What to use instead of andouille sausage
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Smoked pork that seasons the whole pot
It is cured and smoked, so it gives up seasoned fat early and holds its texture through a two-hour simmer while the smoke and cayenne spread into the liquid.
Smoked kielbasa with cayenneRan out
1:1 by weight plus 1/2 tsp cayenne per lb
Same smoke and snap with garlic and marjoram where the Cajun spice was, which is what the cayenne is putting back.
Spanish cured chorizoRan out
1:1 by weight
Stains the pot red and brings a strong pimenton flavour, and it renders more fat, so skim before serving.
Linguica or Portuguese chouricoRan out
1:1 by weight
Sweeter with more garlic and wine behind it, and it goes slightly softer over a long simmer.
Smoked turkey sausage with added oilRan out
1:1 by weight plus 1 tbsp oil per lb
Far leaner, so the pot loses the fat that carries the flavour. The pieces stay firm and never soften.
What doesn't work: Fresh Italian sausage. It is raw, unsmoked and loosely bound, so it breaks apart into the pot, muddies the broth with fennel, and leaves you with no smoke anywhere in the dish.
Sliced sausage seared for browned edges
The cure keeps it firm enough to take a hard sear without shrinking away from the pan, and the sugar in the cure browns fast.
Smoked kielbasa, sliced on the biasRan out
1:1 by weight
Browns the same, tastes milder and more garlicky, and the slices curl less in the pan.
FrankfurtersRan out
1:1 by weight
Much softer with no snap once sliced, and they brown faster from the added sugar. No heat at all.
Spanish chorizo, dicedRan out
1:1 by weight
Renders a lot of orange fat that colours everything in the pan, and the pieces stay chewier.
Smoked tofu or plant sausagePlant-based
1:1 by weight plus 1 tbsp oil and 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Browns well but nothing renders out to flavour the pan, and the texture is uniform right through with no snap.
What doesn't work: Raw ground pork rolled into pieces. With no cure and no casing it sheds water, greys before it browns, and falls apart the first time you move it.
Fresh coarse sausage that stays whole in a long bake
A coarsely ground fresh sausage in a natural casing holds together through hours in the oven while giving its fat to the beans around it.
Fresh bratwurstRan out
1:1 by weight
Finer grind and milder, with nutmeg and mace coming through, so the beans taste more German than French.
Sweet fresh Italian sausageRan out
1:1 by weight
Fennel comes through strongly and the finer grind goes softer, so the pieces break when you serve.
Cooked garlic sausageRan out
1:1 by weight, added in the last 45 minutes
Already cooked, so a full bake dries it out. Firmer and saltier than fresh sausage.
Morcilla or blood sausageRan out
1/2 lb per 1 lb fresh sausage, added late
It breaks down and thickens the beans into a dark, iron-tasting gravy, which is why it goes in at half the weight.
What doesn't work: Smoked andouille in a cassoulet. It is fully cured, so it never gives its fat up to the beans the way a fresh sausage does, and the smoke flattens the confit and the pork underneath it.