I am very excited about today’s post: Home-made Sicilian Pork Sausage with Fennel It is one of those recipes that I have been making for a long time and that I have been very keen on sharing. The only reason why I hadn’t done it yet was the lack of reasonably good pictures. But finally, the wait is over and I think we are still in time for the Northern Hemisphere grilling season.
But for all my Southern Hemisphere readers, do not worry. I am soon going to share a recipe that will allow you to enjoy this amazing sausage without using a barbecue.
Italy is very famous for sausages and there are so many varieties. If you order sausage in the North, you will very likely get something completely different than what you would in the South. They are different in shape, but above all in ingredients. They are (almost) all made of pork, but their seasoning is different.
In the North, you often get a hint of cinnamon in sausages, while in the south they are often spicy and seasoned with either chilli or black pepper. Sicilian sausage is yet another variation as it is characterised by the use of fennel seeds. This is my favourite sausage ever as fennel seeds work wonders with pork and freshen up every bite.
I have eaten the best Sicilian fennel sausage in San Vito lo Capo where the butchers are quite famous for it. When my dad was young, he used to be friends with one of the first local butchers and saw him making this sausage time and time again. So… here you have the recipe that my dad passed on to me.
I urge you to try it. It is AMAZING, preservative-free and easy to make. I bet you won’t buy ready-made sausage ever again!
Enjoy and don’t forget to check out my other Regional Italian dishes!
Home-made Sicilian Pork Sausage with Fennel
A tutorial on how to make your own Sicilian Pork Sausage with Fennel at home!
Ingredients
- 800 gms – 1.75 lbs. pork scotch fillet
- 400 gms – 0.9 lbs. pork rashers skin removed
- 20 gms – 1.25 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp fennel seeds
- 115 ml – ½ cup red or white wine
- 1 tbsp freshly ground pepper
- Edible sausage casing
Instructions
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Roughly chop the scotch fillet and the rashers.
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Grind the scotch fillet and the rashers using a 0.5 cm – 0.2 inch diameter grinder.
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Put the ground meat in a bowl. Add the salt, wine, fennel seeds and ground pepper and knead well.
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Let it dry in the fridge overnight before cooking (or freezing) it.
Recipe Notes
This sausage can be frozen for up to 3 months, just wrap it in foil and then put it into a Ziploc bag before freezing it.
Don’t forget to pin this Home-made Sicilian Pork Sausage with Fennel!
Such artisanship. I don’t even eat pork and I am drooling over this. 🙂
What a great recipe, hubby would love to grill some!! I have on my to do list to make homemade sausage. It looks fun to make! Hugs, Terra
Yum. My parent have been making these here in Sydney for years.
I know sometime my papa uses his wild fennel leaves instead
of fennel seeds or aniseed seeds (he reckons they are closer to wild
fennel seeds in sicilia…boh???) I know around Catania they call
these SALSICCIA AL CEPPO- because they mince the
pork with a knife on a tree stump(ceppo).
This looks fantastic Manuela! i always shy away from making sausage because I don’t want to deal with the casings. But I love fennel sausage albeit a bit spicier. must give it a try!!
Casings can be a difficult and a little intimidating. However after a little patience and love they can be easily cleaned and washed.
1. Put them in cold water to soak for an hour or so. (no firm time, I just do this to ensure all salt removed.
2. Sometimes they are turned the right way when you buy them (check to see where the little strands are. If on the outside they are the right way. If not, you will have to turn them inside out. Find the end and fill with water and they will do the work themselves). Wash them three times once they are right side out. Just run water through them and press the water out. No need to make long long strande. Cut them after 4ft to make it easier.
3. Put washed casings in a seperate bowl and cover with water and refridgerate until needed. Casings should be easily seperated if washed properly when you need them.
4. Left over casings can be reused later if you package them in a plastic bag and salt. Add lots of salt and then place them back in the freezer.
Hopefully this helps.
OMG! This is how my daddy use to make sausages. So authentic! This looks fantastic!!! I am so trying this. I know my Home and Family viewers will love this!!!!
