Waitrose tomato & red onion

[Jabba]

After my first successful efforts (I must get the pics uploaded and update my 'My First Sausages' post!) I'd like to have a go at making something similar to these from Waitrose, they're very good served with pasta & pesto and a few cherry tomatoes; here's the list of ingredients:

Pork (71%), tomatoes (10%), rusk (wheat flour, salt), sundried tomato paste (sun dried tomato, tomato paste, rapeseed oil, salt, white sugar, basil, garlic, oregano), red onion, tomato paste, herbs, sea salt, white sugar, emulsifier diphosphates, spirit vinegar, garlic, preservative sodium metabisulphite, black pepper., Filled into natural pork casings

If I were to use only sundried tomatoes (from a jar), would this make a decent enough sausage?



Cheers,
Jamie

[wheels]

There's no reason why your sausage recipe shouldn't be good. However, some observations:

At double the rusk, the water may be high, particularly given the moisture from the tomato and onion.

IMO If the oregano is dried, it will be very strong tasting - the level you've added is about what you'd expect for sage in a Lincolnshire, to give some idea. In fact, overall, the seasoning looks to be very 'powerful'!

The sausage won't be the same as the Waitrose one. That has 10% tomatoes, plus sun dried tomato paste, and no water.

I'd use this as a starting point and make 100gm tests until you get the result you want.

Phil

[Jabba]

Thanks a lot for the pointers Phil.

I figured that using sun-dried toms i'd not use as much as the fresh due to the more intense flavour, using fresh ones will have to wait until the summer! Good point about the 'wetness' of the jard toms, am I right thinking that the rusk:fluid ratio should be around 2:1?

I'll have a play with the numbers; I've got some minced pork left in the freezer- doing some test patties may would be a good use for it!

Cheers,
Jamie

[quietwatersfarm]

I make a few sausages with sun dried tomatoes.


For what its worth I would double the toms and onion, halve the water and use some of the oil from the tomatoes. I would also halve the oregano.

[wheels]

I agree. Great idea.

I right thinking that the rusk:fluid ratio should be around 2:1?

That's a typical level for commercially made rusk. I use 1:1.5 rusk:water as a yardstick for home-made rusk.

Phil

[NCPaul]

I'd bump up the salt to 2 % but I do like salt a lot.

[Jabba]

Thanks all! I'll have to have a go at the weekend.

Cheers,
Jamie