Neihuang Blood Sausage 内黄灌肠

Ingredients

The Neihuang County government names pig's blood, pig's intestine, wheat flour, sesame oil and five-spice seasoning as the main ingredients. The finished sausage is red inside and white outside, which is why it is also called blood sausage (血肠).

How it is made

Flour and pig's blood are prepared in a ratio the county gives as 3:7. The blood goes into brine of 30 percent strength and is stirred continuously with a wooden stick so that it cannot set, then mixed with a thin flour-and-water batter made at 4:1.

A washed pig's intestine is tied at one end with fine string, filled in batches and tied at the other end. Once the blood-and-batter mixture has set inside, the sausage goes into the pot and is poached over a low flame. The cook keeps pricking small holes in it with a needle so that the gas released by the heat can escape without bursting the casing. It is usually cooked through in about an hour and a half.

Flavour and texture

The county describes the sausage as smooth, soft without being sticky, fragrant and tender without greasiness. It is best eaten hot with garlic sauce.

Where it comes from

To sell it at street stalls or hawk it along the streets, early makers carried the cooked sausage in a shao (筲), the wooden water bucket once used for carrying water. A wooden lid kept it warm while letting it breathe, and over time the snack became known as shao guanchang (筲灌肠), bucket sausage. Tin and insulated buckets have since replaced the wooden ones, but Neihuang people still use the old name.

Alongside the traditional bucket sausage and the pan-fried version with blood cake (血糕煎灌肠), Neihuang cooks have created newer forms, among them hand-held, numbing-hot, chicken-broth and stewed sausage. The craft is listed as a Neihuang County intangible cultural heritage item.