Many European sausage makers eventually emigrated to the United States, where over 200 sausage varieties are produced by nearly 3,000 meat processors. The wiener and frankfurter--the hot dog--has become the most popular sausage in the United States, where some 16,000,000,000 are eaten each year--about 80 per capita.
Sausages and prepared meats are popular throughout the world, consumed not only in Europe and the U.S. but also in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Fresh sausage, made from uncured pork trimmings and sometimes beef, is delicately seasoned. It is sold in links, patties, or bulk, requires refrigeration, and must be thoroughly cooked before serving. Pork sausage and bratwurst are popular varieties.
The meat materials in uncooked smoked sausage are usually cured and smoked, but not cooked. Sausages must be refrigerated and require cooking. Mettwurst and Polish sausage are examples of this classification.
Cooked smoked sausage is usually made from cured meats. These sausages are chopped, seasoned, stuffed, smoked, and then cooked. They are usually warmed before serving. Examples are frankfurters and bologna.
Cooked sausage, prepared from fresh, uncured meats, is cooked and ready to serve. Liver sausage, a popular variety, is a mildly seasoned mixture of livers and pork jowls.
Cooked meat specialties, cooked or baked and ready to serve, are often prepared according to the individual manufacturer's formula and may be extended with such protein materials as soy-protein concentrate. They include spiced luncheon meat, meat loaf, deviled ham, jellied corned beef, and other similar products.
The dry and semidry sausage group includes "summer style" products, originally made in winter for summer consumption. They are dried and then fermented with lactic acid bacteria to produce the characteristic tangy flavour. In addition to summer sausages, this group includes pepperoni, landjaeger, and mortadella.
