What The Euros And Thais Call 'sausage'

[realmadrid25]

they have about a million different kinds of sausage and ham except they all taste exactly the same, its called a low quality hot dog. we feed them to young kids and dogs in the usa. real sausage is supposed to have flavor. i thought the germans and english were supposed to be famous for good sausage? is it just the stuff they pass off in thailand that is absolutely horrible? is America the only place with real, delicious sausage?

i have looked everyway in bangkok and i cannot find american breakfast sausage or REAL italian spicy sausage. its depressing. i feel bad for the english, world famous for their horrible cuisine and the one thing they think they do right, sausage, is actually complete rubbish.

[cathyy]

Buy some ground pork and season it as you prefer. I do. I use a little sage, thyme, rosemary, and marjoram, with some MSG. Proportions may be altered to your preference. The primary flavoring of American breakfast sausage is the thyme, so start with that.

[zorro1]

Villa market import it but a bit pricey

[realmadrid25]

which villa? thanks.

[Naam]

they have about a million different kinds of sausage and ham except they all taste exactly the same, its called a low quality hot dog. we feed them to young kids and dogs in the usa. real sausage is supposed to have flavor. i thought the germans and english were supposed to be famous for good sausage? is it just the stuff they pass off in thailand that is absolutely horrible? is America the only place with real, delicious sausage?

i have looked everyway in bangkok and i cannot find american breakfast sausage or REAL italian spicy sausage. its depressing. i feel bad for the english, world famous for their horrible cuisine and the one thing they think they do right, sausage, is actually complete rubbish.

i've lived 15 years in the Greatest Nation on Earth™, hardly found any tasty sausage (exceptions imported sausage from France or Italy or "latino" styles) and always brought a variety of sausages from Germany. was never caught by the agricultural department and their doggies. americans have no bloody idea how to produce sausage, especially not the smoked varieties. moreover, most american sausages contain more soy and other "fillers" than meat. what you call sausage we wouldn't feed to dogs in Germany!

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

Best sausage comes from Europe. If you go to Milwaukee in the U.S., where there is a large German population, you will find good sausage. Even the Mexicans make better sausages than the Americans (chorizo). From Portugal to Poland, you find great sausage in Europe. I also like bangers and italian sausage. The only thing the Americans got right was hot dogs, and, except for Coney's like Nathan's, they even managed to fuc_k those up.

In Thailand, Tesco and Villa have a good variety of sausages. Had some great bratwurst for lunch from Tesco.

[zorro1]

which villa? thanks.

Agree with Naam, I'm from Serbia and my old man used to bring home a live pig (In oz) and flush the intestines and use that as the casing and the leftover meats went into the smokehouse and after a few days the gut was fed onto a sausage maker and presto home made sausage as good as any of the Delis in Europe. The germans however seem to have it perfected

The villa market in Soi 33, and the one near soi 3 next door to the Marriott and the one in soi 11 all Have it. Not the worlds best but pretty good for here (in the freezers)

[Carib]

Well the stuff i sometimes bought in the worlds greatest cuisine, somehow all tasted very artificial. It was even stated on the packaging sometimes: You cannot believe it is not real....whatever." Do they sell low quality stuff in the states, just so you can feed the kids and dogs?? Now who would have thought that......So all the obese people ( donot even start to argue) eat high quality things?? Wooow, i never knew...It must be hel_l for the op to live somewhere else, and having to put up with all these things the rest of the world calls food.

[JohnBKKK]

I dare you on this one, we make German and British Sausages Austrian Kaesekrainer, smoked Sausages and even Kielbasa and cajun Andouille - Hot Italians are one of our best seller and all are available at Villa Soi 33 Sukhumvit - We do not use any ready mix spices which are bland and the reason most sausages all taste the same.

Try EUROGOURMET sausages and tell people here what you think,

John

[seppl04]

Yeah can second that

try EUROGOURMET sausages (Villa 33) and you know what a German sausage is !

BTW the maker is GERMAN !

[Ulysses G.]

German and English sausage may be wonderful in the old country, but they really suck huge in Thailand. There are many American sausages that are waaay better than anything produced here.

I hope that EUROGOURMET can make me eat my words, but I have a feeling that I had some at the Duke's Restaurant in Chiang Mai and they were not bad, but nothing to jump up and down about either. I was really disappointed by the Kielbasa as it is fantastic in the US and I miss it desperately! The EUROGOURMET Kielbasa didn't taste anything like that Polish sausage at home.

Edited May 19, 2008 by Ulysses G.

[JohnBKKK]

German and English sausage may be wonderful in the old country, but they really suck huge in Thailand. There are many American sausages that are waaay better than anything produced here.

