Official Classification. Polish sausage classification sounds very technical and is somewhat confusing. It divides sausages by the size of the minced meat. You may say that the the size of the grinder plate establishes sausage type:

homogenized

finely minced - meat particles below 5 mm (3/16")

finely minced uncooked

finely minced "wysokowydajne" - gain of the finished sausage is more than 135 % in relation to the original meat weight

medium minced - meat particles between 5-20 mm (3/16 - 3/4")

medium minced uncooked

medium minced "wysokowydajne" - gain of the finished sausage is more than 120 % in relation to the original meat weight

medium minced semi-dry

coarse minced - meat particles over 20 mm (over 3/4")

coarse minced uncooked

coarse minced

coarse minced high yield - gain of the finished sausage is more than 115 % in relation to the original meat weight.

coarse minced dry

Note: to produce a high yield sausage ("wysokowydajna") which weighs much more the original weight of meat used requires the addition of water and chemicals that will hold this water inside. Note that there is no upper limit.

Almost all sausages that will belong to one of the above groups will be called by its general name Kielbasa and will be followed by its proper name, for example: Kielbasa Szynkowa, Kielbasa Wiejska, Kielbasa Serdelowa, Kielbasa Krakowska, Kielbasa Mysliwska etc.

Then there is a more practical classification:

• long life (trwałe), less than 35% water - dry and semi-dry sausages - cold smoked, not cooked but ready to eat, Metka (Metka), Polish Smoked Sausage (Cold Smoked) (Polska Kiełbasa Wędzona, zimnym dymem)

• semi - life (półtrwałe), less than 60% water - dry and semi-dry sausages-smoked and cooked (baked or poached), Kabanosy (Kabanosy), Mysliwska Sausage (Myśliwska)

• short life (nietrwałe), 60-75% water) - regular smoked sausages, smoked and poached in water, Ham Sausage (Kiełbasa Szynkowa), Garlic Sausage (Kiełbasa Czosnkowa)

• emulsified sausages (and smoked) -like our hot dogs or bologna, Serdelowa Sausage, Bacon Sausage

• fresh sausages-not smoked, need to be cooked before consumption, White Sausage

plus a special group of sausages:

head cheeses

liver pầtề sausages

liver sausages

blood sausages

Pate, liver and blood sausages are commonly known as kiszka sausages.

Fresh, emulsified and special group sausages belong to short-life sausages.

Sausages in the special group are made from less noble parts of the animal like: organ meat (liver, heart, lung, brain, spleen, tripe, casings, jowls, dewlap, skins, snouts and blood). When you see the word kiszka in the name it signifies the fact that organ meats and/or blood were used as materials. Our beloved hot dogs, bologna or its american version known as boloney are made from such meats.

The special group of sausages are fully cooked (boiled) sausages which are normally not smoked. However, at your discretion liver sausages can be smoked for this characteristic smoky flavor. Some headcheeses were also smoked to extend their keeping qualities.

Then each sausage, including special group sausages, is further broken down by the permissible amount (in percent) of protein, fat, salt and water it can contain. We are not going to study Polish sausages in such a detail as this is not a meat technology book and it may create unnecessary confusion.

For comparison in the USA the sausages are divided into two main groups;

• Ready-to-eat sausages. These sausages are dry, semi-dry and/or cooked. Dry sausages may be smoked, unsmoked or cooked. Semi-dry sausages are usually heated in the smokehouse to fully cook the product and partially dry it.

• Not-ready-to-eat (uncooked) sausages. These sausages include fresh (patties or links) and smoked sausages (but not cooked to proper internal temperature). Uncooked smoked sausages containing pork must be treated for trichinae.

Uncooked sausages, often called fresh sausages are vey easy to make as they don’t need to be cured, smoked or cooked during manufacture. You will find them in every supermarket and they can be boiled or fried for breakfast or grilled for lunch or dinner.

Names of Sausages. An average person is not really aware and could not care less about this technical classification as all sausages have their own characteristic names and people know them.

Most Polish sausages derive their name from:

the part of Poland where they were once originally made and (you may call it invented) and then became popular all over the country, most likely because they tasted so good and people liked them everywhere-Bydgoska Sausage, Lithuanian Sausage, Krakowska Sausage

the name of the meat part or other ingredient that plays a dominant role in the recipe- Bacon Sausage, Garlic Sausage, Juniper Sausage

We would like to mention the fact that it is possible to make different types of a particular sausage not changing its original recipe but employing different manufacturing techniques. And the same sausage will have a different texture, will have a different degree of saltiness and will have different degree of preservation qualities. White Sausage and Polish Smoked Sausage (cold or hot smoked) are made up of the same ingredients but are different products. Smoked variety is cured and has nitrite added, all the rest remains the same.

In everyday life people will simply drop the noun Kielbasa altogether and will ask in a store for: Szynkowa, Wiejska, Serdelowa, Krakowska, Mysliwska etc. This is all that is needed as everybody is pretty much familiar with those names hearing them around from childhood. As explained earlier in the book the word kielbasa (a sausage) has a little meaning if you do not follow it with the proper name of the sausage.

 

 

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