Blood sausage
A blood sausage is a sausage filled with blood that is cooked or dried and mixed with a filler until it is thick enough to solidify when cooled. Most commonly, the blood of pigs, sheep, lamb, cow, chicken, or goose is used.
In Europe and the Americas, typical fillers include meat, fat, suet, bread, cornmeal, onion, chestnuts, barley, oatmeal, and buckwheat. On the Iberian Peninsula and in Latin America and Asia, fillers are often made with rice. Sweet variants with sugar, honey, orange peel, and spices are also regional specialties.
In many languages, a general term such as blood sausage is used for all sausages that are made from blood, whether or not they include non-animal material such as bread, cereal, and nuts. Sausages that include such material are often referred to with more specific terms, such as black pudding in English. Other varieties of blood sausage include boudin rouge, rellena or moronga, and sanganel.
Africa
Kenya
Mutura is a traditional blood sausage dish among the people of urban Kenyan regions, although recently its popularity has spread throughout Kenya. It is made with meat, blood, and spices all encased in the animal's intestines or stomach. In Kenya fillers include fresh minced goat, beef, mutton, fat, and red onions.Nowadays many types of mutura, especially commercial street food versions, do not contain blood. The meat used in the filling can be any fleshy part, but like any other type of sausage, prime cuts are not ordinarily used for the stuffing. Instead the tougher, leaner cuts – for example the neck – are trimmed off the bone. The casing for the stuffing is the stomach sac and larger intestines. These are flushed many times with water to clean them.
The meat for the stuffing is finely chopped or minced, and the mandatory fat is often trimmed from other parts. The meat is slightly fried, mixed with finely chopped red onions, salt and optionally fresh chili. Other additions include freshly chopped coriander, garlic, pepper, and even beef stock. This is then mixed thoroughly with the fresh blood from the animal, and stuffed into the stomach and intestines, with the openings sewn or tied together with string.
The sausage is boiled in a large pot for 30–45 minutes, and roasted over coals till brown. Sliced, it is served with kachumbari, an onion-based salad consisting of tomatoes, red onions and fresh coriander, a bit of chili and squeeze of lemon. The accompanying starch is ugali.
Americas
Morcilla is served in many areas of Latin America. Morcilla is sometimes made with a filler of rice and onions and seasoned with paprika and other spices.North America
United States
In the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, blood sausage is known as morcilla. Puerto Rican blood sausage is made with rice, culantro, cilantro, garlic, and cubanelle pepper. Some contain paprika and annatto. Morcilla is especially popular during Christmas.Blood sausages are very difficult to find in US supermarkets. Brussels and Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, are both home to local grocers who produce blood sausage, due to their large Belgian American populations. Supermarkets throughout Maine also carry locally produced blood pudding due to the state's large French Canadian population. In southeastern Michigan, Polish-style kaszanka can be found in supermarkets throughout the year and is very popular.
An Italian-American version of blood sausage in the San Francisco Bay Area is called biroldo and has pine nuts, raisins, spices, and pig snouts and is made using either pig's or cow's blood. German-style blood sausage and Zungenwurst can be found in Fresno and Santa Rosa, where Russian and Armenian delis offer a wide range of Central European foods. Alpine Village in Torrance, California, used to have Blutwurst due to a considerable German-American population in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County.
Cajun boudin is a fresh sausage made with green onions, pork, pork liver, and rice. Pig's blood was sometimes added to produce boudin rouge, but this tradition became increasingly rare after the mid-twentieth century due to the decline of the boucherie and government health regulations prohibiting the transportation of raw blood. As a result, Cajun boudin is now usually made without blood; however, blood or "black" boudin can still be purchased.
Mexico
In the Yucatán Peninsula, morcilla is made exclusively from pig's blood and once deep fried it is served with a mix of pickled onions, cilantro and spices. It is always consumed in the form of tacos and paired with fresh habanero peppers.In Central Mexico, morcilla is known as moronga.
Central America and the Caribbean
Caribbean
In Antigua, rice pudding is a local delicacy and it is prepared the same way as blood sausage.In Barbados, blood sausage, also called pudding, is made with sweet potato, pig's blood and onions, seasoned with peppers and other herbs and stuffed in pig intestines. Traditionally pig's blood was used to darken the mixture but Browning sauce is sometimes used as a substitute. It is normally served with souse, which is pickled pig's feet, pig's ears and other trimmings. The cooked meat is cut into bite-sized pieces and soaked in a brine made of water, lime juice, cucumbers, hot pepper, and specially prepared seasonings. Blood sausage and souse, more commonly known as pudding and souse, is a Bajan delicacy usually prepared on weekends and special occasions.
In the French Antilles, boudin créole, or boudin antillais is very popular, this being the French boudin noir with local Caribbean chilli and other spices.
In Trinidad and Tobago, the local style of blood sausage is heavily seasoned with local peppers and traditionally prepared from pig's blood, often replaced by pig's liver today. It is sold by local producers as a popular accompaniment to rolls of crusty hops bread or served as an accompaniment to trotter souse, a stew based on trotters.
In the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, it is served fried and mostly consumed during the holidays.
Central America
In Panama, blood sausage is called morcilla, rellena or tubería negra, and is usually filled with rice.In El Salvador and Nicaragua, it is called moronga. In Honduras and Guatemala both moronga and morcilla are used.
In Costa Rica, blood sausage is called morcilla or moronga; but unlike the rest of Latin America, it does not contain rice or other cereals, it is similar to the German blood sausage called Blutwurst.
South America
Andean
In Ecuador, Bolivia and Colombia the blood sausage is also called morcilla, and is usually filled with rice.In Colombia, morcilla can have rice, green peas, cilantro or culantro, and is often eaten as an appetizer called picada or with the traditional dishes bandeja paisa or fritanga. In Venezuela, morcilla is often served with parrilla.
Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay
Morcilla is also eaten inside a sandwich called "morcipán", especially in the Río de la Plata. Morcilla is a component of the asado criollo, a regional mixed grill or barbecue meal. In Uruguay and in Argentina, a sweet version, usually called morcilla vasca, including raisins and pine nuts is popular; some vendors even add chocolate, caramelised orange peels, peanuts, and other dried fruits. Uruguayans usually are fond of sweet or salty morcilla, and most restaurants and supermarkets carry both versions. In Paraguay, it is mostly known under the name mbusia, a guaranization of the word morcilla.Brazil
In Brazil there is a version of the blood sausage called chouriço or morcela, consisting of a fresh sausage made of the blood and fat from pork and usually rice. It is a variation of the Portuguese blood sausage, and it is known for its deep dark color. In some regions, it is popular on barbecues as a starter.Chile
In Chile, the blood sausage is called "prieta" and tends to have a very thick skin, so is eaten cut open lengthwise. Apart from blood and a little fat, "prietas" may contain a variety of ingredients, such as chopped onion and spices, cabbage, peppers, watercress, rice, meat or even dried fruit or nuts. "Prietas" or "morcillas" are part of the Chilote tradition of "reitimiento" involving the slaughter and preparation of a pig.Prietas are easily found at supermarkets throughout the country and are available from practically any butcher.
Guianas
In Guyana, blood sausage is a very popular snack served at social occasions, and as "cutters" when drinking. The main ingredient is cooked rice seasoned with herbs, such as thyme and basil. The rice is mixed with cow's blood, stuffed into cow's or pig's intestine, and boiled until firm, sliced and served with Sour. White pudding is also made.In Suriname, blood sausage is known by the Dutch name bloedworst, and white pudding by the equally Dutch name vleesworst.