Andouille - need advice, dos and don’ts

Non-regional discussions Home Cooking
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Made some seafood boil tonight and used fresh pork andouille sausage from Sprout’s market (Culver City) for the first time.

There was a distinctive odor and at first I thought I undercooked the sausage or wondered if it had gone bad. I cut the sausage into slices and it wasn’t at all raw, but my nose upturned to the pungent smell. Is it normal for raw pork andouille to be like this? Should I have looked for smoked andouille instead?

It tasted a little gamey, but not as strong as the odor it gave off.

UPDATE as of 8/21/2018: What I purchased at Sprout’s was a fresh pork sausage misleadingly labeled “Cajun andouille.” According to posters and their links, Andouille sausage (French or US Cajun) is always smoked. A few nationwide and local distributors of andouille style sausage (smoked) were id’d.

Throughout the thread, posters also recommended notable butchers who make fresh sausages.

Update 08/24/2018: Due to unforeseen circumstances, I will no longer be contributing to this thread as OP.

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Well, it is supposed to smell like shit given what it’s typically made of, especially the traditional French version.

Like the swine version of Lutefisk.

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Get the smoked ones next time. IMHO, much more flavorful.l and conducive to imparting and contributing the profile you’re probably after.

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The only place I’ve tried locally made andouille is at Pete’s on Jefferson - raw like yours and didn’t like it at all. Otherwise, smoked andouille in packages are usually available at places like Bristol Farms and Whole Foods, etc. They get the job done.

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I’ve never heard of unsmoked andouille and don’t think it exists. Was this New Orleans-style meat sausage (should smell like ham) or French-style chitterlings sausage (very hard to find in the US)? Or some other thing Sprouts just chose to label andouille?

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Do I remember a convo about this on CH? Or was it some other sausage?

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I can’t imagine Andouille (or Andouillette) that isn’t smoked.

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Looking on Sprouts’ web site, it looks like generic pork link sausages with various crap added to vaguely imitate the flavor of Louisiana andouille.

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Pete’s on Jefferson had unsmoked andouille. Curious, I got some and regret it. Foodshudderbug’s description was pretty mu h what I experienced. Maybe one is getting these raw sausages with the understanding that they are supposed to be smoked at home?

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That’s a bit of a puzzle. I’d be surprised if Sprouts was offering a French andouille, but by your account it sounds like that’s what you got.

US andouille is a Cajun product and totally different. It’s smoked, as you probably know. And it’s pretty benign as far as sausage goes.

Bob’s Market offers a raw version of an otherwise traditional US andouille. It’s actually pretty good and doesn’t smell like ass.

I’ve never seen a regular grocery carry French andouille or andouillette, let alone make a version in house.

Maybe Sprouts andouille just sucks.

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Andouille is smoked. What Sprouts and Pete’s are selling is not andouille. It should perhaps be labeled “andouille-flavored pork link sausage.”

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If my aunt had a schmeckle she’d be my uncle.

MANY meat counters that make sausage in-house but lack a smoker make an unsmoked version of andouille and label it “andouille.” Whether they should or not becomes irrelevant because the facts are it’s happening.

Kinda like peas and cream have no business in a carbonara, but trying to correct all of America isn’t really working.

So yes. Of course you’re correct. But in real life there is a lot of fresh “andouille” out there.

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I’m guessing that the difference is between “French” and “Louisiana.” I’m sure there are many things like this, food and otherwise. IMneverHO.

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It’s not France vs. Louisiana. It’s honest tradition libeled by dishonest posers ignoring truth in labeling laws.

Andouille is smoked. If you substitute link sausage in a recipe that calls for andouille you’re probably not going to get the right results.

This reminds me of the thread about the 70s fondue recipe that called for Sauterne, only in reverse.

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That’s probably right next to the “unfrozen” ice cream at the store.

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You’d be surprised, evidently.

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There is indeed fresh “andouille,” but andouille is smoked.

A few years ago Kraft was selling “guacamole” that contained only 2% avocado. That didn’t change the definition of guacamole.

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If this is indeed what the OP bought from Sprouts, why in the world would it have an distasteful odor