A saveloy is a type of highly seasoned

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

, usually bright red, normally boiled and available in

fish and chip Fish and chips is a hot dish consisting of battered and fried fish, served with chips. Often considered the national dish of the United Kingdom, fish and chips originated in England in the 19th century. Today, the dish is a common takeaway ...

shops around Britain. It is sometimes also available fried in batter.

Etymology

The word is believed to be derived from

Middle French Middle French () is a historical division of the French language that covers the period from the mid-14th to the early 17th centuries. It is a period of transition during which: * the French language became clearly distinguished from the other co ...

or , originating from

Old Italian Italian (, , or , ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family. It evolved from the colloquial Latin of the Roman Empire. Italian is the least divergent language from Latin, together with Sardinian. It is spoken by about 6 ...

('pigs brains'), ultimately from the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

('brain'). Its first known use in the English language in this meaning was 1784. is still the name of a sausage in Italy; it is longer and thinner than standard Italian sausages.

Ingredients

Although the saveloy was traditionally made from pig brains, the ingredients of a shop-bought sausage are typically pork (58%), water,

rusk A rusk is a hard, dry Biscuit#Biscuits in British usage, biscuit or a twice-baked bread. It is sometimes used as a teether for babies. In some cultures, rusk is made of cake rather than bread: this is sometimes referred to as cake rusk. In the ...

, pork fat,

potato starch Potato starch is starch extracted from potatoes. The cells of the root tubers of the potato plant contain leucoplasts (starch grains). To extract the starch, the potatoes are crushed, and the starch grains are released from the destroyed cells. Th ...

, salt, emulsifiers (

tetrasodium diphosphate Tetrasodium pyrophosphate, also called sodium pyrophosphate, tetrasodium phosphate or TSPP, is an inorganic compound with the formula Na4P2O7. As a salt, it is a white, water-soluble solid. It is composed of pyrophosphate anion and sodium ions. Tox ...

disodium diphosphate Disodium pyrophosphate or sodium acid pyrophosphate (SAPP) is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It consists of sodium cations () and dihydrogen pyrophosphate anions (). It is a white, water-soluble solid that serves as a bufferin ...

), white pepper, spices, dried sage, preservatives (

sodium nitrite Sodium nitrite is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a white to slightly yellowish crystalline powder that is very soluble in water and is hygroscopic. From an industrial perspective, it is the most important nitrite sa ...

potassium nitrate Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with a sharp, salty, bitter taste and the chemical formula . It is a potassium salt of nitric acid. This salt consists of potassium cations and nitrate anions , and is therefore an alkali metal nit ...

), and beef

collagen Collagen () is the main structural protein in the extracellular matrix of the connective tissues of many animals. It is the most abundant protein in mammals, making up 25% to 35% of protein content. Amino acids are bound together to form a trip ...

casing. The saveloy is mostly eaten with

chips ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. After the final first-run telecast on NBC in May 1983, the series went into reruns on Sundays fr ...

England and Wales

Popular in the northeast of England, saveloys are sometimes eaten in a "saveloy dip" sandwich: the bun is dipped in the water in which the saveloy has been boiled, or in

gravy Gravy is a sauce made from the juices of meats and vegetables that run naturally during cooking and often thickened with thickeners for added texture. The gravy may be further coloured and flavoured with gravy salt (a mix of salt and caramel food ...

, with a layer of

stuffing Stuffing, filling, or dressing is an edible mixture, often composed of herbs and a Starch#Food, starch such as bread, used to fill a cavity in the preparation of another food item. Many foods may be stuffed, including poultry, seafood, and v ...

and

pease pudding Pease pudding, also known as pease porridge, is a savoury pudding dish made of boiled legumes, typically split yellow peas, with water, salt and spices, and often cooked with a bacon or ham joint. A common dish in the north-east of England ...

, additionally seasoned with English mustard. Elsewhere in England (particularly London) and Wales, saveloy is most commonly served in

fish and chip shop A fish and chip shop, sometimes referred to as a chip shop or chippy, is a restaurant that specialises in selling fish and chips. Usually, fish and chip shops provide takeaway service, although some have seating facilities. Fish and chip shop ...

Australia and New Zealand

The saveloy is eaten in Australia and New Zealand, often dipped in batter and deep fried, when it is known as a "battered sav". At the turn of the 20th century, the saveloy was described in an Australian court case as a "highly seasoned dry sausage originally made of brains, but now young pork, salted" but by the mid-century, it was commonly defined by its size as a sausage, as opposed to a frankfurter at . This distinction may be due to frankfurters’ popularisation in that country (as the main ingredient in

hot dogs A hot dog is a grilled, steamed, or boiled sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term ''hot dog'' can also refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener ( Vienna sausage) or a frankfurter ( Frankfurter Würs ...

). Saveloys also tend to have more seasoning and are thicker. In Australia, saveloys are usually a beef-pork blend. As in England, they are sold at fish-and-chip shops, as well as bought from supermarkets, to be simmered at home. Saveloys are often the basis of the New Zealand battered-sausage-on-a-stick "hot dog", very similar to the US corn meal-battered variant of the

corn dog A corn dog (also spelled corndog and also known by #Name variations, several other names) is a hot dog on a stick that has been coated in a thick layer of cornmeal Batter (cooking), batter and Deep frying, deep fried. It originated in the Unite ...

as sold at fairgrounds and shows. The Australian showground version is often called a " dagwood dog", when prepared on site (and should not be confused with the "pluto pup", equivalent to the US Pronto Pup, a mass-produced, pre-prepared product that is essentially the same, but which invariably uses frankfurters, rather than saveloys and can often be found at takeaway shops). A cocktail sausage is a smaller version of the saveloy, about a quarter of the size; in Australia sometimes called a "baby sav", a "footy frank" or a "little boy", and in New Zealand and

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

called a "cheerio". These are a popular children's party food in New Zealand and Australia, often served hot, with tomato sauce.

United States

A type of hot dog which is almost indistinguishable from the saveloy is popular in the state of

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, where it is commonly known as a "red hot" or "red snapper".

References

External links

{{Australian cuisine Australian sausages British sausages Cooked sausages New Zealand sausages Street food in the United Kingdom