Sausages and Onion Gravy: Bangers and Mash! [Recipe with Video] (2024)

FAQs

What is the best sausage for bangers and mash? ›

Sausage – Irish bangers would be best, but you can simply substitute for pork sausage. Onions – Yellow onions work great; however, you can use sweet or white onions as well. Butter – This will be used for searing the sausage, Wine – This part is optional, but wine is used to make a rich sauce.

Although a variety of sausages can be used, bangers are usually a mild, fresh pork sausage made with a bread filler and seasoned with spices that may include pepper, thyme, sage, nutmeg and mace and stuffed into a natural casing.

Bangers and mash is a quintessential British dish of sausage and mashed potatoes, typically served with onion gravy. It's roots extend to Ireland where you'll find the dish in many local pubs. I found “Irish Style Banger Sausages” at my whole foods and knew I had to try them out.

While bangers and mash makes a filling meal all on its own, you can serve it with green peas, carrots, or a fresh salad for added color and nutrition.

If, after much searching, you find yourself without bangers (and without the proper equipment to make a batch yourself), then in a pinch substitute any sort of plain, fatty pork sausage. Bratwurst always seems closer to a proper banger than a mild Italian sausage in my mind. But use your own judgment.

Sausages, brats, bangers, and dogs are terms that are often used when referring to any of the fresh sausage links we adore for their ability to pair well with ball games and beer.

It may also be called back bacon or rashers. The term rashers may also be used as in “rashers of bacon,” meaning individual slices. Traditionally Irish bacon is made from the back meat of the pig, as opposed to the pork belly used in American bacon.

Irish Sausage is also commonly known as “English Sausage”, “British Sausage, and as “Bangers” outside of the UK; the terms are used interchangeably. The traditional recipe consists of ground pork, a rusk bread filler, eggs, seasonings and a natural pork or beef casing.

Brits have also confessed to pouring it over pancakes, cereal, potatoes, hash browns and rice. The research found that the top dishes to enjoy gravy are Roast Beef, Chicken and turkey! These are followed by Yorkshire pudding, sausage, and mash.

A Primitivo, an Italian red wine made from the grape of the same name, would be a good match for Bangers and Mash. This wine is known for its bold, fruity flavors, which would complement the richness of the sausages.

Why is it called a banger? ›

You might be wondering how sausages ended up with the nickname "bangers." It dates back to World War I, when food shortages necessitated the use of fillers (mostly water) in meat. The high water content and tight casings often caused the sausages to explode during cooking. The term was widespread by World War II.

Any good soft pork sausage will do. Bratwurst is a good substitute, or even a mild Italian. You want links of soft sausage in casing, not a harder product like kielbasa or smoked sausage.

Bangers is a centuries-old traditional British and Irish recipe. They consist of lean and fat pork that is ground up tossed with spices and herbs that is then encased in hog casing to make sausage. There are many variations of Bangers when it comes to the ingredients depending on who makes them.

Butt/Shoulder: Boneless pork butt is very common for making sausages. It contains 20-30% fat so is perfect for sausages as this is the perfect fat to meat ratio (or you can add another 5% fat for extra tenderness and juiciness). If buying from the butcher, request 'boneless shoulder/butt'.

Its most distinctive feature is that, unlike other sausages, it is not linked but long and coiled. Traditional Cumberland Sausage is cylindrical in shape when at full length but the final product is coiled to produce its distinctive spiral shape.