Smoked Andouille Sausage

Ingredient Spotlight

Fresh andouille sausage links

Andouille is a coarse-textured, smoked pork sausage with French roots that became a staple of Cajun and Creole cooking in Louisiana; it’s typically garlicky, smoky and a bit peppery. You’ll find it at specialty butcher shops, the deli/meat counter of many grocery stores (especially in regions with Southern or Cajun influences), or in the refrigerated sausage aisle. If you can’t find andouille, good substitutes are smoked kielbasa or other smoked pork sausages for the texture and smoke, or a spicy smoked Italian sausage or chorizo if you want more heat.

Ingredient Spotlight

Smoked paprika

Smoked paprika (Spanish pimentón) is made from peppers dried over oak fires, giving it a distinct smoky, sweet and slightly earthy flavor that’s different from regular sweet paprika. It’s sold in the spice aisle or the international/Spanish section of most supermarkets and online. If you don’t have it, substitute with regular paprika plus a pinch of chipotle powder or a few drops of liquid smoke, or combine sweet paprika with smoked salt to mimic the smoky character.

Ingredient Spotlight

Pecan or hickory wood chips

Wood chips are small chunks of hardwood used in grills and smokers to generate smoke and impart flavor—pecan chips give a mild, sweet, nutty smoke while hickory provides a strong, bacon-like, robust smoke. You can buy them at BBQ specialty stores, garden centers, big-box retailers, or online; they’re different from cooking spices and are used in the smoker’s water pan or in a smoker box. If you don’t have wood chips, substitute with other fruit woods like apple or cherry for milder smoke, mesquite for very strong smoke, or use liquid smoke sparingly when actual smoking isn’t possible.