d. Cooked Sausage. The meat components of this sausage are fresh, chilled
pork livers; pork or pork trimmings; pork jowls; and bacon ends. Some commercial
products contain blood. These raw materials are highly perishable and limit the shelf
life of the sausage. Cooked sausage is ready-to-serve sausage. Examples of cooked
sausage are liver sausage (Braunschweiger style), tongue, and blood loaf.
e. Cooked or Baked Specialties. The meat components for this type of
sausage are beef and pork. These components are ground in a conventional grinder,
processed in a silent cutter, then stuffed into pans or molds for cooking or baking. The
sausages (loaves) are dipped in hot oil to brown and glaze. This is a ready-to-serve
sausage. Examples of cooked or baked specialties are luncheon loaf,
pickle-and-pimento loaf, and meat loaf.
6-18. DRY SAUSAGE
This class consists of two subgroups, dry (hard dry) and new-conditioned
(semidry).
a. Hard-Dry. Hard-dry sausage is made from fresh meat to which curing
ingredients and spices are added. The mixture is permitted to cure for 2 or 3 days and
then processed by controlled air drying. Some dried sausage is given a light preliminary
smoke but the principal processing is the long, continuous, air-drying process. The
most acceptable drying temperature is 54 to 60F at a relative humidity of 65 to 80
percent. The drying time may vary from 15 days to 4 or 5 months. Examples of these
are Genoa and Goteborg.
b. Semidry. New-conditioned (semidry) sausage is made from ground fresh
meat to which spices and curing ingredients are added. The meat is then allowed to
cure for approximately 24 to 48 hours, using either the shelf-cure method or the green
hanging method. The sausages are then smoked and may be air-dried. These semidry
products are then subjected to high temperature smoke and a much shorter drying
period than dry sausage. Examples of this type are cooked salami, cotto salami, and
thuringer.
6-19. SAUSAGE CASINGS
There are two types of sausage casings in use today, artificial and natural.
Artificial casings are used extensively in place of natural casings because of their
availability and low cost.
a. Artificial Casings. Artificial casings are those that originate from other than
natural sources. They have the advantage of being in adequate supply at all times of
the year, are more economical, can be made stronger, more uniform in size and shape,
and are usually more attractive.
MD0710
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