France in Focus

After many years travelling and living in France I really missed beef sausages there. So much so that when on holiday in France we took beef sausages with us. However, on our permanent return to England we found that they were as rare as rocking horse poo in England also.

This morning at our monthly farmer's market there was a butcher selling, you've guessed it, BEEF SAUSAGES!!!! Four packs for a tenner. Yes please! Tonight beef sausages and chips for dinner. Paradise.

I like 'em too. Haven't had any for years.

They were blooming marvellous! Saved one each from the pack of 6 for breakfast tomorrow.

I think they are rare because they are made from bull's willies - so that's six bulls to a pack!

It's not April 1st is it?

La Mme went into Leclerc in Autun on Wednesday and bought beef sausages off the boucherie counter (not self service).

Very good IMO and also very meaty.

I find most French sausages acceptably "meaty" apart from those horribly grisly Merguez things. Kind of makes me wonder why it is so many Brits love their anaemic looking tubes of fat and cereal filler.

Our Merguez are not grisly but I have had some like that in the past but equally I have had grisly Toulouse sausage. You just need to find good suppliers and stick with them.

As an aside I remember a day trip out on the bus. Very early set off and after a couple of hours the coach pulled into a greasy spoon where full English was the only item on the menu. The guy opposite me pushed his sausage to one side with the comment, "Oh little bag of mystery." He was a butcher by trade.