Longganisa
Meat
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Longganisa is the Filipino fresh pork sausage — a short, plump, twist-tied link of seasoned ground meat that, depending on the region, swings from garlicky and sour (the de recado style) to deeply sweet and red (the hamonado style). It is a fixture of the Filipino breakfast plate longsilog: longganisa with garlic fried rice and a fried egg.
Picking a good onedrag
Fresh from the market: cold, plump, garlic-sharpOff: slimy, rancid, grey-green or mouldy
Cold and sealedBuy itRead the label: a fresh link says cook before eating, a smoked ready-to-eat one does not. Buy it cold, carry it cold, cook it inside its date.
The pack and the labelCold and sealed, the date now only a day or two off
Casing and surfaceTaut, faintly moist from the pack, still clean
Colour through the casingEven colour, a shade duller than the brightest links beside it
Smell at the endMeaty and garlicky, the seasoning quieter, nothing sharp