Every Viennese sausage stand sells a dozen things, and a great many customers order the same one. The Käsekrainer is a lightly smoked pork sausage studded with small cubes of cheese, usually Emmental, which melt as it heats and seep out in little golden blisters wherever the skin gives way. It is a surprisingly young classic, born in Upper Austria around the turn of the 1970s and carried to fame once the city's stands installed grills, which suited it far better than a pot of simmering water. Millions are eaten in Austria every year, and it has become the order most people picture when they think of the stands.

The proper order is one sausage, sliced or whole, with a pool of mustard, a pinch of freshly grated horseradish and a thick slice of bread to push it all around the paper plate. Stand owners prick the skin on purpose so the cheese escapes and fries into crisp lace, a small act of sabotage that improves the product enormously.

Making sausage at home sounds like a project for people who own a smoker and a cellar. This version needs neither. The meat is blended smooth in a food processor, rolled into plastic wrap and gently poached, then browned on the grill, so you get the snap of the crust and the molten cheese without casings or special machinery.

The sausage mixture

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lb (680 g) boneless pork shoulder
• 1/2 lb (225 g) pork fatback or fatty pork belly without skin
• 1/2 cup (120 g) crushed ice
• 2 1/2 teaspoons (15 g) fine sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 g) pink curing salt (Prague powder number 1)
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/4 teaspoon ground mace or nutmeg
• 2 garlic cloves
• 5 oz (140 g) Emmental cheese

Method

1. Spread the pork and fat cubes on a plate and put them in the freezer for 20 minutes along with the food processor bowl and blade. If you are using ground pork, spread it flat on a plate and chill it the same way.
2. Put the cold pork and fat into the food processor with the sea salt, curing salt if using, white pepper, smoked paprika, marjoram, mace and garlic. Pulse 10 to 12 times until the meat is finely chopped, scraping down the sides once with a spatula.
3. Add the crushed ice and run the processor for 1 to 2 minutes, stopping twice to scrape down the bowl. The ice keeps the mixture cold while the blade turns it into a smooth paste. Check the temperature with the thermometer; it must stay below 55°F (13°C). If it creeps higher, put the whole bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes and continue.
4. Scrape the paste into the mixing bowl and add the cheese cubes. Fold them through with the spatula until they are evenly spread, without mashing them. Fry a teaspoon of the mixture in a small pan for 2 minutes and taste it, then add a pinch more salt to the bowl if it needs it.

Shaping and poaching

Ingredients

• 1 roll of plastic wrap

Method

1. Tear off a 12 inch (30 cm) sheet of plastic wrap and lay it on the counter. Spoon an eighth of the mixture, about 1/3 cup, in a line along the edge nearest you and shape it with wet fingers into a log about 6 inches (15 cm) long and 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick. Roll the wrap tightly around it, then hold both ends and roll the log along the counter so the ends twist up like a candy wrapper. Tie each end in a knot. Repeat to make 8 sausages.
2. Fill the wide pot with water and heat it until it reaches 170°F (77°C) on the thermometer. That is well below a simmer: a few tiny bubbles on the bottom of the pot and steam on the surface, but no bubbling. Adjust the heat to hold it there.
3. Lower the wrapped sausages into the water and poach them for 20 to 25 minutes, turning them once with the tongs. Check one by unwrapping an end slightly and pushing the thermometer into the center; it must read 160°F (71°C).
4. Lift the sausages into the bowl of ice water and leave them for 10 minutes. Snip off the knotted ends with scissors and peel away the plastic wrap. Pat them dry with paper towels. Use them now, or keep them covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Grilling and serving

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) neutral oil
• 1/2 cup (120 g) sharp mustard
• a 2 inch (5 cm) piece fresh horseradish root
• 4 thick slices dark rye bread or crusty white bread
• 8 small pickled peppers or gherkins

Method

1. Heat the grill or grill pan to medium, or set the heavy skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Brush the grill bars with oil if you are using a grill.
2. Prick each sausage 4 or 5 times with the fork. Lay them on the grill or in the pan and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, turning every 2 minutes with the tongs, until they are browned all over and heated right through. Let the cheese that bubbles out stay where it lands for a minute so it crisps before you turn the sausage.
3. While the sausages cook, grate the horseradish on the fine grater straight onto a small plate. Do it at the last moment, because it loses its heat within 15 minutes, and keep your face away from the grater; the fumes are strong.
4. Put two sausages on each plate, either whole or sliced on a slant into thick coins. Add a generous spoonful of mustard, a pinch of horseradish, a slice of bread and a pickled pepper or two.

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