Merguez Sausage
Lamb in all its glory….
Merguez sausages are one of my all time favourites, I first tried them via a supplier from France who used to provide me with all sorts of goodies and these spicy sausages really grabbed my attention. I recalled a programme I had seen where a street vendor in Marakesh was grilling them and they just looked so good that I had to figure a way of getting them onto my menu.
The obvious pairing was lamb, they’re made from lamb so I then took it a step further and put some other flavours from Morocco into the mix; chick peas, saffron, roasted peppers, mint, harissa, rosewater and so on until I had a robust dish, full of flavour and really quite moorish (pardon the pun) Merguez sausage is all about strong flavours, full of garlic, mint and paprika they shine a golden orange and cook perfectly, sometimes I wish I could just serve them in a bread roll with a spoon of harissa and some roasted onions but I have to be a little bit more complicated than that, alas.
These sausages can be hard to find in England, they’re worth looking out for but a good lamb sausage would suffice, just add some chilli paste once they are cooked and you’ll soon get the idea.
Miles
that looks excellent and a really practical recipe. ‘Normal’ sausages could be used instead if these are unavailable presumably ?
Cheers
Rod
November 14, 2008 @ 9:06 am
Miles,
Sounds good and packed with flavour. Can’t say I’ve seen them around but I’ll keep a watch. Thing is shouldn’t we all be making our own? Years ago I nearly bought a sausage making machine after trying some homemade but alas this is one gadget I don’t have…. yet!
One of these in a nice roll with lots of fried onions sounds fine to me… pity then that the cupboard is bare. Haven’t a clue what to cook for dinner tonight, might have to be egg surprise.
Cid
November 14, 2008 @ 5:41 pm
Rod,
Use a lamb based sausage or a toulouse sausage instead-anything with a bit of a kick will do.
Miles
November 14, 2008 @ 8:29 pm
Cid,
With you on the bare cupboard, I’ve just got back from a business trip and had to settle for baked sweet potatoes with poached eggs and a protein drink. That said I haven’t done bad this week.
Miles
November 14, 2008 @ 8:30 pm
You do realize I hope that you are going straight to hell for not having rosemary in a lamb dish?
Looks tremendous - You serve a loaf of freshly baked bread to sop all that lovely jus right? Or is that illegal?
Merguez, roasted red peppers, torn romaine, wickedly spiced hummus on a pita is my regular lunch from a halal street cart down the street.
Miles, again a brilliant post. An American reference, but you have been knocking it out of the park for weeks now.
November 15, 2008 @ 5:39 am
Dave,
My apologies! In my defence I have rosemary salmoriglio on a lamb dish on another menu if that counts?
Anyway, you can go straight to hell with that pitta because I want one!! I might have to relocate at this rate!
Thanks for the compliment Dave, it’s very kind and you don’t strike me as a man who gives them away too cheaply.
It means a lot. Happy cooking.
Miles
November 15, 2008 @ 8:00 am
Miles,
I’ve been making piccalilli today to use up a cauliflower I just happened to have. I’ll let you know what I think of it in due course, in the meantime the house has taken on a certain vinegarish aroma
Cid
November 16, 2008 @ 7:50 pm
Cid,
Spooky that, just put it on the menu at one of the hotels, I leave the vegetables quite chunky and let the shapes dictate the presentation. It can be quite effective.
Miles
November 16, 2008 @ 9:49 pm
Nice one. I made merguez sausages last year with an antelope I shot in Wyoming. Key to great ones is to add just a little fire-roasted sweet red pepper to the mix — along with harissa…
November 20, 2008 @ 4:35 pm
Hank,
That sounds great-it really does. How many did you make? You can’t beat harissa can you-it’s one of the world’s great flavourings.
Miles
November 20, 2008 @ 5:59 pm