Traditional British food has taken a lot of knocks over the years, most notably as a result of World War 2 and the period of rationing that followed. Age old recipes and techniques were forgotten, indigenous animal breeds disappeared in the race to increase productivity and speed up food production, and over time tastes changed and people simply forgot what food used to taste like. Fortunately, the last few years have seen something of a resurgence of “old” foods and a renewed pride in regional produce. One such product enjoying a new lease of life is the humble Cumberland sausage, now to be found in its characteristic thick coil under every butcher’s counter in the county. The Grassmoor full English breakfast certainly wouldn’t be complete without one!
No one knows when sausages were first made and eaten here in Cumberland, but the tradition seems to date back to at least the 16th century, perhaps due to the influx of German mine workers. Sausages were already popular in northern Europe, and there is a suggestion that the new immigrants brought the first recipes with them. On the other hand, pigs would have been commonly kept by households all over the country, and nothing would have been discarded following slaughter. Making sausages could just as easily have been an entirely home-grown and practical way of using up the entire animal. In this part of the world, the animal in question would have been the Cumberland pig, which as a breed is sadly thought to have died out by the 1960s. And it was regional differences in breeds and the availability of other products as flavourings that created the numerous differently flavoured sausages of Britain. In the case of the Cumberland sausage, the characteristic slightly hot flavour originates from the various exotic spices imported through the port of Whitehaven in the 18th and 19th centuries and thus readily available to the people of Cumberland.
More recently, Cumberland sausages have started cropping up in every supermarket and convenience store across the length and breadth of the country, generally in a plastic wrapper and looking like any other sausage – 6 identical, machine produced lengths with varying amounts of pork and often very little seasoning. Unfortunately, this bland tasting, generic sausage – a pale imitation of the real thing – is many people’s only experience of the Cumberland and has somewhat devalued the name. But what is the real thing? Well for a start, it should have a very high meat content. Originally, they would have been close to 100% pork, but these days a little rusk (often a dried breadcrumb mix) is added to account for modern tastes. Secondly, it should be well seasoned. Different butchers have different recipes, but all genuine Cumberlands will have a slightly hot, sometimes peppery aftertaste. And lastly, a Cumberland sausage should always be a thick sausage, sold by weight, and never linked (at Grassmoor we do that ourselves!).
The resurgence in traditional Cumberland sausages culminated in the successful campaign to have Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status awarded by the European Union, to put them on a par with Parma Ham and Camembert cheese. In other words, if a sausage is labelled as “traditional Cumberland sausage” it must have been produced and prepared within the county of Cumbria, must be more than 80% pork (with no skin or gristle allowed) and at least 20mm in diameter, with seasonings and other ingredients strictly limited to a very short list. Unfortunately, due to a lack of awareness of the PGI award, both among producers and consumers, the term “traditional Cumberland sausage” and accompanying PGI logo are likely to remain underused for the foreseeable future.
And what about the Grassmoor Cumberland sausage? Well, it isn’t labelled as “traditional”, but it certainly fits the criteria for the PGI award. Handmade here in Keswick by our local butchers, Thomason’s, it is regularly remarked on by our guests to be amongst the very best sausages they have ever tasted (many visit Thomason’s to buy their very own sausagey souvenir). And the recipe is actually very simple – around 94% coarse ground shoulder and belly of pork, a little rusk, salt and plenty of pepper. As for cooking them, leave the frying pan in its cupboard or hanging from its hook. A proper, thick Cumberland sausage is best cooked in the oven for 30-40 minutes until golden brown. And they don’t just make an excellent breakfast sausage – use them wherever you might have used any other sausage: in a stew; with mashed potatoes and onion gravy; on the barbecue; for a superior hot dog. And because you buy them un-linked, you can decide how big you want each portion to be! So next time you’re in the supermarket, don’t bother with the inferior pre-packaged sausages with no connection whatsoever to Cumberland. Look under the butchery counter for that big, juicy, glistening coil, the word “traditional” and the PGI logo, or better still, come to Keswick and try ours!
