Updated on November 11th, 2022
If you’re travelling to a foreign country and long to try authentic Chinese sausage, you might be wondering what a good substitute might be. Here are a few options: Northern sausages, Italian sausage, and chicken sausage. Hongchan sausages, red with a smoked flavour, are excellent substitutes for Chinese sausage. If you’re craving something a little different, you can also try Kyet u young, a chicken-style red sausage.
Several foods are enjoyed by people all around the world. Some of them have become well-known breakfast ingredients. Although you can have them at dinner, they are finest eaten first thing in the morning.
Being the first meal of the day, breakfast should be nutritious enough to prepare you for a variety of obstacles. You will be energized to tackle the world if you eat a decent breakfast. However, people can only eat properly at breakfast if the food is tasty, so sausages are an excellent choice for breakfast.
What are Chinese Sausages?
Chinese sausages are a generic term for various sausages, and it’s the umbrella word for a variety of Chinese sausages. There are both lean and obese sausages available in China.
Fresh pork is used in sure Chinese sausages, while turkey livers are used in others. The liver-based Chinese sausages are deeper in colour.
Chinese sausages are almost always made using chicken, and everybody can appreciate them because they are made with various types of meat. If you don’t like pork, you can substitute chicken sausages.
Sausages prepared from turkey livers have a devoted following and go nicely with various cuisines. Because of their versatility, Chinese sausages can be used in various recipes.
However, due to a lack of availability, many individuals never get to try Chinese sausages. People outside China cannot prepare specific Chinese cuisines because Chinese sausages are unavailable.
They can, however, employ replacements that taste like Chinese sausages. If you can’t locate Chinese sausages, check out this section for some alternatives!
Substitutes For Chinese Sausages
You don’t have to give up cooking a dish because you can’t find an item if you have a decent substitute. Many ingredients are only available in one nation.
When foods created with these ingredients grow famous worldwide, people must seek alternatives. Even in India, you may cook Italian cuisine using alternative products.
If you require Chinese sausages for supper but cannot find them in your country, consider the following substitutes:
1. Northern Sausages
If you seek an alternative to Chinese sausage, northern sausages are perfect. Northeast China produces northern sausages, and northern sausages come in various flavours.
Hongchan sausages are an option, and Harbin is known for its Hongchan sausages. These crimson sausages have a smoked, delicious flavour, and German and Lithuanian sausages are often confused with these.
Hongchan sausage was first produced in 1909 by the Churin Sausage Factory. Nonetheless, the sausage is famous in China’s northern areas.
Hongchan sausages come in a sweet variant as well as a dried version.
When purchasing Hongchan sausages, keep in mind the various variations available. If you want to sample the smoked flavour of the Hongchan sausages, avoid the dried variety.
2. Southern Sausages
Chinese sausages are commonly seen in southern meals such as Hunan, Fujian, and Hong Kong.
There are, however, southern sausages that may be used in a variety of recipes, and Sichuan sausage is one of them.
The Sichuan sausage comprises Pixian bean sausage, Sichuan pepper powder, and red chilli powder.
These components give a distinct scent and flavour. Sichuan sausage can be used in place of Chinese sausage in lo mai gai and fried rice.
There are both packaged and unpackaged Sichuan sausages available. Unpackaged sausages can be found in street markets.
If you live in the United States, you can find these sausages in any Chinese market. Their robust flavour makes them suitable for a variety of cuisines.
They may, however, not be to everyone’s taste. You can try them out to see if you like their flavour.
3. Taiwan Sausages
If you can’t find Chinese alternatives, Taiwan sausages are an option. There are several unique sausages available. Meat and lipids are emulsified to make Taiwan sausages, and sugar is used to add a sweet flavour characteristic.
On the other hand, Taiwan sausages are served wet (they are hardly ever dried). The sausages are readily available at local markets and butcher shops.
Homemade Taiwan sausages are also simple to make. These sausages are commonly known as xiangsheng, which means aromatic sausage.
You won’t enjoy Taiwanese sausages if you’re looking for dried alternatives. However, it is still worthwhile to try them because their flavour never disappoints.
4. Vietnam Sausages
When it comes to Chinese sausage substitutes, Vietnamese sausages are excellent. Lap xuong is the name for these sausages.
In main meals and omelettes, the Vietnam sausage can be used to replace Chinese sausages. The sausages’ flavour characteristic is salty, and it’s recommended that you use a moderate amount to balance the flavour.
Vietnamese sausages are typically made with both chicken and pig. The chicken version of Vietnamese sausages will have a light flavour.
Too much of these sausages in a dish can impair the flavour due to their salty. If you’re using Vietnamese sausages, adjust the amount of salt in your dish appropriately.
5. Thailand Sausages
Kun Chiang is the Thai name for the Chinese variant, and this sausage can be used in a variety of Chinese and Thai meals.
This sausage pairs exceptionally well with Thai salad and yam Kun Chiang. Snakehead fish is used to make Thai sausages.
Although these sausages have a pleasant flavour, they are not recommended for those who do not eat shellfish.
If you have a shellfish allergy, you should avoid these sausages. However, there’s no need to be concerned because other options described in this article can be used in place of Chinese sausages.
Some Other Chinese Sausages Alternatives
1. Myanmar Sausages
Myanmar sausages are known in China as “yet u young.” The chicken sausage is shown here, and this sausage is created in Myanmar, as the name implies.
