Shan sausage / Sai long phik (ရှမ်းဆောင်)
Pork sausage with fresh herbs of Shan State, Burmese cousin of the Thai sai ua. Grilled over charcoal and served with glutinous rice.
| Fatty pork, coarsely minced (shoulder) | 800 g |
| Pork fatback, diced | 100 g |
| Cooked glutinous rice | 50 g |
| Fine salt | 18 g |
| Fresh turmeric, grated | 10 g |
| Lemongrass, finely chopped (tender part) | 15 g |
| Fresh galangal, grated | 8 g |
| Kaffir lime leaves, shredded | 5 g |
| Shallots, chopped | 30 g |
| Garlic, crushed | 10 g |
| Fresh red chilli, chopped | 8 g |
| Fresh coriander, chopped | 15 g |
| Fish sauce (ngapi yay) | 15 ml |
| Hog casing (Ø 28–32 mm) | — |
- Preparing the spice paste: Pound in a mortar the turmeric, the lemongrass, the galangal, the kaffir lime leaves, the shallots, the garlic and the chilli to a coarse paste.
- Mincing: Mince the pork through the 8 to 10 mm plate. Keep a coarse texture.
- Mixing: Combine the minced pork, the diced fatback, the spice paste, the cooked glutinous rice, the coriander, the fish sauce and the salt. Knead three to four minutes.
- Resting: Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.
- Stuffing: Stuff into the hog casings, forming sausages of 10 to 15 cm or a continuous spiral.
- Cooking: Grill over charcoal at medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes, turning regularly. The skin should be golden and lightly crisp. Serve with glutinous rice, raw vegetables (cabbage, cucumber, long beans) and a chilli sauce.
The Shan sausage, called sai long phik in Shan State, is kin to the sai ua of Chiang Mai (see that entry) and shares the same aromatic herbs: turmeric, lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, shallots, garlic and chilli. The two preparations originate from a single cultural area, the Tai world, which extends from Chinese Yunnan to northern Thailand, via the Burmese Shan State and Laos.
Shan State, the largest in Myanmar, is a high plateau whose cooking is distinct from the Burmese cooking of the central plain: lighter, less fatty, more centred on fresh herbs and influenced by Thai and Yunnanese cuisines. Fresh turmeric (not powdered) and lemongrass play a structural role comparable to that of paprika in Hungarian charcuterie.
The cooked glutinous rice, added in small quantity, serves as a binder and favours a slight fermentation if the sausage is left to rest a few days before cooking (as in the Thai sai krok). The fish sauce (ngapi yay) replaces the salt. The frontier between the Shan sausage and the Thai sai ua is porous: it is the same product on either side of a political border that corresponds to no culinary one.
It is eaten grilled over charcoal, with glutinous rice and raw vegetables. On the night markets of Shan State, it is served in portions on banana leaves.
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