I formulate sausages for our own food business and this caught my attention and intense interest. I definitely will try it and come out with a new variety here in Philippines. Thank you very much. Your pic looks so tempting. Great!
Brilliant! Great recipe. Explained n detail with amazing pictures. I like sausages so much. I like all meals with the meat included. Great work. Well done! Andrew!
Can I stuff the casings by hand or do I need sausage stuffing attachment on my Kenwood? Also, can I chop by hand or do I need a grinder/mincer?
Thanks Manu. Yours is the best food/recipe site ever!! Love it.
Hi Steph! Thanks!! 🙂
The answer is yes to both questions. No need for fancy attachments, you can stuff the casings by hand (I have seen it done with a Chinese soup spoon).
Also, traditionally, Italian sausage is made by chopping the meat with a knife, so definitely go for it!
Let me know how you like it, this is my favourite sausage EVER!
Hi Manu,
When you say Pork Rashers, do you mean bacon, or something else?
Thanks
Hi Kathryn. If you are in Australia, it’s basically pork belly but it’s sold in thick slices. Otherwise, normal pork belly works fine too. 🙂
Ok, thanks! I did make them with bacon, but it came out incredibly salty. I had to add another 500gms of pork mince to dilute it, but they were delicious!
Okay, rashers are pork belly but what’s pork scotch fillet?
I am not sure of the exact name outside of Australia, but pork shoulder would work great for this recipe.
Beware of the FENNEL PERIL.
For many people FENNEL and PORK are a perfect combination. Be wary, fennel has a strong flavour and, personally, tends to over-power the other ingredients. The beauty of making your own sausages is that you have used the freshest and best ingredients and you are consuming a preservative free delicacy. So, unless you are a FENNEL devotee, I would experiment with the addition of Fennel so as to not lose the exquisite flavours of natural home made pork sausages.
TO THOSE WHO ASKED;
Pork Scotch Fillet, ‘Coppa’ in Italian, also known as Pork Neck or, more rarely, Collar Butt. This cut is located behind the back of the head and the top of the shoulder. This cut is good for roasting or casseroles and stays moist during slow cooking. Used to make the Italian smallgood CAPOCOLLO.
Pork Scotch Fillet, ‘Coppa’ in Italian, also known as Pork Neck or, more rarely, Collar Butt. This cut is located behind the back of the head and the top of the shoulder. This cut is good for roasting or casseroles and stays moist during slow cooking. Used to make the Italian smallgood CAPOCOLLO.
Paul, I am a Destefano also (my paternal grandmother). My father was from the town of Meduno in Friuli. I like your comments re fennel, since as a child I did not like it in my sausages, …but now that I’m much older, and my palate is not as sensitive as it once was, I enjoy it immensely. Salute.
I have been working on sausage recipes for years and yours looks interesting. I would not have tried pork belly so anxious to try that. Have you tried toasting the fennel seeds?
Every white wine is so different, has such a unique flavor from each other. You don’t mention which white wine you prefer to use? And have you tried cooking sherry?
Fantastic recipe second time using it but have added some chilli powder.
Dear Manu, I see you have many comments/questions in this Sicilian Sausage section, …so I’m going to ask: do you ever make this sausage with garlic in addition to the other ingredients?
Looks like a great recipe that I will definitely try soon, since here in SW Montana our winter weather keeps us indoors, This is the perfect time for sausage-making. Thank you for your great site.
Hi Richard. You can add some garlic if you like. This is the recipe I got (through my father) from a Sicilian butcher and he doesn’t use any. However, feel free to try it!
Hi Manu – This looks amazing – I’m looking forward to giving it a try. Just to confirm – it is 2 TABLESPOONS of fennel seeds and not 2 TEASPOONS? With Thanks
Hi Jerry! Yes, it is 2 tablespoons. However, you can play around with the amount and adjust it to your liking. 😉 Enjoy and let me know how you like it!
Thanks Manu – I used the amounts you specified (but halved the salt) and it was a real hit with my family! Definitely doing this regularly! Cheers, Jerry