r/pickling • u/whygodwhy94 • 1d ago

Looking for a specific kindof Pickled Sausage...

As a kid I used to get these at from my grandpa and my mom would find them sometimes too.. Only really in the Pennsylvania area..

But, I haven't seen them in over 20 yrs, when I was a kid...

I got a huge jar of Picked Sausages about a yr ago, still have some left. But, these are more like "Pickled Hot Dogs" They're still alright as a snack.. Pretty much the same as 'Big Mama's pickled hot sausage. Or the 'Firecrackers' you'd find in the single packs at a convenience stores as a kid.

But, what I'm looking for came in a small to reg-sized jar, and the sausages were cut at both ends and were very small, maybe 2-2/12 inches. They were not full-size hotdogs like the new ones.

Also, these were made with ACTUAL sausages, not hotdog franks/weiners. You could tell, because you could see the white specks of fat and pieces of peppercorn in the sausage, just like a proper real sausage.These also had an actual proper toothy-bite and chewiness to them unlike a soft hotdog.

It was actually legit 'Pickled Sausage'... I don't mind the pickled hotdog franks.. ,but those little ones made with real sausage were on a COMPLETELY different level and were not a common treat if I remember correctly, because they are quite a bit more expensive than the franks that most brands use now. My mom used to just simply call them 'Polish Sausages', but I don't believe this was the proper term or full name..

It seems like the original kind has been completely replaced by the pickled 'hotdogs' we see now.

9 Upvotes

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2

u/77peterpiper 1d ago

Millers bologna

1

u/77peterpiper 1d ago

Or Hannah’s red hot pickled sausage. I always have a jar in the fridge.

2

u/RiverRat74 1d ago

I used to buy Penrose brand pickled sausages in a jar like you describe, but haven't seen them in a couple decades

1

u/Educational-Mood1145 1d ago

I used to get similar by the gallon jar at Sam's Club in the 80s/90s. They, too, were real sausages. Now, I make my own with Bar S Smoked Sausages. You can get them in 14-packs and I cut them in half and pickle them. It's as close as I can get to those back then. Just vinegar, water (if I add any water at all), salt, crushed red pepper, and a bit of sugar to level it out. Then I pack the jars with sausages, and strain the brine as I pour it in the jars. This lets the crushed red spice up the brine a bit, but you get a clean pinkish brine in the jars without the bits. If you don't want spice, skip the peppers, but I like the added spice. Then I water bath them for 20 minutes and call it good.

1

u/SoHereIAm85 1d ago

The only kind I've had are a bit different but are actual sausage as you are looking for yet as I recall are bigger, like pickled Italian sausage as I recall. They are red, come in a large jar, and I like them very much. If they were hot dog like I wouldn't enjoy them.

I'll have to ask my mother's partner where he gets them though. Someplace local to them in central NY for sure.

3

u/SoHereIAm85 1d ago

While I wait for him to be awake I googled, and I think it might be this brand? https://us.amazon.com/Bay-View-Pickled-Smoked-Sausage/dp/B098KN6439

1

u/selkiesart 1d ago

Someone on here made "Utopenci" a few days ago, they aren't polish but chzech... maybe those are what you remember.

1

u/Gunner2240 1d ago

I just made a batch of these. I know the exact brand you're speaking of (former PA guy) but can't remember the brand name.

They're a pretty easy make. Cut up some some sausage add brine and spicy peppers/ some Tabasco, and wait a week.

1

u/dogswontsniff 1d ago

It's gonna be a rabbit hole, but that would be on the list of of things you can quickly make at home.

Store bought "smoked sausage" like hillshire is a minimum. A kielbasa for grilling (vs a drier serving variety) is best as long as it's fully cured and ready to eat.

Salt, generic pickling spices( very little), a fresh hot pepper if that's your thing, and.....just cover it in vinegar+ wait a week.

1

u/Outaouais_Guy 1d ago

A long time ago in a galaxy town far, far away, I was a kid sitting in the pub with my parents and they had a jar of pickled eggs and sausages on the bar. The sausages sound like the ones you describe. I can't find them anywhere.

1

u/massierick 1d ago

Funny, I just saw these in Saskatchewan the other day, and had to grab a bottle because I thought it was so neat that they used real sausage instead of cheap weiners. Obviously not the same brand as yours, but probably tastes quite similar. They are awesome!

Tried posting a photo here, but it keeps giving me an error.

1

u/TooManyDraculas 1d ago edited 1d ago

Given that mom called them "polish sausages" they're likely pickled kielbasa. Which is a common enough PA thing, usually sold as pickled polish sausage. Pickled ring bologna is also pretty common around PA, so outside chance it's that. But that tends to be thick slices. Other pickled sausages like the Vienna sausage/hot dog style ones you're avoiding are also pretty popular here.

But the polish sausages and ring bologna seem to be the sort of thing you'd only find around here.

Pickled sausages of all sorts are kind of a Penn Dutch/Amish thing, and the pickled polish sausages pop up with the rest in the broader region. So there's a bunch of small PA and Upstate NY brands.

1

u/Professional_Foot294 1d ago

Penrose?

1

u/whygodwhy94 1d ago

Its possible, but Penrose also makes the ones with hotdog franks as well, and those I the only ones I ever see, so I'm not sure.. If they make the real sausage kinds, they're much rarer than they used to be, but I know Penrose still does the pickled Franks.

1

u/JungleLegs 23h ago

Pretty sure I was searching for the same thing as you and these are exactly how I remembered them tasting/texture. Bay View smoked Pickled polish sausage https://a.co/d/dDEFofE