Product Review ~ Morrisons "The Best" Spicy Piri Piri Style Pork Sausages and My Quick Butter Bean Summer Cassoulet

~ Product Review ~

Morrisons “The Best” Spicy Piri Piri Style Pork Sausages

and

My Quick Butter Bean Summer Cassoulet

Wednesday 27th July 2011

Mercredi 27 Juillet 2011 ~ Ste Nathalie

I love sausages, it is a greedy and needy love, more a desire actually ~ and I when I shop for my sausages I have a long list of requirements; I want British meat only (when in the UK; French meat when in France obviously!) and I want high meat content also. I also want natural casings and interesting flavours with high quality ingredients, although I am a BIG fan of the classic banger, namely Lincolnshire sausages, Cumberland sausages and Oxford sausages along with a myriad of other regional specialities, I do like an interesting and new flavour now and then. Now, I love shopping for my bangers in the local butchers as well as local farm shops ~ but, I have noticed recently that most supermarkets also offer high end bangers now, and so I decided to try them out. Morrisons is my nearest and biggest local supermarket in North Yorkshire, and the branch in Scarborough usually has a dazzling array of bangers to tempt any wayward sausage shopper! It is there that I discovered their “The Best” range of sausages ~ a huge range with at least 7 different flavours.

I was able to take advantage of a special offer at the time, and bought 2 packs of 400g sausages from their “The Best” range for £4, not bad given the quality and choice of offer. Today I am reviewing their Spicy Piri Piri Style Pork sausages ~ the description describes them as “spicy pork sausage blended with red chilli, lemon, ginger and paprika”. They have natural casings, are made with BRITISH pork (YES!) and are 81% pork which is great for a sausage fanatic like me!

I wanted to serve the sausages for lunch with a light version of cassoulet, so I invented a new recipe, which I am calling Quick Summer Cassoulet ~ pan-fried red peppers, onions and garlic with butter beans, seasoned with smoked paprika and parsley. I thought that the flavours of onions and peppers would enhance the taste of the Piri Piri sausages ~ without masking the flavours too much. I cooked the sausages as suggested in a frying pan over a gentle heat, with a little olive oil and they took about 20 minutes to cook ~ they held their shape well and did not burst out of the casings either. I did NOT prick them and I turned them over regularly to obtain an even colour. There was hardly any excess oil from them, and they didn’t shrink either ~ now there’s a first!

They went a lovely rusty red colour and didn’t stick too badly. I served them straight from the frying pan with my quick summer cassoulet (which had been cooking alongside them in a separate pan) and some crushed new potatoes with parsley.

The flavour and texture was wonderful; there were discernible pieces of onions and it was all very subtle and not too spicy at all ~ I would say that an adventurous child would be happy with the spice level in these bangers. The overall flavour was of high quality pork and then the layers of seasoning came through in waves ~ the paprika was evident as was the ginger and lemon, but not in an overpowering way. I thought that they were not too salty either, one of my complaints with sausages; it was all very subtle but every ingredient was evident as you ate them. The texture was fabulous and they were very juicy for a high meat sausage, not too chewy and with a nice loose crumb, plus the natural casings were not tough at all.

My cassoulet idea was a wee culinary triumph ~ I mean who doesn’t like bangers with beans? All in all, a very good sausage with a spice level of low to medium and nice defined flavours. These would be great on barbecue, as well as with the more traditional mashed potatoes and beans ~ or maybe in an imaginative “Toad in the Hole” with cooked peppers added to the batter……..or just for a sausage sarnie in ciabatta bread or baguette! I bought two more new flavoured sausages from the same range, so more about them on another day. But for now, here is my recipe for my Quick Summer Cassoulet.

Recipe:

Piri Piri Bangers with Quick Butter Bean Summer Cassoulet

(Serves 3 people)

Ingredients:

1 x 400g pack of Morrisons “The Best” Piri Piri Style sausages,

OR sausages of your choice

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large red pepper, deseeded and cut into rings

2 large onions, peeled and cut into rings

4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced

1 x 410g tin of butter beans

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

salt and pepper to taste

fresh parsley, chopped

Method:

Cook the sausages according to the instructions on the packet ~ mine took 20 minutes in a frying pan over a gentle heat.

Meanwhile, add the olive oil to a large frying pan or wok style pan and gently fry the onions and peppers until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and fry for a further 2 to 3 minutes before adding the drained tinned butter beans. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then add the paprika ~ place a lid on the pan and heat gently for about 5 to 8 minutes.

Just before serving, add the chopped parsley and serve with the fried or grilled sausages. I also served crushed new potatoes as it was our main meal of the day ~ just boil some new potatoes and then crush with a fork and add a knob of butter and some freshly chopped parsley.