Hungarian Sausage Tell-All - The Dizzying Varieties of Hungarian Kolbasz

Kolbasz is the generic Hungarian word for sausage. The varieties are dizzying as each region in Hungary has its own take on standard sausages. They can be boiled, fresh, dried or smoked and in mild, medium or spicy heat varieties. Hungarian sausages are eaten as cold cuts with bread or on appetizer trays, or used to flavor stews, soups, goulash, salads and other dishes.

Most Hungarian sausages are made with fine or coarsely ground pork, beef or lamb, and spices that can include paprika, black pepper, allspice, white pepper, caraway, nutmeg, marjoram, cayenne pepper, and sugar, salt, garlic, white wine or cognac. Sausages meant to be eaten fresh (unsmoked) sometimes include liver, mushrooms, bread, rice, eggs, cream or milk. The ground sausage mixture is then stuffed into natural casings -- the small intestines of pigs -- in 12-inch lengths. In the days before refrigeration, sausage-making was done in cold weather and the uncooked sausages were allowed to cure overnight in the open air before using fresh or smoking. Today, home cooks let the sausage cure overnight in the refrigerator.

Smoked sausages include:

• Gyulai Kolbasz: This sausage is named after the Hungarian town of Gyula. It can be eaten alone, with bread or added to other dishes like lesco or rakott burgonya.
  
  
• Csabai Kolbasz: This spicy sausage with lots of paprika is made in the town of Bekescsaba.
  
  
• Csemege Kolbasz:
  
  
• Hazi Kolbasz:
  
  
• Cserkesz Kolbasz:

Lightly smoked sausages include:

• Debreceni Kolbasz (or Debrecener): This pork sausage, heavily spiced with paprika, garlic, pepper and marjoram, is reddish-orange in color and named after the Hungarian city of Debrecen. It is usually unsmoked or lightly smoked and baked, broiled or fried and used in dishes like lecso.
  
  
• Lecsokolbasz: A spicy sausage made specifically for lecso.

Boiled sausages include:

• Majas - Liver Sausage:
  
  
• Veres - Blood Sausage: