Should you be worried if your sausages are still pink in the middle? Does it mean the sausages are undercooked if they are still pink in the middle? Can you eat them anyway?
If you find that your sausages are pink in the middle, it’s no cause for alarm. If there’ll be any problem at all, it begins with how well you cook the sausages.
Sausage is a common breakfast staple that many people can never get enough of. You’re either tossing sausages with eggs or hash for breakfast or getting hotdogs for lunch. Either way, sausages make one of the quickest meals.
But eating could come to a halt if you find out that the middle of the sausage still has some pink. Before you panic, find out why and if you can still eat the sausages.
Why are sausages pink in the middle?
Sausages may have a pink tint in the middle based on how you prepare them. Minced meat sausages or sausages cured with salt will have a pink tint in their middle. And this is regardless of whether you cook them well or not.
This pink color is because of the ingredients in the sausage. Salt, paprika, cayenne pepper, and other colored seasonings confer this color and also help to preserve the sausage.
In addition, whether sausages have a pink tint or not, be sure that the juice running out of the sausages is clear.
Should sausages remain pink in the middle after cooking?
In most cases, sausages will remain pink in the middle even after cooking.
This has little or nothing to do with whether you cooked them well or not. The color tint at the center of your sausages is due to colorants, spices, and seasonings.
However, you must cook the sausages properly to avoid ingesting certain parasites most active in undercooked sausages.
Should sausage patties be pink in the middle?
Sausage patties are pink in the middle when they are still raw, but as they cook, they turn brown.
However, a tint of pink in the middle of your sausage patties even after cooking them could be because they contain salt, paprika, or any colorant.
In addition, if the patties are pink and runny, they are not properly cooked yet. Leave the patties to cook for a little while longer until you see browning on their edges.
Should sausage rolls be pink in the middle?
Even when you cook them properly, the sausage in sausage rolls may retain the pink color in the middle.
However, the pink color will remain if salt, paprika, cayenne pepper, and other coloring seasonings were used in the curing and preparation of sausages.
So, do not worry when you see a pink color in the middle of your sausage rolls when you cut them open. Most importantly, just be sure that you cook the sausages properly.
What color should sausages be when cooked?
When sausages are done cooking, they’ll have a deep pink color in the middle.
If the sausages are pink and too tender or runny (for patties also), leave them to cook for a few more minutes. Making small cuts on sausages will help cook them faster.
Pork or beef sausages have a deep red-pink color when they are well-cooked. Cooked poultry sausages are a lighter shade of a red-pink tint.
Additionally, color doesn’t fully tell if sausages are done. So the best way to know is to check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer.
Prod the middle of the sausages with the thermometer and read the temperature. Well-cooked sausages should be around 165°F.
Also, gently squash one sausage under your hand if it feels firm and nothing like the raw form. Do not fall for the pressure to cut it open. Otherwise, your sausages will come out dry instead of juicy.
Can you eat undercooked sausages?
No, do not eat undercooked sausages.
You risk getting trichinosis when you eat undercooked sausages. Trichinosis is a food-borne illness one might get from eating undercooked pork sausages.
When you do not cook pork sausages properly, the roundworms in pork are transmitted into your body. This happens because the meat didn’t get enough heat to kill the parasites.
Consequently, you may develop symptoms like diarrhea, fever, headaches, nausea, and fatigue.
Ways to cook sausages
1. Boil them
You can boil sausages with salt and water and maybe a few seasonings. If you want something more flavorful, boil them in broth, tomato sauce, stock, or beer. Boiled sausages are not crispy, but they come out very moist.
But you cannot boil sausage patties. Patties are loose and will get mushy and messy if you boil them.
2. Grill them
Sausages come out crispy and brown when you cook them with dry heat at high temperatures. You can either grill or broil them.
If you’re cooking sausage links or patties with any of these methods, make sure you flip them over the heat so that they cook evenly. Grilling takes longer, but the smoky flavor and char lines make it worth the wait.
3. Fry them
The different ways to fry sausages include pan-frying, stir-frying, and deep frying. Pan-frying involves less engagement with the sausages, unlike stir-frying.
When you stir-fry, you have to flip or stir the sausages while they cook. Whereas, with just one or two flips, you’re done pan-frying.
For both methods, you only need a little oil and a pan. And either work for both sausage links and patties.
Deep frying uses more oil since you have to immerse the sausage in the oil. In most cases, deep-fried sausages are dipped in egg wash and covered with bread crumbs before frying.
However, deep-fried sausages are not so healthy because of their high-calorie content.
4. Bake them
Baking is perfect for cooking large quantities of sausages. Moreover, baking cooks and browns sausages more evenly. If you want something more flavorful, marinate the sausages before baking.
However, because of the casing over the sausage, the marinade may not penetrate inside the meat. You can get a better outcome if you marinate overnight.
FAQs
Why are lamb sausages pink in the middle?
The pink tint in the middle of lamb sausages depends on the method of preparation.
Lamb sausages prepared with salt will remain pink in the middle even after cooking. Ensure that you cook the sausages well.
Should poultry sausage be pink in the middle?
Poultry sausage includes chicken and turkey sausages. A pink tint in the middle of chicken sausages isn’t always normal.
Chicken sausage will be pink in the middle only if it contains salt, paprika, and colored seasonings. Otherwise, it should have a pale brown tint.
On the other hand, turkey sausages can be pink in the middle even after you have cooked them. When poultry sausages are done, they should have an internal temperature of 165°F.
Should beef sausage be pink in the middle?
If you find that your beef sausages are pink in the middle even after cooking, it’s fine.
Ensure that you cook them properly until the inside is firm. Also, be sure that the sausages have not gone off.
Should pork sausage be pink in the middle?
If your pork sausage is pink in the middle – cooked or uncooked, it’s normal.
As long as the juice from the sausage is clear and it has not gone bad, you can safely eat it. Most importantly, ensure that you cook it well to kill parasites such as roundworms.
Conclusion
The pink color in the middle of your sausages has nothing to do with how you cooked them. This is natural and should not be a cause for alarm.
It is common to any variety of sausage that contains salt. Don’t let a pink tint deter you from making a delicious breakfast or lunch.
Most importantly, whatever meal you’re making with sausages, make sure you cook them properly. Measure the internal temperature of the sausages to know when they are done.
When they are well cooked, the temperature will be around 155°F to 165°F. Remember that eating undercooked sausages could be dangerous.
Thanks for reading. You can learn further with this article on the gluten status of sausages.
