What's Happened To Our Sausages???

[124C]

I hope it is not my taste buds failing but I am concerned that the quality of our sausages (never the best!!!!) are deteriorating further.For example; R++++++d sausages were once our preferred brand but now they seem to have lost all texture and taste.Other brands seem to be going the same way what seems to make it worse is that the so-called "meaty" ones don't seem to lift the spirits.
Are any sausage aficionados able to explain.

[Old_Geezer]

Were they not always so ?
Go to a decent butcher and try their home made ones. Or there are some who specialise if different sausages, different recipes.

[Tilly2]

Cheap sausages are rubbish, full of fat, gristle and bread. You get what you pay for.

[Arksided]

Even the top brands have stopped using Horse meat these days and thanks to Jamie smeggin' Oliver there's no artificial flavorings either.

[jakep]

I cannot give you an explanation. I stopped buying supermarket sausages quite some time ago. Only ever buy the ones that are made at the butchers.

[pastafreak]

I don't have a decent local butchers...:-(, so I currently buy either M&S or Sainsburys ,..both are 97% meat, plus spices and little if any filler.
Back when I first came to the UK,we lived in a village in Hertfordshire that was known for its locally made sausages. I miss them...

[Patsy33]

I think they have to be at least around about 68°/. meat for them to be anywhere near good. For taste and not too bad a quality, I now and again buy Tesco Finest pork and red caramelised onion. Very tasty.

[gingejbee]

What's happened? Simple....they have been made down to a price for all those that want their food CHEAP.
The only sausages we have are by Waitrose; this is one of several favourites....

http://www.waitrose.com/shop/DisplayProductFlyout?productId=148389

[jambutty]

I buy Asda's that they do on the deli and they are absoluely gorgeous, no problem with them at all and especially the ones they wrap in bacon!

[-SharonA-]

A family member once worked for a sausage factory and has said, "if you see what goes into a sausage you would never eat them!"

And sure enough, they've never eaten a sausage to this day!!!

[whiskeryron]

I refer you to the post about Punch & Judy & suggest that the Crocodile has eaten all the best sausages.

[EDDIE51]

The ones you refer to are made of finely ground 'leftovers' including,skin, head, ears,gristle, brain tissue, and internal organs. They add artificial red food colour to make the mixture look like meat, it would be grey otherwise!
As all those parts come from a pig they can still be called 'Pork'.
Our local butcher sells a wide range of his own home made sausages, they are from 75 to 86 % lean pork shoulder cut into small pieces rather than minced.
They have won many awards.

[DTCwordfan]

you could educate yourself with a little experiment.... three shallow trays, put two of your favourite brands in two and then a third butcher or farm-made sausage in the third one, having pricked them in the same place roughly....grill or roast them for the same time and then look at the fat levels that come off......and if you were to choose Walls, OMG.

[EDDIE51]

^^ Some fat is essential for a decent taste, up to 12% is good but a lot of cheap sausages have over 30%.

[RATTER15]

I am a sausage lover and only by sausages made by the local butcher, per packed sausages are rubbish.

[jourdain2]

Don't prick your sausages! Decent ones don't need pricking. We are fortunate and have 2 excellent butchers within reach. One of them makes something like 60 varieties of sausages and has now started selling them in Australia! A life-long customer emigrated, missed them so much that he got in touch and now imports and sells them! Find a good butcher. It's dearer, but not much and the quality is immeasurably better.

[Chipchopper]

I think there is a better selection today, than what there has ever been in the past.
Some of the old brands, like you mention, seem to me to have lost their way and seem bland by comparison.
I either go for some good quality butchers sausages or the gourmet ones from the supermarket.

[Cloverjo]

I think the brand you mentioned in the OP has been terrible for quite a few years. It was when I bought them about 10 years ago. Never again. They were pap.

[DTCwordfan]

from my home town.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs4j8SGlmC8

[DTCwordfan]

and now, our local butcher.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFDkz0iBBwU

[DTCwordfan]

(By the way, it's great fun making them - I went on a charcuterie course offered by my local deli in St Germain-en-Laye back in the 80s during the 'dead' month of August, saucissons, andouilettes, terrines, boudin noir et blanc, patés and rillettes all being taught....