Get Your Bangers Out! It's British Sausage Week – 31st October – 6th November 2011

Slade frontman, Noddy Holder has been let out of his box slightly prematurely this year, and instead of shouting out a gravelly "It's Chriiiiiiiiistmaaaaaas!" he's proudly vociferating the brilliance of British bangers as ambassador and King of the Sizzle for LovePork's British Sausage Week.

Running from 31st October – 6th November 2011, this week is dedicated to all things sausage. Sausage, that's a word that has us Brits collapsing into a fit of giggles – nothing like a spot of innuendo to get the festivities going.

On a more serious note, British Sausage Week's aim is to make us all aware of how British pork is the best and encourages us to support our own farmers and producers by buying quality sausages.

There are many regional sausages throughout the British Isles that use traditional recipes that go back many generations.
There's the long coiled Cumberland sausage which is meaty with a coarse, chunky texture and black pepper giving a spicy bite; The Lincolnshire sausage, an old fashioned favourite scented with sage; West Country ones with pork and apple and maybe a touch of cider and Oxford sausages that contain veal, as well as pork. These are just a few of the many varieties made and the list continues to grow as producers experiment with different flavour combinations.

We can't resist a nicely cooked sausage. They should be cooked carefully over a medium heat so they cook slowly allowing the outside to gently caramelise so it becomes slightly sticky and the inside should be juicy. Don't have the heat too high or the sausage will burst and definitely do not prick them, this will make all the tasty juices escape.

The Artisan Food Trail is lucky enough to have a good number of food producers that make the finest sausages using meat from animals that have a led a healthy and happy life, so when you buy sausages make sure you choose British, local and bangers made with passion.

Over the coming week look out for more information about our sausage making friends, recipes, mouth-watering pictures and much more.