Spiced pork longanisa sausage served alongside fried rice and egg. Prepared in a herb meat cure and pan-fried for the perfect Filipino breakfast! Learn how to make pork longanisa from scratch with this delicious fried sausage recipe.
Ever had a longanisa? If not, it’s time you try this delicious Filipino sausage made from ground pork and spices. This sausage is often fried as part of the popular pancit bihon dish or boiled in soup. Here are some tips on how to cook longanisa so that it tastes its best!
What is Longanisa?
Meet Longanisa, the Filipino sausage. It’s made from ground meat and stuffed into hog casings, then cooked slowly over low heat, turning it soft and flavorful as it cooks.
Most sausages in the Philippines are known as longanisa and is a word derived from the Spanish longaniza, which is a sausage similar to chorizo.
In the Philippines however, there’s an incredible number of different versions of longanisa, each with its own take on the type of meat used, as well as spices. For this recipe, we’re using pork, but there are versions using chicken, beef, and even fish.
Longanisa falls into two broad categories. One is ‘hamonado‘, which carries a sweet taste similar to ham (hence the name). The other style is garlicky or spiced, known as ‘de racado’.
For this recipe, we’ll be using a combination of sweet and garlic, but you can swap in or out ingredients if you have a preference.
How to Make Longanisa Sausage
Once prepared and cured, traditional Filipino longanisa is surprisingly simple to cook. There are two common ways of cooking it: One is to boil it; the other is to pan-fry it.
For our recipe, we’re going to combine the two. By doing so, this will help slowly turn the inside tender before we then finish it off in the pan to sear the outside. This ensures a tender and perfectly cooked pork inside, with a crispy caramelized outside.
With the sausage links cured, remove from the refrigerator and (if needed) allow them to thaw. Place them in a large saucepan and add a cup of water. While this isn’t enough to submerge them, we only want a little so that the water can evaporate and let the meat cook in its own oils.
Bring the water to the boil and then lower to a simmer. Once the water has evaporated, ensure the heat is on low and let the links cook in their own oil. If they don’t release much oil, add one or two tablespoons of cooking oil. Cook until golden brown.
Longanisa [Filipino Sausage]
Equipment
Ingredients
- hog casings rinsed
- ¼ cup white vinegar
Sausage
- 2 lbs ground pork
- 1 lb ground pork back fat
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
Spice Mixture
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 4 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp Prague Powder #1
Instructions
Making the Longanisa
- Combine the spice mixture ingredients in a small bowl and set to one side.
- In a large bowl, combine the longanisa ingredients. Add the spice mixture and white wine vinegar, combining thoroughly.
- Tie a knot in one end of the hog casings. Thread the other end to the sausage stuffer. Stuff the casings with longanisa mixture, twisting every ½-inch to create links. When all mixture has been used, tie a knot in the end of the hog casing.
- Tie butchers twine around each sausage link and cut to separate into ½-inch longanisa sausages.
- Place the sausages in an airtight container. Leave to cure in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Cooking
- Remove the sausage links from the refrigerator. Poke a small slit into each link with a knife.
- Place sausage in a large saucepan. Add 1 cup water, bring to boil and lower to a simmer.
- Allow the water to evaporate and let the oils from the meat escape out of the slit. Allow to cook at a low temperature until golden-brown.
