Everything about Blood Sausage totally explained
Black pudding or less often
blood pudding is a British English term for
sausage made by
cooking blood with a filler until it's thick enough to congeal when cooled. It is also called
blood sausage (first attested in 1868, perhaps influenced by German
Blutwurst). Although "blood sausage" is often labeled as a
North American term, it's also found in British English (for example, in the story "The Name-Day" by
Saki). "Blood sausage" is also a useful term for similar blood-based solid foods around the world.
Pig or
cattle blood is most often used;
sheep and
goat blood are used to a lesser extent. Blood from
poultry,
horses and other animals are used more rarely. Typical fillers include
meat,
fat,
suet,
bread,
sweet potato,
barley and
oatmeal.
History
Sausages containing blood are traditional throughout the world and there are ancient references to them, for example from
Homer's
Odyssey: "As when a man beside a great fire has filled a sausage with fat and blood and turns it this way and that and is very eager to get it quickly roasted ..."
Regional variants
full breakfast in England,
Scotland and
Ireland. The further addition of the similar
white pudding is an important feature of the traditional Irish breakfast and is also common in Scotland. Black pudding can be eaten uncooked but is often grilled or boiled in its skin.
The
Lancashire town of
Bury is noted for its black pudding, as is Ireland's south west
County Cork town of
Clonakilty, which exports black pudding as a delicacy item.
One of Co. Clare's iconic foods is Bonina Black Pudding. Originating from Miltown Malbay in the west of the county, it's made using traditional methods and is less processed than better known brands.
Black and white pudding, as well as a third variant from Fife: –
red pudding – are served
battered at
chip shops in
Scotland and
England as an alternative to
fish and chips.
Continental Europe
The most common variant of
German Blutwurst is made from pork rind, pork blood and filler such as
barley. Though already cooked and "ready to eat" it's usually served warm. In the
Rhineland, where it's also traditionally made from
horse meat, fried Blutwurst is a part of various dishes. Another German variant is
Zungenwurst, which is
Blutwurst mixed with pieces of pickled pig's tongue.
A variety of Blutwurst, the Rotwurst from
Thüringia (
Thüringer Rotwurst) has
geographical indication protection under EU law, with
PGI status.
In
France boudin is a traditionally prepared by a
charcuterie, the shops that mainly prepare pork products (but also duck and game), also selling smoked and dried sausages, pâtés, and terrines, along with prepared salads. It may also be called
boudin noir and often has apples or onions as a filler. It is always served with either cooked apples, mashed potatoes or both, and is appreciated by combining either the apples or mashed potatoes with each bite of boudin, which has been gently heated and browned in butter. In France also, there are many regional different
Boudins Noirs' such as the large 'Boudin du Béarn with pork meat pieces eaten usually cold.
In
Belgium,
bloedworst or
beuling is sold either in 4 inch diameter slices, or individual sausages the size of a banana. It is generally pan fried; sometimes apples are cooked alongside or on top of the pieces. It is also eaten with apple sauce, brown sugar or syrup.
In
Iceland,
blóðmör is the one of two types of
slátur. Usually boiled in its skin and eaten hot. Also fried but usually the day after it's boiled (as leftovers).
Similarly
Czech jelito is made from pork, pig's blood and
groats; the stuffing served by itself, unformed is called
prejt.
Spanish morcilla has many variants. The most well known and widespread is "morcilla de Burgos" which mainly contains pork blood and fat, rice, onions, and salt. In Albacete and La Mancha the morcilla has no rice that it's replaced by onion (which completely changes the texture). It is claimed that this is the original morcilla and rice was introduced in them to reduce costs (rice expands while onion reduces thus needing more raw material). Other varieties introduce breadcrumbs, pine nuts, almonds and vary the proportions of the other ingredients or flavorings, producing even a sweet morcilla from Galicia in the northwestern region, which is fried and served most commonly as a dessert.
In
Portuguese cuisine there are also many varieties of black pudding, ranging from some similar to the Spanish
morcilla, known in
Portuguese as
morcela, to some done only with blood (known as
chouriço de sangue).
In
Eastern Europe,
kishka is made with pig's blood and buckwheat
kasha, it's also known in
Russia as
krovyanka (кровянка) or
krovyanaya kolbasa (кровяная колбаса,
blood sausage) and
Poland (
Central Europe) as
kaszanka. Polish black and brunshwick
salceson are a types of
head cheese which contains blood. In
Hungary,
véres hurka is made with rice, pig's blood and pork. In Bulgaria
karvavitsa (кърваваица) is usually prepared with pig's blood, fat and a variety of mountain herbs and spices and eaten warm during the winter.
In
Sweden,
blodpudding is served but there are also varieties and similarities such as
blodkorv (blood sausage),
blodplättar (blood pancakes) and
palt.
Alongside the
mustamakkara in
Finland, a dish similar to black pudding is made by making batter out of pig's blood and baking it like pancakes. Traditionally rye- or oatflour is used and minced
onion is added to the mix. This dish is called
veriohukainen (blood pancake). It is similar to the Swedish dish
blodplättar above, and is alternatively called
veriletut (using a Finland-Swedish term for pancakes instead of a native Finnish one).
The Americas
Among
English-speaking North Americans, the consumption of black pudding and similar dishes is largely confined to certain ethnic groups with strong
Old World traditions as well such as French Canadians and recent
immigrants from
Great Britain, Ireland,
Australia, and so forth. Blood sausages are very difficult to find in American
supermarkets.
