Charcuterie

Hotel's Cold Kitchen

1. CHARCUTERIE Introduction to Charcuterie Define, Types & Uses of Forcemeat Define, Types & Varieties of Sausage Define, Types & Varieties of Casing Types & Varieties of Fillings Additives & Preservatives used in Sausage

2. Forcemeat Forcemeat is the base for all Charcuterie products. It can be described as an emulsion of meat and fat that is created by mixing meat and fat either by chopping, grinding, or pureeing them together to create a smooth paste. The texture of the sausage is determined depending upon the method used for forcemeat. Forcemeat can be used either to stuff eggs, fish, meat, vegetables, pasta or as the basis for pates, terrines, sausages, etc.

3. Introduction to Charcuterie Charcuterie is derived from a French word meaning ‘ Cooked Flesh’. By the end of the sixteenth century, there were approximately 24-30 guilds that were specific to only food items. One such guild that was responsible for preparing dishes from pig’s meat was referred to as Charcuterie. Germany and Italy are the largest producers and consumers of cold meat and sausages. Charcuterie is a section of Larder Kitchen. In the modern world, charcuterie products are not only limited to a few slices on the plate, but also used in breakfast such as sausages and bacon.

4. Types of Forcemeat Country Style Force Meat: The meat is cut in strips and marinated along with fat and flavoring. Then grinded and passed through a sieve. Panada is added for binding along with the sieved liver. Gratin Froce Meat: Gratin forcemeat is made by partially cooking some of the meats before pureeing. This is done to create a softer texture in the finished product and to improve flavors. This kind of forcemeat is usually used in terrines and pates as an inlay or stuffing.

5. Basic Forcemeat: This style of forcemeat is also known as straight mix as the meat and fat are ground together from a coarser mixture to a smoother emulsified mix through progressive grinding. Mousseline : This is one of the lightest and smoothest of all forcemeats and is usually made with soft white meat such as Veal, Chicken, and fish. Eggs and heavy cream is added to it and the fine past has to be made in cold conditions, while using ice.

6. Uses of Forcemeat We already learn that forcemeat is the base for all Charcuterie product. So in Charcuterie, forcemeats are not only limited to sausage making, but are used in various types of products such as Pates, Terrines, Roulades, and Galantines etc.

7. Sausage The word ‘sausage’ is said to be derived from the Latin word Salsus , which means salted. Meat was earlier dry salted for preservation and it was heavily spiced with ginger and pepper. A sausage is a generic term for the wide range of preserved meat products made out of mincemeat, combined with fat and spices and stuffed or enclosed in some form of casing. A sausage could be preserved by cooking, smoking, or drying or, at times, be stored fresh chilled and cooked at the time of serving.

8. Different Shapes of Sausages Rope Sausage: Rope sausages are prepared by coiling around the filled casings to form spirals. They look very attractive in butcher’s shops and on dishplays . Linking Sausage: In this type of the sausage, while being filled, the casing is pinched and twisted around around at equal intervals to create linking sausages of the same length.

9. Chaining Sausage: In this type, the ends of a few linked sausages are joined together to form a chain. Looping Sausage: This type of shape is particularly used for sausages such as Kielbasa. The forcemeat is stuffed into the casing and both the ends are joined together to form a loop.

10. Types of Sausage Kielbasa or Polish Sausage: This large loop-shaped sausage from Poland is made by stuffing emulsified forcemeat consisting of pork butt and fatback with crushed ice.

11. Bratwurst : This is a German delicacy made from emulsified forcemeat of pork, veal, and sometimes beef. The word is derived from the German words Brat which means “Chopped Meat” & Wurst means “Sausage”.

12. Franfurters : This is a very popular German Sausage that has become famous the world over because of its use in the popular sandwich ’Hot Dog’. It is made with emulsified forcemeat prepared from Veal/Beef and fat from jowl of pig. It has traditional orange colour .

13. Salami: Salami has been the most popular of all sausages because of its keeping qualities. It is a cured and fermented sausage most popular in Italy, France, Hungary, Germany, and other European Countries.

14. Mortadella : Mortadella is a large Italian Sausage that is made from emulsified forcemeat, in which fat from the neck of the pork and chopped pistachios are added to give it a traditional specked look. Lots of spices and seasonings are used to make Mortadella and dry milk is add as a Binding agent.

