Andouille

Andouille is defined as a coarse-grained smoked sausage made using, pepper, onions, wine, and seasonings. Andouille is French in origin, and was later brought to the through  by  immigrants. In the, the sausage is most often associated with. Andouille sausages are sometimes referred to as "hot link" sausages.

Ingredients
Andouille is a spiced, heavily smoked sausage, distinguished in some varieties by its use of the entire  of the pig. For example, traditional French andouille is composed primarily of the intestines and stomach. Though somewhat similar, it is not to be confused with andouillette.

History
The style of sausage is now widespread, and so it is unclear whether it originated in France, whence the name comes, or in Germany, where similar recipes also have a long history. A similar sausage, Nduja, is produced in the region of in southern Italy; the name is clearly derived from the French, and it is thought that the recipe may have spread there from France during periods of French dominance in the Middle Ages. This suggests a history going back at least 1000 years. Due to the rising popularity of Cajun cuisine, it is mistakenly believed to be a spicy sausage. True andouille is a savory sausage that lacks any real heat in its flavor. In Cajun/Creole cooking it is used more as a dish enhancer. The fat in authentic andouille melts into the dish thus adding flavor in the process. Andouille prepared in the United States outside of Louisiana and southeast Texas tends to be a spicy sausage seasoned with red pepper and in most cases not smoked.

Cajun-style
The recipe was brought to the New World by the French colonists of, and andouille is the best-known variety in the. The spiciest of all the variants, Cajun andouille is made of butt or shank meat and fat, seasoned with salt, cracked black pepper, and garlic, and smoked over wood and  for up to seven or eight hours at approximately 175F (80C). The resulting sausage is used in a wide range of Louisiana dishes, such as, , , and.

,, has proclaimed itself the Andouille Capital of the World, and holds a huge festival every third weekend of October, in which a ceremonial queen is chosen as Miss Andouille. LaPlace is also the home to Jacobs Sausage and Bailey's Sausage. Both are family owned businesses that have more than 100 years of documented sausage making. To this day, both families dispute the origin of the sausage and its true creator in modern form.

Other uses

 * Andouille is also an in, designating an , or a rascal.