I hope that EUROGOURMET can make me eat my words, but I have a feeling that I had some at the Duke's Restaurant in Chiang Mai and they were not bad, but nothing to jump up and down about either. I was really disappointed by the Kielbasa as it is fantastic in the US and I miss it desperately! The EUROGOURMET Kielbasa didn't taste anything like that Polish sausage at home.

Hi Ulysses,

I can not comment on who our customers are, but there are different formulas to make Kielbasa, the original Polish one or the Americanized version and we of course produce the style the customer orders. Plus there are a number of different Kielbasa formulas used within the US. - a customer , originally from New Jersey said it was better than he would get at home

The same accounts for "Andouille" there is the original French Version (made with intestines) or the Cajun, americanized Version - where the original would be a (very) aquired taste, the Cajun Version is a very nice, heavily smoked sausage.

Even in Germany sausages are different in flavor depending on the region where they are made. The same is the case in Poland and like there are dozens of different Bratwurst formulas in Germany, there are dozens of different Kielbasa formulas in Poland and subsequently in the US.If in your area in the US the Kielbasa tastes different than for exaple in New Jersey, that would be totaly normal.

I can only say that I make the spice mixtures personally every day according to traditional formulas. For the US version of the Kielbasa I use a formula I got many years ago from a Poilish Butcher in New York who was and I hope still is, famous for his Kielbasa sausages.

Did you try the Krakauer (Big smoky flavor) or the Hot Italian (big flavor) as well?

If you are looking for big flavors, I also recommend highly our "Kaesekrainer" an Austrian sausage very much like the Krakauer but not smoked with 15% Emmental Cheese in it.

I was always against sausages with cheese in them - reminded me of some US stuff you get in Supermarkets there and I swear a vegetarian could have eaten them without any feelings of guilt. But these Sausages made me change my mind. Its not cheap, but you have to considre 10KG of sausages = 1.5KG of imported Emmental - however they are in my humble opinion the best sausage there is. The Emmental works perfectly in the Beef and Pork sausage.

as long as it tasted good,

John

[toptuan]

German and English sausage may be wonderful in the old country, but they really suck huge in Thailand. There are many American sausages that are waaay better than anything produced here.

I hope that EUROGOURMET can make me eat my words, but I have a feeling that I had some at the Duke's Restaurant in Chiang Mai and they were not bad, but nothing to jump up and down about either. I was really disappointed by the Kielbasa as it is fantastic in the US and I miss it desperately! The EUROGOURMET Kielbasa didn't taste anything like that Polish sausage at home.

Having traveled and eaten my way through 49 of 50 USA states, all of Europe and now 6 years in Thailand, I generally agree with Ulysses. The sausages I enjoy most in the USA originated with immigrants from Europe but were later perfected with succeeding generations of sausage-makers--particularly in the upper midwest (Minnesota, Wisonsin, etc.) and northeast (Pennsylvania, N.J., etc.). Food and its variety is one of the great joys of living in a land of immigrants.

As to Thailand's dearth of good sausages, there's one big exception IMO: sweet Isaan sausage. It's locally-made, about 1" round, sliced quite thin and usually served in small amounts as a separate dish with a meal. For breakfast, it is often sliced thin and used in rice-porridge (or "jok"). Love the stuff!

Edited May 19, 2008 by toptuan

[Ulysses G.]

Don't get me wrong. I did enjoy the EUROGOURMET sausages and I did not realize that there are different types of Kielbasa. I'll try to get Dave to order both kinds and see if one is more like what I am used to.

[Jingthing]

Overall, I really don't think the USA is a big sausage nation. Hot dogs don't count. The standard ones sometimes served with eggs, nothing special. The ones I remember loving there are the spicy Italian ones and the spicy cajun ones. I find Mexican chorizo, though spicy, pretty disgusting. I can't imagine craving English sausages, sorry.

Edited May 19, 2008 by Jingthing

[autonomous_unit]

I'm pretty sure I've made statements such as the original poster's here too. Specifically, that everything here in Thailand seems like a bad hot dog with a slightly different color or flavor additive.

I've come to realize the main problem is that I knew where to find things in the US and I don't know that here. The US is full of terrible food, but also has amazing "ethnic" foods everywhere when you know where to go. We would never go to the supermarket for kielbasa, but rather to the small Polish deli where they were hand-made. Similarly, we got hand-made Italian sausage from our favorite deli and not a supermarket selling factory-packed junk. My grandmother would bring a satchel of her local deli's sausage from the midwest when she visited us in California.

I miss a powerful Italian sausage that just permeates your being with anise (licorice) and garlic flavors. I am not sure if it was authentic Italian or "Italian-American" but it was good! I also miss linguica, a peppery and vinegary Portuguese sausage that reminds me a bit of Isaan sausages.

I've just realized, almost everything I've said above also applies to beer in the US, except the anise and garlic part.

