June 2015

Gold medal winner from Eastbourne

Gold medal winner from Eastbourne
 
 
 
Over the weekend I went to Eastbourne which is, not surprisingly, on the eastern side of Wellington Harbour. I do not venture into this pleasant seaside suburb on a regular basis, however when you get there you understand the appeal of the suburb to those who live there. During the visit I checked out the local butcher, Eastbourne Village Meats. I was keen to purchase some of the beef sausages that won a gold medal in the traditional beef section in the Devro NZ Sausage Awards last year. I also hoped they would have some Louisiana Reds in stock. These are a great sausage that I am keen to eat again. Sadly no Louisiana Reds were available. However I did not leave empty handed - the next few posts could be called the Eastbourne series as I walked out of the shop with four different types snarlers.



The beef banger is a nice sausage. It is a plain standard beef banger and, while I prefer pork, this banger will appeal to those who prefer a plain beef sausage. It has elements of a finely ground beef, interspersed with some medium ground beef.
 
 

I had a couple of these sausages cold with tomato sauce after a longer run on Sunday. They still taste good cold. Sausage Boy agreed with me - a very good beef snarler.

Cost per kilo: $15.95

Wednesday 3 June 2015

Homemade Sausage Class

Homemade Sausage Class

I attended a sausage making class over the long weekend – it seemed an appropriate way to mark the Queen’s birthday. As you know I dabble in the mercurial art of putting together a great tasting snarler, so I went to see if could pick up some more tips. The class was taught at the Weltec School of Hospitality by Terry McKee from Island Bay Butchery. He also had a sidekick to assist him - Don Andrews, who owns Island Bay Butchery. Together they offered pearls of wisdom about the making of sausages. They also talked about the scientific component of the art, the chemistry that occurs between various meats, fats and spices and I learnt a few new things.
 
 

After a sausage making demo and talk from Terry we were given 1kg of minced meat, 60% beef and 40% pork, which we were instructed to add our desired spices and flavours to. I added salt, ground cumin, smoked paprika, mace, ground black pepper, white pepper and nutmeg to my minced meat. Once this was done it was stuffing time.
 
 

Here’s the finished product. I cooked these sausages for tea the next day with mashed potato, peas and broccoli. The sausage was pleasant to eat, but not great, I have made better snarlers. However the satisfaction of continuing to experiment and learn about making my own was well worth it.
 
 

Today in the Life lift out that accompanies the Dominion Post, there is story about Terry who ran the class. Island Bay Butchery continues to make by hand a wide array of quality sausages, and I would recommend that if you are in the shop to purchase you favourite banger, also buy one of their black puddings. It’s an underrated sausage that tastes great. Here is a link to the story.