A dish from my childhood, this Indian style sausage curry was a staple while growing up. A comfort dish that’s super delicious, easy to make and has now become a favourite with my son too.
Often people ask me the question, ‘who is your biggest inspiration to cook?’ And I have always answered blindly – my mom. The truth is that I have never really sat down and thought about it. But finally I did and the answers surprised me.
My biggest inspiration to cook comes from myself. My mom has never directly influenced me to cook, let alone get into the kitchen. She grew up as a tomboy and got into cooking only after marriage. And everything she has learnt since is self-taught. She never turned to her own mum for culinary advice nor did she have a mother-in-law in her new home. And so she believes that no one needs to be taught cooking – you learn it when you have to cook and if you have the passion for it.
Having said that, my talent for cooking comes from my mother. It is purely genetic and all who have sampled my mum’s cooking will completely agree to this. In fact, my entire creative gene comes from my mother. Like I already mentioned my mum is a completely self-taught woman, a hardworking, courageous woman who might not have gone to college but can easily hold a conversation with anyone on any subject. Her desire and quest for knowledge is infectious – the singular trait that she has always tried to instill in her daughters. She taught us to be strong, be confident, be proud of being a woman and never take ‘no’ for an answer.
And now when I have started a food blog, I know she secretly feels proud of it. She does not understand blogging and its technicalities but she is super proud that her daughter is doing something creative and letting the world see her talents. But I also hear and feel the twinge of regret in her voice that she has never been able to take her talent (which is so much more than what I have) to the world and achieve something of her own. And even though I know she will never read this blog post, I still want to tell her that all I know about cooking or understanding flavours come from you, albeit indirectly, for you have always paved the way for me, pushed boundaries and I will always be proud to say, ‘my cooking journey began as your little assistant.’
My mom hates posing for photographs and I have very few with her and this one is most precious of all….on my wedding day just before entering church. A priceless moment for me!
Hence today’s dish had to be something from my childhood. It is an Indian style sausage curry that my mum used to make often while we lived in the Middle East.
Frozen sausages were commonly available in those days but it was a totally foreign ingredient for my mum and she came up with this Indian style curry using sausages which goes amazingly well with hot phulkas. I have lost count of the number of people who has learnt this dish from her including her own daughters.
You can use any type of sausage that you want but it’s the skinless hot dogs that work best for this dish. If you are using flavoured ones, then remember that it adds to the flavour of the final dish so make sure that you pair the spices accordingly. Though we usually have this sausage curry with Indian breads like phulkas/chappathis, I did try it out as a sandwich filling and the result was lip smacking.
Also, check out these delicious sausage recipes that are a staple in our home…
- Spanish style Sausage and Potato Bake
- Hot Cross Bun Sliders with Sausage and Fried Eggs
- Cajun spiced Sausages
- Spaghetti, Chicken Sausages and White Sauce
So here’s the recipe for an Indian style sausage curry; classic Indian flavours of sweet, spicy and aromatic.
Indian style Sausage Curry
Ingredients
- Skinless hot dogs/sausages – 8
- Spanish onion – 3 finely sliced
- Garlic – 2 cloves crushed
- Ginger – ½ inch grated
- Curry leaves – 1-2 sprigs
- Ripe red tomato – 2 large finely sliced
- Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
- Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
- Coriander powder – 1 tsp
- Cumin powder – ½ tsp
- Salt – to season
- Vegetable oil – to shallow fry sausages
- Fresh coriander leaves – 3 tbsp finely chopped
Instructions
- Slice the sausage into medium sized pieces (round pieces); heat 2-3 tbsp oil in a pan and lightly fry the sausages. Keep aside.
- In the same pan, heat more vegetable oil (if necessary) and add the sliced onions. Saute for 5 minutes.
- Add the ginger, garlic, curry leaves and sauté till the onions are light brown.
- Once browned, add the spice powders and sauté for another minute on low heat.
- Add the tomatoes and sauté till a mushy consistency is reached.
- Add ½ cup water, bring to boil and season with salt. Remember that sausages have salt in it so add accordingly.
- Add the sausages and cook on medium heat till done. Garnish with coriander leaves.
Hi Dhanya…
I am so thankful for this recipe because through this I found how much I enjoy cooking. Every inch was a beautiful experience. The slicing, sauteing.. Though I know that this recipe is simple, it was inspiring simple and the end result was just simply tasty. You would be delighted to know that my whole family devoured it..
I love your story, cos it is inspiring and it emanates from your recipes..