[JohnBKKK]

Overall, I really don't think the USA is a big sausage nation. Hot dogs don't count. The standard ones sometimes served with eggs, nothing special. The ones I remember loving there are the spicy Italian ones and the spicy cajun ones. I find Mexican chorizo, though spicy, pretty disgusting. I can't imagine craving English sausages, sorry.

Hi,

one can not globally say US sausages or UK sausages are terrible .... there are some artisan producers in the US and the UK that make first class sausages but the mass produced stuff I have to agree with you is terrible. The same accounts for Germany these day's though. They use low grade meat and what one may call swept slaughterhouse as well as lots of chemicals and fillers. The average Hot Dog is only eddible thanks to the add on's like sauerkraut lots of mustard etc... but than I have to admit, they are tasty

Large scale commercially produced sausages also have a very high salt content between 2.5 and 2.8% - We use only between 1.8 and max. 2% -

Now, the Mexican Chorizo I have to defend, you are doing the poor thing a bit of an injustice here. We make spanish Chorizo for our custmers here but occasionally we are asked for the Mexican, hotter version. Chorizo is not normally eaten on its own as a sausage but part of a stew or even scrambled eggs to make a really great breakfast if you are into the more spicy stuff. Chorizo is also great on Pizza or cut up in pasta sauce.

The Cajun one you mention is probably the cajun Andouille sausage which is heavily smoked until nearly black - we make them regularly and I must agree, I love them myself as well and trust me, you would not want the original French version

John

[JohnBKKK]

I miss a powerful Italian sausage that just permeates your being with anise (licorice) and garlic flavors. I am not sure if it was authentic Italian or "Italian-American" but it was good! I also miss linguica, a peppery and vinegary Portuguese sausage that reminds me a bit of Isaan sausages.

I've just realized, almost everything I've said above also applies to beer in the US, except the anise and garlic part.

Our hot Italian are spiced with fennel and aniseed as well as chilly lots of Garlic and some red wine - its based on a Sicilian sausage formula - agree with the stuff called beer

John

[Jingthing]

That's true, there are great artisanal sausages in the US. Mexican chorizo as served in the US and Mexico to me just tastes too fatty and too greasy, the spice isn't the problem, but granted, subjective taste.

I am always amused when I see Thais load up on the cheap hot dogs at hotel breakfast buffets. What are they thinking? Thailand is a land of lots of good foods, but the people in general are far from "foodies".

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

I also miss linguica, a peppery and vinegary Portuguese sausage that reminds me a bit of Isaan sausages.

Yes, linguisa is an excellent sausage. One of those ethnic sausages found in Hawaii (and Las Vegas where lots of Hawaiians now live) is called "portugese sausage". Hawaii has a substantial Portugese population and this is an excellent spicy sausage served at breakfast, or in a "portugese bean soup".

Portuguese Bean Soup

Serves approx. 10-12

Ingredients:

3 Smoked Ham Hocks

1 Large Portuguese Sausage, cut into bite-size pieces

1 bag of dry kidney beans

1-2 cups (uncooked) macaroni (add more or less at your discretion)

2 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and cut into bite size pieces

1 white round onion, diced

2 large carrots, peeled and chopped into bite size pieces

2 ribs celery, diced

1/4 head cabbage, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 bunch cilantro, chopped (save some extra unchopped for garnish)

2 bay leaves

1 six oz. can Tomato Paste (this will help to slightly thicken it)

1 fourteen oz. can Stewed Tomatoes

1 fourteen oz. can chicken stock

Salt and Pepper

Water

Begin by placing the 3 ham hocks, 1 bay leaf and the chopped cilantro in the pot, then add the can of chicken stock and just just enough water to cover the ham hocks. Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer for approximately 2-1/2 hours, covered to prevent evaporation. Wash and rinse the dreied kidney beans in a collander, then place in a pot of water, bring to boil for about 5 minutes, then turn off the heat and let them sit in the heated water for about an hour, check for tenderness (bite-test one), then drain the now ready-to-use beans in the collander.

Prepare the cut-up Portuguese Sausage by frying them until slightly browned, then place on paper towel to drain. Fish out the now-tender ham hocks from the stock pot, and place them on a cutting board, let them cool, then remove the meat from bone with a fork and knife and discard the bone. Throw everything else into the pot. Add the ham hock meat, kidney beans, Portuguese Sausage, uncooked macaroni, potatoes, chopped onions, carrots, crushed garlic, celery, cabbage, the other bay leaf and stewed tomatoes (don’t add the tomato paste yet), then add enough water to cover, and let it simmer for about another hour, stirring occasionally.

Finish it by stirring in the tomato paste by spoonfuls until the soup reaches the desired thickness and taste. Some like it more “tomato-ey” than others. Up to you. Adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish each bowl with a sprig of Cilantro and serve with your favorite bread and butter or soda crackers.