Myanmar sausages are smaller and meatier than other sausages. In general, fried vegetables, fried rice, and cabbage can be used to replace Chinese sausages.
If you prefer meatier sausages, this is the most acceptable substitute. However, they are difficult to come by in Europe and America. If you can’t find them, you’ll have to search for other alternatives.
2. Philippines Sausages
Philippines sausages work well as a substitute for Chinese sausages, and it’s most commonly used to replace Macao Chorizo. This sausage is commonly seen in Chinese-Filipino dishes like siopao bola-bola.
3. Singapore Sausages
Chinese sausages are available in Singapore. The nice part about this alternative is that it is healthier than traditional Chinese sausages.
Low-sodium, low-fat, and high-fibre versions of the Singaporean version are available.
These Singapore sausages are ideal for dieters because of their nutritious characteristics. You may enjoy the taste of meat without compromising your health thanks to these sausages.
Where does Sausage Come from?
As we’ve seen, there are many different types of sausage; thus, the formula for making it is mainly determined by the variation. The following are the basic processes for making most forms of sausage:
Step 1: The sausage maker grinds or minces the meat and then combines it until the desired consistency. Pork is the most popular meat, though it is frequently combined with beef or veal.
Step 2: After that, the seasonings are added, and the sausage combination is let to rest overnight — or for as long as the flavours may meld. Any sausage served fresh as ground beef is ready, but encased sausage requires one more step.
Step 3: The mixture is placed in a machine and dispensed through a spout. The casings are bunched up above the spout, whether natural or artificial, and the sausage fills the casing as it passes through.
Step 4: Once the casing is completely entire, the sausage maker can leave it in a rope or squeeze it at evenly spaced intervals and spin the sausage to produce closed-off areas. These seams can then be trimmed to generate individual connections by the maker.
Step 5: Cooking, smoking or both are the next steps for sure sausages. Smoking sausage can enhance its flavour while preserving it and preparing it for consumption. Other sausages may be hung to dry age, which alters the flavour and helps preserve the meat.
How to Prepare Dish with Chinese Sausage?
Steaming Chinese sausage in a rice cooker with or without rice is the most common and straightforward preparation method. When you steam the Chinese sausage with rice, it absorbs all of the great tastes and fat from the sausage, making it incredibly tasty. The sausage can then be thinly sliced and served over rice with raw garlic sprouts.
Alternatively, you can steam the sausage once the rice has finished cooking. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, slice the sausage and arrange it on the rice. These methods of cooking the sausage and rice together are convenient, but they also require only one pot to clean.
If you want to steam the Chinese sausage on its own, set the links on a heatproof plate and steam for 20 to 30 minutes, covered, over boiling water or in a rice cooker, until transparent.
Cook the sausage in a saucepan of simmering water for 12 minutes or until the fat rises to the top.
Where to Buy Chinese Sausage?
Red Chinese pork sausages are vacuum-sealed and may be found in the refrigerator section of my local 99 Ranch or another Asian grocery. Kam Yen Jan and Xishangxi Chinese Brand Sausage are two of my favourite brands.
There are also new Asian online grocery stores, such as Weee!, where you can shop for local products and have them delivered to your home. I’ve also bought lp xng in Little Saigon’s Vietnamese restaurants, but you can also get Vietnamese-branded “Harbor Sausage” online.
How to Store Chinese Sausage?
Cooked Chinese sausage can be stored in an airtight jar with a lid in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. I prefer to reheat them in the microwave by sprinkling a few drops of water on them and heating them for 20 seconds until they’re nice and hot.
Does Processed Meat Cause Cancer?
According to a recent World Health Organization study, processed meats may cause cancer in the same way as smoking. What does this mean for Singaporeans? Is eating processed meat safe? Chloe Ong, a dietitian at Parkway Cancer Centre, gives us the lowdown.
Any meat that is red when raw is considered red meat. As a result, cattle, lamb, hog, deer, and horse meat are included, and red meat is also found in poultry such as duck and goose.
According to the World Health Organization, eating 50 grammes of processed meat per day can increase cancer risk by 18%. This is the same as two tiny sausages (7.5cm each), two ham slices (10cm2), or one bak kwa slice.
Because a chemical called N-nitroso is present in all processed meats, processed meat is thought to cause harm to the cells lining a person’s colon.
To recover, the damage causes the other cells in the intestinal lining to multiply more. This replication raises the risk of mistakes in the cells’ DNA, leading to cancer.
There is currently no formal recommendation for processed meat consumption, and we should, however, aim to limit our consumption of processed meat. According to the World Cancer Research Fund, the recommendation for red meat consumption is no more than 500g of cooked red meat per week (according to the World Cancer Research Fund).
The excellent nutritional advice, of course, is to eat everything in moderation. Reduce your diet of red meat, processed meat, and salt while increasing your fibre intake (fruits and vegetables).
Conclusion
It’s crucial to remember that not all sausage varieties go with every dish. What kind of dishes you can eat sausage with depends on its flavour.
However, all varieties of sausages are great for breakfast, and they can be pretty satisfying whether or not they are served with other foods.
All of the above Chinese sausage alternatives are delicious and may be used in various meals. Give them a shot, and you might discover a new favourite sausage.
