What Types of Sausage Casings Are Edible?

Sausage casings are an important part of factory production. Their job is to wrap the sausage meat so that the sausage retains its shape. Sometimes, they also add flavor to the sausage, such as the smoked casings used for hot dogs.

When you start making sausage, it can be a bit daunting. There are so many options! Whether it's cooking styles, ingredients or those sausage casings that seem to come in 100 different varieties. So are they edible? Will I be able to eat the casings and sausage meat in one bite?

Natural sausage casings are edible. They are sourced from the intestines of cows, sheep or pigs. This doesn't sound appealing, I know. But remember, this is a very natural way to wrap sausage that has been used for centuries.

They tend to be porous and fragile when wet. When dry, they become more elastic. This is the reason that casings are often dry when stored and sold in stores.

You will find that pig casings are the most common choice in the popular sausage producing regions of Europe.

Are collagen casing safe to eat? Of course. While these casings also come from natural products, they are much more processed. Animal collagen is processed and then extruded into different sizes of casings.

However, if they are too thick, they can be unpleasant to eat. Some collagen casings are produced to wrap Italian salami and larger sausages. They are always peeled. The peeled facecloth is wrapped in a cellulose sausage casing, which is also removed after cooking.

The rounds are inedible and are used for sausages such as Bologna and summer sausages.

One more tip, be careful when you are eating, do not swallow the clips! The raw materials for the clips are usually aluminum, we must be careful.

Cellulose casings are extracted from the cell walls of plants and produce an elastic, translucent casing.  These casings are ideal for vegans. They are also used by commercial manufacturers to make skinless sausages.

This is perfect if you are a vegetarian and want to make your own sausages. 

Beef casings are inedible and are used to wrap meats such as large sausages, Italian sausages, hard salami and liverwurst.

Artificial casings are also inedible, they are usually made of pvc or other plastic paper, which is harmless but indigestible, I haven't seen anyone eating plastic wrappers!

Salt allows the casings to be used for a long time before they go bad.You can easily store the casings in the refrigerator for up to a year. Choose the type of casings according to your own preferences. Please contact SHANGMAO for more information, we have a wide variety of casings.