Homemade Irish-Style Bangers Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Irish and English bangers? ›

The truth is that Irish and English sausages are very much alike in taste, texture and presentation. Both are usually made with pork meat, and both include a filler of some sort as a requirement along with herbs and garlic. Irish sausages contain eggs and “rusk”, while English sausages have only breadcrumbs.

Bangers is a centuries-old traditional British and Irish recipe. They consist of lean and fat pork that is ground up tossed with spices and herbs that is then encased in hog casing to make sausage. There are many variations of Bangers when it comes to the ingredients depending on who makes them.

Bangers are a British pork sausage. If they are unavailable, any mild pork sausage can be used in their place.

A banger is a nickname that the British and Irish give to sausages. The nickname “bangers” originated during World War II, when rationing was common and meat was scarce. Bangers have two distinct characteristics – they have a much softer texture and are much less salty than their American and continental counterparts.

Although a variety of sausages can be used, bangers are usually a mild, fresh pork sausage made with a bread filler and seasoned with spices that may include pepper, thyme, sage, nutmeg and mace and stuffed into a natural casing.

The term bangers supposedly originated during World War I, when meat shortages resulted in sausages' being made with a number of fillers, notably water, that caused them to explode when cooked.

To choose a good quartz banger, consider factors like heat retention, material quality (high-grade quartz is ideal), design (e.g., flat top, deep dish, or decorative patterns), and your dabbing style (low-temp or high-temp).

🍳 What is an Irish breakfast? A traditional full Irish breakfast comprises bacon, sausage, eggs, potatoes, beans, soda bread or toast, tomatoes, mushrooms, and white or black pudding. For those wondering, black pudding coagulates the pig's blood into a sausage form.

Today, bangers and mash with onion gravy is a typical pub dish in Great Britain and Ireland, with the Irish sometimes including a side of cabbage as well.

If you can't find sausage that is labeled specifically as “Irish,” I would recommend any bratwurst-type of sausage as a fine substitute.

What's the difference between rashers and bangers? ›

Bangers are larger than American breakfast sausage and have a heavier flavor. Rashers resemble ham and taste like a cross between ham and bacon. But this is where I diverge from tradition. Because my Irish breakfast comes with baked eggs and is served in a ramekin, everything baked all together.

Over in Ireland, the go-to sausage for this recipe is none other than Irish pork sausage. It's delicious, with a slightly herbal, slightly peppery taste. You can find it in the States or you can try making a batch at home.

You might be wondering how sausages ended up with the nickname "bangers." It dates back to World War I, when food shortages necessitated the use of fillers (mostly water) in meat. The high water content and tight casings often caused the sausages to explode during cooking. The term was widespread by World War II.

The Best Sausage for Bangers and Mash

Thick, unaged pork sausages are traditionally used for bangers and mash. A mildly spiced sausage is more common, but feel free to use your favorite sausages when making the dish at home.

Sausages, brats, bangers, and dogs are terms that are often used when referring to any of the fresh sausage links we adore for their ability to pair well with ball games and beer.

The basics - egg, bacon, sausage, perhaps mushrooms or baked beans or tomato - are the same. The Irish breakfast is more likely to include pudding (black or white) and potatoes in some form (often fried), though neither of those are completely unheard-of in an English breakfast either.

Irish sausages are similar in composition, though there is one distinctive difference: British sausages are made with bread crumbs, whereas Irish sausages are made with rusk (a twice-baked bread somewhat like a savory biscotti).

British sausages being called bangers seems to be a historical legacy, a colloquial term left over from war time when sausages sometimes exploded in the pan when you cooked them. We started calling sausages bangers sometime during the first World War, it was a slang name for a sausage at the time.

One feature that sets Irish English apart is its rhoticity, which, like American English, leaves no R unpronounced. Another difference is how spoken Ts sound more like CHs, so “two” sounds more like “chew.” Similarly, Ds sound more like Js to the non-Irish ear, so “idiot” comes out sounding like eejit.