Choose your favourite sausages and create sausage rolls with light flaky pastry. You can also use the same method with bought puff pastry. The key to successful pastry is patience. Chill the pastry well between each step.
600gramssausages (skins removed)use your favourite sausages with a high meat content.
Instructions
Rough Puff Pastry
Place salt and flour into a bowl
Place the cubed butter and the lard into the bowl. You'll find that the lard is quite soft, so use smallish lumps.
Add the water and liquid and mix into the butter and flour mixture. I use a cutlery knife or fork. It will be lumpy and sticky. Bring together into a ball. Do not knead.
Shape into a rectangle. Roll out into a rectangle approximately 12 cm wide and 30 cm long.
Mark the pastry into thirds (with the narrow side at the top). Fold one third up to lay over the middle third, then bring the top third down on top.
Turn the pastry a half turn clockwise. Your folded edges are now top and bottom. Press down lightly with the rolling pin then roll out and fold a second time.
Cover and put in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.
Roll out, fold and turn a further 3 times, resting in the fridge each time.
Set aside to rest. You can use the pastry the next day if required.
Creating your sausage rolls
For all the sausage rolls, roll out the pastry to about 3 mm thick. Pop back in the fridge for 10 minutes whilst you get the sausage meat ready
Pre-heat your oven to 200C, 425F
Take the skins off the sausages and make the meat into one larger sausage cylinder.
Decide whether you are making one large sausage roll or small ones.
For a giant sausage roll, you'll want a log shape about 120 mm long and 65 mm thick. For smaller sausage rolls, roll the cylinder to about 2.5 cm thick.
Take the pastry out of the fridge. Lay the cylinder of sausage meat on the pastry checking that you can fold the pastry over the cylinder and have about 1 cm overlap. Before sealing, brush where the pastry will join with water. Lift onto baking parchment.
Using a fork, press the seam down well and crimp pressing the prongs of the fork into the pastry. Gently press the top of the pastry down with a knife every 3 cm. You are not cutting through, just making a mark.
Cut into the size you require. Brush with beaten egg. Place on a baking tray and put into the fridge for 10 minutes. Take out and brush with egg a second time. Brush with onion seeds and sesame seeds if making a large sausage roll.
Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes (longer for the large sausage). They should be a golden brown and crispy - check the undersides to ensure they are well cooked. If in doubt, cover with parchment and bake a further 5 minutes.
I like to eat my sausage rolls hot, but they are equally good cold.
Video
Keyword French pastry, Rough puff pastry, Sausage Roll