Meat+Poultry - February 2023 - 71

poultry addresses this trend. Such products
are also an opportunity to invite consumers
to try globally inspired flavors that they may
otherwise shy away from. They are often more
willing to purchase a single za'atar seasoned
lamb sausage at an upscale deli than prepare
za'atar lamb chops at home. Za'atar is a Middle
Eastern spice blend that includes whole
toasted sesame seeds for visual appeal, along
with dried, often leafy, herbs such as oregano
or thyme.
Denise Purcell, vice president of content
and education at the Specialty Food
Association, cited increased demand for
convenient meal solutions, bases, starters
and kits.
" We're hearing from the Trendspotters [at
the Winter Fancy Food Show, held Jan. 15-17 in
Las Vegas] that during the pandemic everybody
was cooking more at home to the point of
fatigue, " Purcell said. " They still want to cook
even though life has gone quote-unquote 'a
little more back to normal,' but they're looking
for help and shortcuts. "
The Trendspotters panel named nuanced
heat as another trend that was prominent at
the show. This shows up through the use of
varied pepper varietals, often in combination
with a sweet element. Think mango habanero
and hot honey.
Stillman Quality Meats, Hardwick, Mass.,
offers a pork hot honey sausage made using
local honey, fresh herbs and plenty of paprika
and cayenne pepper to add visual appeal.
Purcell also pointed to an uptick in
" environmentally friendly foods, which could
run the gamut from upcycled ingredients to
regeneratively grown ingredients. "
Stillman Quality Meats recognized this
trend, too. The company is a 100% vertically
integrated livestock farm. This means that
all the meats the company offers come from
animals raised on its farm and processed in its
butchery, according to Kate Stillman, farmer
and owner. In addition to the basics, Stillman
makes almost 150 flavors of sausage using
fresh seasonal ingredients.
Unique concepts include pork sausage with
red wine and rosemary, which is an Italian-type
sausage featuring local red wine and plenty of
rosemary and garlic, and fennel apricot. The
latter includes identifiable pieces of red onions,
apricots, garlic and roasted fennel and parsley.
Beet and blue cheese is a bright pink sausage.
It is made with roasted local beets and Jasper
Hill Baley Hazen Blue Cheese with a touch of
maple syrup.
The pork lemon scallion ginger sausage, a
flavor profile also used in a chicken sausage, is
made with pork shoulder from the company's
pasture-raised pigs and is loaded with
fresh ingredients, including cilantro,
jalapenos, fresh ginger and scallions.
The flavor packs a slight punch. It is
great cooked and eaten as is or used
as a starter ingredient for dumplings,
meatballs or rice bowls.
Many of Stillman's sausages are
seasonal specialties. The pork sweet
potato maple miso, for example, is a
part of the autumn line-up. Roasted
local sweet potatoes are combined
with maple syrup and miso for the
perfect salty sweet kick.
The corned beef and hash sausage
is one of the company's most popular
specialty sausages. It is made with
house-cured corned beef combined
with pasture-raised pork, potatoes
and greens. The visible greens make it
a St. Patrick's Day celebration staple,
according to Stillman.
For those who prefer poultry, one
of her signature recipes is a chicken
coconut lime sausage. It is made with
freshly ground white and dark meat
chicken, fresh lime juice and zest,
coconut milk, fresh chilis, cilantro and a
touch of brown sugar.
Stillman has also developed a
number of lamb-based sausages, which
she said are often the first to sell out at
retail locations. The barbacoa variety
is loaded with sweet smoky flavors from the
addition of fresh oranges, honey, cumin and
ancho chilis. There's also a seasonal garlic
kale lamb sausage made from local kale and
freshly roasted garlic, studded with pine nuts
and currants.
You won't find the artisan sausages from
Fossil Farms, Boonton, NJ, in any brick-andmortar
store. The company ships its specialty
meats direct to homes and works with chefs,
big and small, to help them diversify their
menus with healthy, sustainable alternatives
to conventional red meat. This includes
Farmer Focus is rolling out
three new pre-seasoned
chicken products just in
time for the Super Bowl.
www.meatpoultry.com | 02.23 | MEAT+POULTRY 71
http://www.meatpoultry.com
Meat+Poultry - February 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meat+Poultry - February 2023
