Apologies if this has been discussed before; I did try to search Google groups and didn't find it.
I frequently buy Italian sausage and chorizo packaged like ground beef -- i.e., not in sausage casings, but just "loose". Most of the recipes call for me to brown it, "breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon".
But my experience is that these sausages are very finely ground and really sticky. I do typically buy a lower-fat version of each type of sausage -- they're still made of pork, but with somewhat less fat. Anyway, when I'm browning the stuff, it simply doesn't come apart the way ground beef does. It sticks together and clings and you really have to beat holy hell out of it to get it to come apart and not be one big mass of browned sausage.
So am I screwing up some secret technique? Is there some better way of getting browned sausage that looks like crumbled meat rather than one big sausage ball?
Apologies if this has been discussed before; I did try to search Google groups and didn't find it.
I frequently buy Italian sausage and chorizo packaged like ground beef -- i.e., not in sausage casings, but just "loose". Most of the recipes call for me to brown it, "breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon".
But my experience is that these sausages are very finely ground and really sticky. I do typically buy a lower-fat version of each type of sausage -- they're still made of pork, but with somewhat less fat. Anyway, when I'm browning the stuff, it simply doesn't come apart the way ground beef does. It sticks together and clings and you really have to beat holy hell out of it to get it to come apart and not be one big mass of browned sausage.
So am I screwing up some secret technique? Is there some better way of getting browned sausage that looks like crumbled meat rather than one big sausage ball?
Thanks!
Dover
Try buying the normal fat content product and just drain off the fat after it is browned. It will brown better and separate easier.
When I brown bulk sausage for "sausage gravy" I use a stout nylon pancake turner (or spatula or whatever it's called) that has a straight front edge. I do have to chop the hell out out it too.... but it's much easier with the pancake turner than with a spoon.
Spread it out in a thin layer. It chops more easily as it's browned than when it's raw.
When I brown bulk sausage for "sausage gravy" I use a stout nylon pancake turner (or spatula or whatever it's called) that has a straight front edge. I do have to chop the hell out out it too.... but it's much easier with the pancake turner than with a spoon.
Spread it out in a thin layer. It chops more easily as it's browned than when it's raw.
Regards -- Terry
I use a large fork.
Breaks it up MUCH more easily IMHO. ;-) -- Om.
"My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son-of-a-[censored]." -Jack Nicholson
The normal stuff is so low in fat, you'd be hard pressed to find enough fat to drain!
I find Italian sausage less fatty than chorizo, but that chorizo is often very fatty. I just brown regular sausage and drain. I want some fat for flavor yet don't need it swimming in grease.
The normal stuff is so low in fat, you'd be hard pressed to find enough fat to drain!
I find Italian sausage less fatty than chorizo, but that chorizo is often very fatty.
Italian sausage has very little fat! Chorizo of long ago was very fatty, but IMO not so bad these days.... come to think of it, I prefer Longaniza these days instead of traditional chorizo - so that's another factor to consider.
Quoted message said:
I just brown regular sausage and drain. I want some fat for flavor yet don't need it swimming in grease.
Breakfast sausage? Yes, it can be fatty - but often it's not.
Apologies if this has been discussed before; I did try to search Google groups and didn't find it.
I frequently buy Italian sausage and chorizo packaged like ground beef -- i.e., not in sausage casings, but just "loose". Most of the recipes call for me to brown it, "breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon".
But my experience is that these sausages are very finely ground and really sticky. I do typically buy a lower-fat version of each type of sausage -- they're still made of pork, but with somewhat less fat. Anyway, when I'm browning the stuff, it simply doesn't come apart the way ground beef does. It sticks together and clings and you really have to beat holy hell out of it to get it to come apart and not be one big mass of browned sausage.
So am I screwing up some secret technique? Is there some better way of getting browned sausage that looks like crumbled meat rather than one big sausage ball?
Thanks!
Dover
Bulk sausage isn't like the grocery store ground beef that comes out of perfect little holes from a grinder into something that resembles raw beef spaghetti 😉 You have to let the sausage cook a bit and even flip that "ball" over before you start breaking it up. I use a wooden spatula unless I'm browning it in cast iron, in which case I use a metal fork. This will net you pretty large pieces of crumbled sausage to use as you please. Good luck 🙂
Apologies if this has been discussed before; I did try to search Google groups and didn't find it.
I frequently buy Italian sausage and chorizo packaged like ground beef -- i.e., not in sausage casings, but just "loose". Most of the recipes call for me to brown it, "breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon".
But my experience is that these sausages are very finely ground and really sticky. I do typically buy a lower-fat version of each type of sausage -- they're still made of pork, but with somewhat less fat. Anyway, when I'm browning the stuff, it simply doesn't come apart the way ground beef does. It sticks together and clings and you really have to beat holy hell out of it to get it to come apart and not be one big mass of browned sausage.
So am I screwing up some secret technique? Is there some better way of getting browned sausage that looks like crumbled meat rather than one big sausage ball?
Thanks!
Dover
Bulk sausage isn't like the grocery store ground beef that comes out of perfect little holes from a grinder into something that resembles raw beef spaghetti 😉 You have to let the sausage cook a bit and even flip that "ball" over before you start breaking it up. I use a wooden spatula unless I'm browning it in cast iron, in which case I use a metal fork. This will net you pretty large pieces of crumbled sausage to use as you please. Good luck 🙂
Jill
Okay, thanks everyone. To summarize:
Use a big, sharp-edged spatula/spoon/fork Let it cook up before trying to crumble Spread it out a little to get a thinner brick Buy the fatty stuff and drain it.
I will try some combination of the above -- it's gotta work better than what I've been doing!
When I brown bulk sausage for "sausage gravy" I use a stout nylon pancake turner (or spatula or whatever it's called) that has a straight front edge. I do have to chop the hell out out it too.... but it's much easier with the pancake turner than with a spoon.
I chop mine with the side of a metal spatula. Makes me feel like a cook in one of those Japanese restaurants where they cook your meal in front of you. 😄
Damsel in dis Dress wrote on 06 Sep 2005 in rec.food.cooking
Quoted message said:
I chop mine with the side of a metal spatula. Makes me feel like a cook in one of those Japanese restaurants where they cook your meal in front of you. 😄
Damsel in dis Dress wrote on 06 Sep 2005 in rec.food.cooking
Quoted message said:
I chop mine with the side of a metal spatula. Makes me feel like a cook in one of those Japanese restaurants where they cook your meal in front of you. 😄