15. Breakfast Sausage : As the name suggests, this sausage is commonly eaten for breakfast. In the USA, this sausage is made from the basic forcemeat mix and is shaped into patties and shallow fried.

16. Boudin Blanc: Boudin is a common word used for many sausages in and around France. Traditionally, it is made from pale- coloured pork meat and is enriched with cream, eggs, etc. after casings it is refrigerated for at least 12 hours then poached in a mixture of milk and a stock and are refrigerated for up to three days.

17. Boudin Noir : Also known as blood sausage, they are so called because of their black to deep purple colour owing to the principle ingredient-blood. This sausage is particularly famous during Christmas. The boundin noir is chilled for at least 12 hours before they are poached.

18. Italian Sausage : A popular pizza topping consisting or pork flavoured with garlic and fennel. In the USA, Italian sausage is a style of pork sausage which is noted for its seasoning of fennel and anise, containing at least 85% meat, which can be no more than 35% fat.

19. Casings Sausage starts with a ground meat mixed with spices and seasonings and some curing salts, such as nitrates, and are forced or packed into casings or sacs. Just like wine is matured, sausages and cold meat are left to mature and ripen to develop the flavour . Casings give the sausage its desired size, shape, and also characteristic colour .

20. Types of Casings There are two types of casings: Natural Casings: As the name suggests, these casings are obtained naturally from animals. Usually, the small and large intestines of animals are used for casings. The size of the casings varies between 16 mm and 127 mm in diameter. Man-made Casings: These casings are artificially made and are preferred over natural casings, as they offer better quality control because of the standard sizes and shapes. Some man-made casings are edible and some are non edible.

21. Types of Filling The various elements used to make sausages include: Meat: The main ingredient of any sausage is meat. Usually pork is the most preferred meat due to its neutral flavor and colour , but meat such as lamb, beef, chicken and game can be used. Fats: As a ratio, 25% of fat is used in forcemeat to prepare stuffing for sausages and other charcuterie products. The fat commonly used in sausage making is taken from the jowl of the pig or from the back of the pig, which is commonly known as fatback. Fat provides the richness and smoothness to the sausages.

22. Seasoning and Cure Mixes: If there is no seasoning and flavour in the sausage, the food will taste bland and will not be favored and relished by people. Apart from salt, various other seasonings, such as dried onion, garlic, celery, are mixed to give subtle flavours to the meat. It is important to cure the sausages, especially the ones that would be dried or cold smoked. The term curing refers to treating the sausage meat with chemical salts. The three main curing agents used in charcuterie are Sodium Chloride(common Salt), Sodium Nitrite, and Sodium Nitrate .

23. Binding Agent: While preparing the mix for sausages, it is important to bind the meat together. A protein in the meat called Myosin helps to naturally bind the meat together. In many cases, products such as soy proteins , milk powder , and corn syrup solids also help to bind the meat together and improve the flavour as well. Other traditional binding agents commonly used are eggs and cream , or mixture of starches also known as Panada .

24. Sweeteners: Sweeteners, such as honey, corn syrup, etc. play a major role in sausage making than just flavouring the mix. They serve as food to the necessary bacteria to thrive in the meat, which in turn develops the mellow flavours . Sweeteners also help to promote browning in Charcuterie products.

25. Tools & Equipment used in Sausage Making Brine Pump or Spray Pump: It is used for injecting brine solution in the meat, so that curing can be achieved evenly. Hanging Sticks: These metal sticks are usually made of steel and are used for hanging meat and sausages in the smoking machine.

26. Hog Rings: These are special metal crimps that are used to seal both the ends of large sausages. Hog Ring Clipper: It is a small tool that has nose clips which help to seal the hog rings onto the ends of a large sausage.

27. Hydrometer: This is a small equipment with a delicate glass that measures the % of salt in a solution. Meat Tumbler: It tumbles the meat and helps to massage leading to the development of myosin.

28. Sausage Stuffer: This equipment works on hydraulic principle and forces the stuffing mixture into small tubes of various diameters to fill the casings. Smoking Machines: This machine is used for both hot and cold smoking at desired pressure and temperature control.