An
Italian-American version of black pudding in the
San Francisco Bay area is called "Biroldo" and has
pine nuts,
raisins,
spices, pig
snouts and is made using either pig blood or cow's blood.
Cajun boudin is a fresh sausage made with green
onions, pork, livers (usually chicken), and
rice; pig's blood is sometimes added to produce "boudin noir".
In many areas of
Latin America (as in
Spain)
morcilla is served. Morcilla is sometimes made with a filler of rice and/or onions, and seasoned with paprika and other spices. In
Puerto Rico it's made spicy-hot and served fried. In parts of
South America, morcilla is a traditional component of the
asado, a regional
mixed grill or
barbecue meal. Morcilla is also eaten inside a sandwich called "morcipán," especially in Argentina and other
Río de la Plata countries; in Uruguay, although not in Argentina, a
sweet and sour version including
raisins and pine nuts is popular. In
Chile it's called
prieta. In
Colombia, it's either called
morcilla or
rellena, and is usually filled with rice and peas. Contrary to beliefs, this version is usually deep-fried, and it's quite popular.
In
Guyana, the main ingredient in black pudding is cooked rice seasoned with traditional
Caribbean herbs, such as
thyme and
basil. The rice is mixed with cow's blood, stuffed into Cow or Pig
intestine, and boiled until firm. It is served as an appetizer or snack, often with any type of hot sauce, mild to hot, depending on preference and regional area.
In
Suriname, black pudding is also known under the
Dutch name
bloedworst, and white pudding under the also Dutch name
vleesworst.
Caribbean
In
Trinidad & Tobago the main ingredient besides pork or cow blood is bread. Mixed with chives and hot pepper and other herbs and spices, then simmered until the bread can melt into a "pudding" with the blood. Then it's cooled and stuffed into the intestines of the pig or cow. Traditionally it's then boiled then sold. Some prefer the black pudding at this point and some like to take it further by slicing and cooking it on a griddle. It is almost always eaten with hot pepper sauce on top.
In
Antigua & Barbuda the main ingredient besides pork or cow blood is rice. The black pudding is called, in Antigua,
rice pudding (not to be confused with the cereal
rice pudding, which is in the stead called rice porridge ) because of the rice used. There are two variations of the puddings - mild or extra spicy. Spices such as onions, garlic and chive is commonly used. At times, depending on the vendor, blood isn't used but rather browning. Black pudding or rice pudding as it in called in Antigua, is only sold on Fridays and Saturdays - and this has become a tradition.
In
Guyana, Black Pudding is almost always made with cow blood, sometimes ox blood, and a rice filler as well with many different herbs and spices. The liner is cow intestine, and the sausage is boiled before being served. Traditional garnish includes hot pepper sauce, or mango
chutney.
In
Barbados, the main ingredient in black pudding is
sweet potato. It is traditionally served cool and accompanied by souse; which is pickled pork garnished with parsley. Small pieces of sliced breadfruit is popular with this dish. In more recent times the blood is either left out completely, or replaced with gravy browning. On Saturdays the majority of Barbadians purchase "pudding and souse",as it's popularly called, as their main course for lunch from mainly country
cook shops.
In
Guadeloupe boudin creole is a popular appetizer made with the addition of East Indian spices such as clove, cardomon and hot pepper.
Asia
Across Asia, various people create foods from congealed animal blood. Most of these foods don't have casing and might be considered a version of
sliced sausage.
In
Taiwan,
pig blood cake is made of
pork blood and
sticky rice. It is fried or steamed as a
snack or cooked in a
hot pot.
A similar dish from the
Philippines,
dinuguan (from the word
dugo meaning "blood") (pork-blood stew) is a
stew consisting of diced beef or pork meat and organs with pig or cow blood simmered in a rich, spicy gravy of pig blood, garlic, chili and vinegar. Because many non-Filipinos find the dish revolting, the euphemism "chocolate meat" was coined. Dinuguan is often served with white rice or a Filipino rice cake called puto.
In
China, "blood
tofu", is most often made with pig's or
duck's blood, although
chicken's or cow's blood may also be used. Like the above dishes, this has no casing but is simply cut into rectangular pieces and cooked. This dish is also known in Java as
saren, made with chicken's or pig's blood.
In resource-poor
Tibet, congealed
yak's blood is a traditional food.
The majority of
Korea's
soondae (순대) can be categorized as blood sausage. The most common type of
soondae is made of
potato noodle (
dangmyeon),
barley, and pig's blood but some variants contain
sesame leaves, green
onion,
fermented soy paste (
doenjang), sweet rice,
kimchi,
bean sprouts, in addition to the common ingredients.
Vietnamese 'dồi tiết'(Northern) or 'dồi huyết' (Southern) is blood sausage, boiled or fried, made with pork blood, pork fat, basil.
Additional varieties
Other varieties of blood sausage include
blodpølse (
Norway and
Denmark),
boudin noir (
France),
tongeworst (with added pigs tongues) (
Netherlands),
zwarte pens or beuling
(
Belgium),
blóðmör (
Iceland),
boudin rouge (Creole and Cajun),
morcela and
chouriço de sangue (
Portugal),
morcilla (
Spain and
Latin America),
krvavica (
Bulgaria,
Croatia,
Serbia,
Slovenia),
sângerete (
Romania),
prieta (
Chile),
rellena or
moronga (
Mexico),
dồi (
Vietnam),
sanganel (
Friuli),
ragati (
Nepal),
mustamakkara (
Finland),
verivorst and
verikäkk (
Estonia) and
kaszanka (
Poland).
Further Information
Get more info on 'Blood Sausage'.
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