Keep sharing and cheers!
Thanks so much Suha; really appreciate your feedback. This is a very special recipe for me and I am glad your whole family enjoyed it. Eid Mubarak
Dear mam, i was looking for some awesome sausage dishes when i found urs. i plan to make it on Christmas for dinner along with brownies & surprise my mum cuz she is exactly like ur mum except being a tomboy. i am trying to learn cooking by watching youtube video,but i take inspiration from mum. i am in college now (first year). so time to time i try making something new. recently i made penne pasta, it was delicious and my mum praised me too.
i just wanted to ask that can i either skip the garlic cloves or replace it with something else cuz i have been avoided from eating it for few months so could u please help me?
i promise to send u reply after i make it on Christmas. will be following ur post from time to time.
Thanks for all your compliments and great to hear that you want to make your mom feel special. You can skip the garlic by all means; should not make too much of a difference and if you wish, you can add a pinch of hing when you add the other spices. Just a pinch….
Aw, what a touching story about your mother. It’s so sweet that you care about her so much. :^)
The recipe looks great – can I substitute the chicken sausages with normal sausages though, as we’re not fans of chicken sausage?
Thanks Ryu; in fact I just b0ught sausages today to make this again. You can use any sausages you wish to; there will be a flavour difference based on the meat but the recipe largely remains same.
This post is really sweet. What’s funny is it has a lot of parallels with my life as well. My mother also has a very similar recipie except she adds potatoes as well! And she used to make it all the time when I was kid growing up in dubai. I was really missing home today and asked my mother for her recipie, but before she could reply to me via messages, I found your post online. Thank you so much for making my day! Di
I think every Indian kid who lived in Dubai would have fond memories of this dish. Glad to hear that you came across this recipe and so with you when you say that you are missing your mom sweetie. I am missing mine too….
Great recipe. This is something I’m surely going to try soon.
Awesome; hope you enjoy it Smita
I tried this! Turned out great! Thanks for the caution about sausages containing salt! Such tips help a great deal! My parents enjoyed the meal. Many thanks and warm regards. 🙂
Thanks so much for your feedback Gretta; so happy to hear that your family enjoyed it.
beautiful post and recipe 🙂
Thanks so much Rani
Wauh!quez what!have started doing your recipes and my family and I are loving it all,fantastic thnx girl
Thanks so much Ellah; the best compliment I can get.
Beautiful post! I am pinning your recipe too to try later.
thanks Nina
Looking very pretty both of you 🙂 And awesome tribute to Mom!!
thanks dear. I was planning to write to you anyway about the guest post. My email id is [email protected] ; its better to mail each other when u send in the recipe and pics. Also I would like to get to know u better so a brief of your life and your foray into food blogging would be lovely.
thanks dear.. I am working on my post 🙂 I ll mail you soon 🙂
while taking pics, try to capture a few of the preparation stages too which will help readers.
i will mail you before monday afternoon 🙂 was having a busy week at work.. sry…
hey that’s ok, absolutely no problem.
Done!! Check your mail <3
lovely, will get back to you soon.
the write up about your mom…..brought a lump to my throat babe. so straight from the heart and touching. To bring up such a lovely kid like you….she surely is an awesome mom by example. The sausage dish…..just like all your other dishes….simple…wholesome and utterly yum. Thanks Dhanya….reading this…at the end of a terribly hectic…and not so good day…..has calmed me no end. Love u babe.
thanks again dear
Lovely post!
thanks
Beautiful and touching post Dhanya! I have the similar kind of story so I kind of know how you feel about inheriting from mom but not learning directly from her. Awesome gorgeous pictures and surely a delish dish. I might try with veg sausages ;).
thanks Sonal…and would love to hear ur story too. and yes, u must try out a veg option.
🙂
Yum! We have a similar masala sausage recipe ?
its lovely to have curried sausages, isn’t it?
I spent a few years growing up and living in the middle east, Dubai particulary and I have distinct memories of sausage curries at the local “Malayali cafeterias”!
Having moved away four years ago, I had been looking for a good curried sausage recipe until I came across your blog last year. I have used your recipe a couple of times now and it is absolutely amazing! Thank you for sharing. Recipes like yours are among the few things that bring us joy in these uncertain times.
Thanks, Vanyadhanya!
That’s great. I know this dish is a shared memory for a lot of Indians who have lived in the Middle East. Always brings back a lot of memories for me. Glad to hear you enjoyed it too.
Nice post!!
thanks