Food glossary

This type of sausage includes cured sausages which are preserved usually by smoking or drying, and ready cooked sausages.

To store: Prepacked ready to eat sausages often have a long shelf life, they should be stored in the fridge and consumed by the use by date. Ready to eat sausages bought from the delicatessan counter should be stored in the fridge and eaten within 24 hours.

Ardennes pepper salami

A lightly matured pork and beef Belgian salami. It is cured, fermented and beech smoked before shaping into rectangular blocks and coating with coarse crushed white and black peppercorns. Flavoured with marjoram and spices, this salami has a firm and fibrous texture without being tough.

Uses: In sandwiches - try it with cream cheese, lettuce and gherkins. Serve in pitta bread or a bagel as an alternative to bread.

Bierwurst

This is a sausage which in Germany is usually eaten accompanied by a glass of beer, hence the word 'bier' in its title. It is made from pork or a mixture of pork and beef, spiced with a small amount of garlic, packed into its casing, smoked and then scalded to cook.

Uses: Hot dishes such as casseroles or cold on platters or in salads.

Chorizo

In Spain, chorizo is synonymous with Revilla, a family business that has been producing high quality dry cure sausages since the 1950s. Chorizo is made from pork mixed with a bland of sweet, hot and smoked paprikas and fresh garlic. The chorizo is then fermented, lightly smoked, naturally dried and sliced. The dark red circles of spicy cured sausage have a firm texture, speckled with fat.

Uses: Add to risottos, pasta dishes or omelettes.

Chorizo de Pueblo

A traditional spicy paprika Spanish sausage sold in packs of 2.

Uses: Chorizo is traditionally served sliced hot or cold as tapas. It can also be added to bean casseroles, risottos, omelettes and pasta dishes.

Extrawurst

A cooked German pork and beef sausage prepared with a blend of pepper, coriander and ginger to a traditional Bavarian recipe. The wurst is smoked, steam cooked and sliced to give smooth, pink slices with a tender, meaty bite.

Uses: To add flavour and texture to ready prepared and homemade salads. Add strips of Extrawurst to potato salad with a couple of chopped spring onions, or stir halved slices into a bean salad.

French ham and Pistachio

These two sausages in one handy pack are eaten together in the Alsace region. The ham sausage is made from cured pork, lightly flavoured with garlic, which is then steam cooked and sliced. The pistachio sausage contains a mixture of pork and pork tongue, blended with pistachio nuts. Both sausages have a firm, meaty bite.

Uses: Use as a sandwich filling or chop and add to cream cheese to top baked potatoes, add to pasta salads.

German garlic rosette salami

These distinctive flower-shaped slices of salami make an attractive addition to a mixed meat platter. Made with minced meat, garlic and seasoning, the salami is moulded in a shaped net and smoked over beechwood chippings then matured and sliced. The dark red slices have a firm, meaty texture.

Uses: To make speedy canapés, cut a slice of salami through to the centre and then cross over the cut edges to form a cone. Spoon in some cream cheese or smooth paté and top with a halved pitted olive.
Serve on rye bread, garnished with chopped fresh chives.

German strong garlic

This cooked German sausage is made to an old Bavarian family recipe, handed down through the generations. The cured pork is blended with garlic and spices, then steam cooked and thinly sliced to give a smooth, pink sausage with a tender, meaty bite.

Uses: This German strong garlic sausage is the ideal choice for adding flavour to a frittata or a main meal omelette, to really bring out the flavour, cook the sausage in the butter before adding the eggs to the pan.

Hungarian salami

Made by the finest Hungarian salami meisters to a traditional family recipe dating back to 1869, the spiced and fermented pork is smoked over beechwood chippings, dried, matured and sliced. The finished salami has a distinctive white mould rind and red-brown meat that is tender and slightly waxy.

Uses: Add to pasta sauces just before serving or stir into potato salad.

Saucisson montagne

This coarse pork sausage, flavoured with black peppercorns, red wine and garlic, has been produced in St Andre, northern France, for over 70 years. The sausage is cured, matured and air-dried before slicing. The dark red and pink slices have a firm, slightly fibrous texture with a rich and sophisticated flavour.

Uses: Use Saucisson montagne to add colour and flavour to homemade or ready prepared stir-fries. Alternatively, the peppery flavour of the Saucisson montagne goes perfectly with potato. Try adding sliced to homemade dauphinoise or simply cut slithers into mashed or buttery jacket potatoes.

Saucisson sec with herbs de Provence

Coated with classic Provencal herbs and dotted with peppercorns, this traditional French dried sausage has been made in northern France for over 70 years, where it is cured, matured, dried and sliced. The sausage has a strong pork flavour, enhanced with pepper, red wine, garlic and herbs and a firm, slightly fibrous texture.

Uses: Use Saucisson Sec with herbs de Provence to add flavour to stuffings and meat dishes. Chop the Saucisson finely and add to your favourite homemade or packet stuffing and use to stuff chicken in the usual way. Alternatively, mix with stuffing and use to fill marrow, tomatoes or aubergines.

Spianatta romana

This distinctively shaped authentic Italian salami is fermented, dried, matured and then sliced. It is fully matured pork salami with a rich meaty flavour and hints of pepper, white wine and garlic. The salami has a mould-ripened rind with speckles of fat inside.

Uses: Spianatta Romana can be used to make a deliciously simple started or light lunch. Wrap slices of salami around lightly blanched asparagus or chicory, then place under a preheated grill until the salami starts to turn brown and crispy. Serve hot on a bed of mixed salad leaves drizzled with ready-made salad dressing. Finish with shavings of Parmesan.