[realmadrid25]

i picked up your breakfast sausage at villa and will post a report with pictures when i cook it up.

Edited May 19, 2008 by realmadrid25

[EmptyMind]

i thought the germans and english were supposed to be famous for good sausage? is it just the stuff they pass off in thailand that is absolutely horrible?

Probably YES, I have never had a bad one in either Germany or the UK.

is America the only place with real, delicious sausage?

I would probably seriously doubt it since the US culture is only a few hundred years old and as we all know, they don't really have a clue what the rest of the world is doing at the best of times :-p

Have you ever been to any of these countries and eaten their food ? The Thai equivalent is probably like eating a bigmac at a steakhouse.

[moo9]

they have about a million different kinds of sausage and ham except they all taste exactly the same, its called a low quality hot dog. we feed them to young kids and dogs in the usa. real sausage is supposed to have flavor. i thought the germans and english were supposed to be famous for good sausage? is it just the stuff they pass off in thailand that is absolutely horrible? is America the only place with real, delicious sausage?

i have looked everyway in bangkok and i cannot find american breakfast sausage or REAL italian spicy sausage. its depressing. i feel bad for the english, world famous for their horrible cuisine and the one thing they think they do right, sausage, is actually complete rubbish.

Mate, I stayed 2 yrs in the US and I paid a hel_l of money for buying imported Sausage from Europe. Apparently you never tried a real quality sausage. Same refers btw to American beer

[LaoPo]

Maybe some people should read and study a little about sausages and where they originally came from, before commenting that sausages are better in my country than yours.

It's about TASTE, history, culture and the different types and styles of sausages and what your own mother started to feed you when you could barely walk...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sausage

It's the same as a European sees the (in his eyes) absolutely disgusting type of breakfasts an American is used to eat, drinking horrible coffee in large mugs.... ...the same as a Brit sees a Chinese eat his -warm- breakfast for the first time.... or a mainland EU citizen watching Brits eat baked beans on toast...

Habits, culture, styles...it's different all over the world.

Enjoy what you prefer and like; don't bash other cultures or...................their sausages....

LaoPo

[Naam]

Mate, I stayed 2 yrs in the US and I paid a hel_l of money for buying imported Sausage from Europe. Apparently you never tried a real quality sausage. Same refers btw to American beer

there's american beer?

[JohnBKKK]

Mate, I stayed 2 yrs in the US and I paid a hel_l of money for buying imported Sausage from Europe. Apparently you never tried a real quality sausage. Same refers btw to American beer

there's american beer?

Oh there actually is good beer in the US .. brewed by micro breweries .. however if one talks about the main brands ..... beer would be the last thing that comes to mind

But one can not argue taste ... I mean there are people actively looking for processed cheese in another topic and are disappointed when they do not find it

[britmaveric]

Best sausage(s) in the world are from england. What comes from yankland pales in comparison - what they serve in thailand are hotdogs.

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

But one can not argue taste ... I mean there are people actively looking for processed cheese in another topic and are disappointed when they do not find it

Cheese-Whiz

It actually works as a spread goop for a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich, but that's about it's only use other than kiddie glue.

[lannarebirth]

they have about a million different kinds of sausage and ham except they all taste exactly the same, its called a low quality hot dog. we feed them to young kids and dogs in the usa. real sausage is supposed to have flavor. i thought the germans and english were supposed to be famous for good sausage? is it just the stuff they pass off in thailand that is absolutely horrible? is America the only place with real, delicious sausage?

i have looked everyway in bangkok and i cannot find american breakfast sausage or REAL italian spicy sausage. its depressing. i feel bad for the english, world famous for their horrible cuisine and the one thing they think they do right, sausage, is actually complete rubbish.

i've lived 15 years in the Greatest Nation on Earth™, hardly found any tasty sausage (exceptions imported sausage from France or Italy or "latino" styles) and always brought a variety of sausages from Germany. was never caught by the agricultural department and their doggies. americans have no bloody idea how to produce sausage, especially not the smoked varieties. moreover, most american sausages contain more soy and other "fillers" than meat. what you call sausage we wouldn't feed to dogs in Germany!

I think it's a matter of taste. I agree that the Italian, French and Mexican sausages taste the best. I disagree that the German sausages are delicious. Have eaten hundreds in America and Germany and just don't like'em. Too much water content, too fine of a ground, not enough spice. I assume that's why the mustards are so delicious, to mask the fact that you're basically eating a hot dog.

[grtaylor]

Best sausage(s) in the world are from england. What comes from yankland pales in comparison - what they serve in thailand are hotdogs.

Agreed - can't beat a good Lincolnshire or Cumberland Sausage!

G