Decadent Dad's Charming Charcuterie

 Decadent Dad has ventured into the realm of charcuterie and all things smoked and cured in the meat realm. This is the next intriguing step on our journey in  self sufficiency. His bacon (above) and pancetta (below) are so beyond delicious.

His latest experimenting is with sausages. Yesterday he made a paprika and fennel pork sausage. It was amusing to see my men learning to use the sausage machine.

After watching Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Pig in a Day, he mastered authentic sausage tying first time. Sometimes I find the ease with which he does whatever he puts his hand to astounding and sometimes irritating. I would have had to follow slow motion instructions on You Tube at least ten times to get this right. 

The sausages turned out beautifully.

We cooked a few fresh sausages for supper to test them. spanish style bangers and mash... the sausages were so tasty, really good for a first try, and perfectly complemented by my green tomato ketchup sauce. 

The remaining sausages are in the cold smoker, slowly turning from spicy fresh sausages into cured and smoked chorizo. They will hang in there for a few days and then mature for at least 20 days. For someone who never liked sausage much, it makes a difference knowing that the finest ingredients went into them and that there are no artificial preservatives. 

I can't wait to try them.