What happens when you prick a sausage?
Whether merguez or chipolata, sausages contain water and fat. As you can see, if you puncture them, this juice will escape and run straight onto your coals. The result? Dry, burnt sausages because the juices and fat can no longer nourish the meat. Too bad, you'd already smeared the mustard on your bread...
What's more, beyond disappointing you gustatively as it falls onto the coals, the grease extracted from sausages can be dangerous for several reasons. First of all, you risk getting splashed with it, and at such a high temperature, it can cause a burn. To avoid this, be sure to adopt to barbecue safely. On the other hand, the grease couldfan the fire and cause flames. These flames will not only burn your meat, but also project soot residues onto it. These polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), derived from coal, are particularly harmful to health as they are carcinogenic.
Why do we have to bite into the sausages?
Having experienced merguez or chipos bursting during cooking, some people have got into the habit of pricking them beforehand. Exploding sausages are certainly a nasty surprise, but don't worry, they mainly occur with industrial sausages, which are often too fatty. With quality products, you won't have to suffer this kind of inconvenience.
How to choose the right sausages?
Visit your butcher to find quality products with just the right proportions of meat and fat. With homemade or artisanal sausages, you won't have to worry about them bursting. The casing will also be more resistant, so you won't have to worry about them bursting. On the contrary, puncturing them could dry them out.
Note: if not pricking sausages allows them to keep their juices and softness, the same principle applies when cooking a whole chicken.cooking a whole chicken or rib steak on the barbecue. By not pricking or notching the meat, the juices inside retain their tenderness.
How to cook sausages on the BBQ
To cook sausages ideally on the barbecue, remember to turn them regularly, using tongs instead of forks, as in our stainless steel utensil pack. Avoid cooking them over too high a heat, and keep the sausages at least 10 cm away from the coals. With the Kokko, you can cook at a low temperature, with the lid closed, for soft, perfectly cooked sausages!
Discover the interview with Jacky, who gave us his tips for cooking with Kokko and his delicious recipes.
