Skinless Chicken Longanisa (Chicken Sausage)

Aside from tocino, we Filipinos love longanisa. Either pork or chicken longanisa. With or without casing (skinless). We eat it especially with fried garlic rice and sunny side up egg (longsilog). Best eaten at breakfast, but nothing stops us from eating it for lunch or dinner. Spicy vinegar for dipping sauce, but some prefer to eat it with diced tomatoes. Either one works for me.

Longanisa or longaniza is a Spanish sausage. It is similar to chorizo. Best known longanisa in the Philippines are in Lucban, Quezon and northern provinces like Pampanga and Ilocos region. In fact, Vigan, a city in Ilocos Sur, holds a yearly Longanisa Festival. It is celebrated during The Vigan City Fiesta which is held starting January 25th every year and lasts for several days. The festival or fiesta is done to promote tourism in Ilocos provinces.

Longanisa tastes different from each region. For example, Vigan longanisa has garlic but yellow in color and the taste is similar to Mexican salami. It is sour and salty. While Lucban longanisa also has lots of garlic but is red in color due to spices added to it (achuete). Longanisa from Pampanga is sweeter in flavor.

This is my first attempt to make home made chicken longanisa. I didn't put preservatives or extenders because I want it to be as healthy as possible. When I was done wrapping it all, I thought of making it healthier by adding jicama (singkamas) or carrots. I plan to do that on my second batch of skinless chicken longanisa.

Here is the recipe for skinless chicken longanisa

Ingredients

1       lb              ground chicken
4       cloves      garlic, minced
2       tbsp          ketchup
1/4    cup           soy sauce
1/2    cup           brown sugar
2       tbsp          vinegar
1       tsp             salt
2       tsp             pepper
1       pc              whole egg
1/2    cup           all purpose flour

Plastic wrap or wax paper

Procedure

1. Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

2. Cut plastic wrap ( 3 inches by 4 inches)

3. Place 2 tbsp of the chicken mixture near the end of the wrap. Fold the wrap over the chicken. Fold on the sides.

4. Refigerate overnight.

5. To cook, heat 1/4 cup oil on a pan. Fry the longanisa until golden brown.

6. Serve with fried rice and sunny side up egg.