HEALTHIER FOOD: CHICKEN SAUSAGE & BURNISHED GRAPES, wallet friendly

Savoury-sweet combo of hot grapes and sausage: succulent and luscious  

Chicken Sausages, white & green grapes braised in Sherry & Balsamic Vinegar 

In 67goingon50's view, it's a shame that sausages have such a bad reputation, mostly because of high fat contents and the use of nitrate preservatives linked to cancer.  

But high-meat sausages from an independent or even organic butcher is a wonder to behold.  And to eat.  Highly flavoured and packed with great meat, the many varieties include low-fat wild boar and venison.  

Wallet-friendly, only one or two-high meat sausages are needed to make a splendid meal.

Several brands of sausage are now completely nitrate-free*  but even supermarket sausages have got the message and are lower in nitrates.

67 stumbled upon nitrate-free chicken sausages at one of the many farmers markets in North London.  They were double the length of an ordinary sausage and cost a pretty penny but were delicately flavoured and gorgeously textured; perfect for a recovering invalid.

Teamed with tangy-sweet grapes and burnished to a glossy brown, the sausage dish was light but ever-so-satisfying.

The ones pictured were cooked in an air-fryer but the same effect can be achieved in an oven.

Cost:  £2.50 (11/22)
Serves: 1 but multiples easily 

Ingreds:
   2 chicken, wild boar, venison or other high-meat sausages, low or no nitrates
   olive oil   
   handful of purple or green grapes, or both, stems removed
   half a wine glass of sherry
   balsamic vinegar
   pepper & salt

Method:

1. Pierce the sausages in a few places with a fork; drop into a pot of boiling water; turn off heat, leave to poach 10 mins (this step releases some of the fat)
2. Heat a non-stick frying pan over high heat
3. Drain sausages
4. Spray pan generously with olive oil; add sausages; brown lightly
5. Add grapes to the pan
6. Add sherry; allow to bubble up
7. Pour all the contents into a baking tin suitable for an air fryer or the oven
8. Bake: air fryer 20 mins at 180c;  oven 30-35 mins at 180/350 or until sausages are dark brown and grapes are soft without splitting
9. Remove from oven; add balsamic vinegar, pepper & salt
10. Serve, using juices as gravy

*Coombs, Duchy, Heck, Dukeshill, Green Pasture, Ellise's & Pelham Farm

Comments:

'I was expecting this to be nice but it was actually quite, quite wonderful.  The hot tangy grapes and balsamic vinegar added wonderful counterpoints to the delicately flavoured sausages.  Healthy, too! I'll definitely make these again'  Blogger

Tips:

• Save time and effort by poaching the entire package of sausages in one go then pack in pairs and freeze for future use

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This recipe  has been developed by B  Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises and may not be reproduced, in any form, without the author's written permission.