Weisswurst

Gruss Gott! If you’ve ever sat in a Munich beer garden on a Sunday morning with a cold Weissbier and a plate of these pale, delicate sausages with sweet mustard, you know there’s nothing else quite like Weisswurst.

This recipe makes a full 10-pound batch from scratch using equal parts veal and lean pork shoulder, ground fine and emulsified with ice water in a food processor until the texture is smooth and bouncy.

The spice blend is classically Bavarian: mace, ground mustard seed, white pepper, celery seed, and parsley, subtle and aromatic rather than bold and fiery.

The sausages get poached gently in warm water (never boiled, never grilled) until just cooked through, then cooled overnight before serving.

Chef Tips

• Keep the meat ice cold throughout the entire process. Warm meat won’t emulsify properly and the sausage will be grainy instead of smooth.
• Emulsify in the food processor until the mixture looks like a sticky paste that clings to your hand. That’s how you know the bind is right.
• Poach, don’t boil. The water should be barely simmering. Aggressive boiling bursts the casings and ruins the texture.
• Traditionally, Weisswurst is eaten before noon with sweet Bavarian mustard, a soft pretzel, and a Weissbier. When in Munich, do as the Muenchner do.
• The overnight rest in the cooler lets the flavors meld and the texture firm up. Patience pays off here.