Tasty Linguica, Stay Home, Indulge In A Guilty Pleasure

April 25, 2020,

During an important business meeting we would never mention our guilty pleasures.

Family outings? Sometimes.

Church settings? If we’re repentant and only in secret.

At social gatherings? More than likely.

What has been one of our greatest guilty pleasures over the years?

We love linguiça. A lot. A ton. With what?

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At times, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Just depends on the day and how empty and well-functioning our stomach is.

We sense that you have heard of it and probably love it too, even if publicly you pride yourself on going vegan.

Most of the time.

Maybe some of the time.

This is not vegan. Not by far. By way of Portugal.

Linguiça, pronounced by many as lin-gwisee, is a form of smoke-cured pork sausage seasoned with garlic and paprika in Portugal and Brazil, as well as other lusophone countries.

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Linguiça, like many other sausages, is generally served as part of a heavy meal, often family cooked and typically accompanied by rice, spaghetti, beans, and other pork products.

Feijoada, for example, is a traditional Portuguese and Brazilian dish (considered Brazil national dish), also common in Brazil and Angola, that incorporates linguiça with beans, ham hocks, and other foods.

In Brazil, one variant is especially popular, the linguiça calabresa or simply calabresa, prepared originally with Calabrese pepper (nowadays with South American pepper) by Italian immigrants and particularly used in pizzas as a spicy sausage.

Its popularity compares with pepperoni in the United States. That says a lot.

Having explained the basics, it is time for our personal confession.

Let’s start with breakfast.

As we’ve often stated, we are from the Southern United States. Texas in particular.

Growing up we loved fried foods and that included sausage.

Those were the days where you could eat what you wanted and not be overly concerned about your health. Oh the beauty of being young.

Linguica is especially good with a hard cooked cheese omelet and green onions, along with buttered toast lightly covered in strawberry jam and some fresh squeezed orange juice. While we are here and temporarily off our vegan diet, we always have a mildly glazed cinnamon roll for dessert.

Lemon pastry too if we can get one.

Next week, maybe try it with some hot buttermilk pancakes. We certainly have.

Now please look at us with a straight face and tell us that doesn’t sound mouth-watering to you?

As we move to lunch time, there is nothing better in the world than having linguica with a zesty combination Italian pizza. Put all of it on. Salami, pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, onions and linguica. Yummy, yummy.

We can taste it melting in our mouths right now.

Now obviously we are not suggesting that you eat this every day or even every other day but every now and then, there is nothing that hits the spot better.

Especially if you are going to be home all day.

Did anyone say dinner yet?

On a different day, at dinner time, linguica nicely compliments beans and another form of sausage. Then you add buttery garlic bread, some mash potatoes, salad and a cherry coke and now you really have something. Once in a blue moon you would have a small slice of rich creamy chocolate cake for dessert.

Of course, as we stated, not every day, but life is short and every now and then, boy does this combo taste incredible. It really can hit the spot.

Didn’t we just say that?

Some great linguica makes you do a double take.

So, who has a reputation for making some great linguica in the United States?

At gasparssausage.com they are ready to serve you when you have the need and right now?

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We have the need.

They welcome, “The Gaspar Family has been delighting taste buds with authentic Portuguese Linguica & Chourico for more than 4 generations and GasparsSausage.com has been shipping it direct to your doorstep with outstanding customer service for more than 20 years.”

Sounds wonderful. We want to hear more about who is behind this.

They oblige, “When Manuel A. Gaspar emigrated from Portugal to the United States in 1912, he brought with him a desire for a better way of life, as well as his skill and recipes for making those traditional Portuguese smoked sausages (Linguica and Chourico).

Little did he realize then, that four generations later, the Gaspar family would still be making those delicious sausages according to his original recipe and standards of quality.”

We are so happy to hear that. So what’s their story?

They continue, “Here in Southeastern Massachusetts, the name Gaspar has become synonymous with sausage. Located on Faunce Corner Road in North Dartmouth, MA, the Gaspar Sausage Company Inc. has become the largest manufacturer of Portuguese sausage in the country, producing well over three million pounds each year.

Readily available at all major supermarket chains throughout New England, Gaspar’s Linguica and Chourico can also be found in parts of New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Florida and Bermuda.”

Very good to know.

In the online world, their product can be enjoyed throughout the United States by mail order so you might want to try that approach as well.

We have purchased ours at Walmart.

Here is their description: “Linguica, Vacuum-Packed 16 OZ Mild Portuguese brand sausage. Since 1923. The Portuguese brand sausage the whole world can enjoy! Nonfat dry milk added. US inspected and passed by Department of Agriculture. Recipes at: www.gasparssausage.com. Keep refrigerated. Cooking Suggestions: Always cook thoroughly. Fry, grill, broil, or bake; microwave on high for 2 minutes.”

So what are others saying about them? That always matters.

At businessfinder.masslive.com they provide a few reviews:

“Excellent meats. Went specifically for the Linguica, had it on pizza from Provincetown and loved it. So on a trip to Boston and the Cape we ventured to the store. Amazing people, very helpful.”

Here is another.

“Our family have enjoyed Gaspar’s linguica for more than fifty year. I am from the south shore of Boston and thought everyone knew Gaspar’s meats.”

We do now and we are very impressed. Now for one more.

“Not until I moved out of Southeastern Mass did I realize how dependent I was on linguica and chourico. In patty form, in sausage links, eaten on a bun or on a pizza or in chili or jambalaya.”

Well there you have it.

We love their linguica as well. With all of our heart.

We are feeling much better about our love for linguica. Over the years we can’t say enough how it has hit the spot. We have no illusions that it is not the healthiest food on the planet but every now and then you have to live a little.

Having some great linguica can make you feel like you are living large.

Indulging in a decadent guilty pleasure.