Huge Culinary News! Conecuh Sausage Comes to Washington

Conecuh Sausage is the very best smoked sausage in the world, and now it’s available in Washington! I’ve written about Conecuh Sausage before here, and about the Fan Club here. Tip: Go to Mobile for Mardi Gras this year. Fan club founder David Webb throws packs of Conecuh Sausage to the crowd.

This wonderful news comes thanks to the estimable Allan Glennon, my new best friend. His comment on an unrelated post that the Harris Teeter on Kalorama Road in DC was selling both original and hickory smoked Conecuh Sausage. I immediately hopped in my car and drove down to Kalorama and beheld the sausage in situ.

I grabbed one of each type and hurried back to the checker who’d directed me to the sausage. The Kalorama Harris Teeter, having been squeezed into built space in a crowded urban location, has something of a labyrinthine quality. I thanked her profusely and, seeing my excitement, she said she was going to buy some.

Why is this a big deal? Some time back I started to have some shipped up here from Evergreen, Alabama, where it’s made, and found that the shipping charge alone for six packs was $120. That was back when postage stamps cost a half buck. Did you know they’re now 73 cents? I had no idea. I’ve been able to find it in grocery stores as close as North Carolina. Imagine having to drive all the way to North Carolina for a good bottle of wine, a fine steak, or a great whole hog barbecue. Oh, yeah. I have to do that now, but still. It’s also available in PXs in military bases all across the country, and I’ve occasionally been able to persuade active duty and retired military to pick some up for me, but I hate to impose. Being able to pick it up at the Teeter is a game changer.

There are several types of Conecuh Sausage — the original, hickory smoked, cajun, spicy and hot, black pepper, and all natural/no msg. All of them as well as bacon, hams, and turkeys are hickory smoked in Evergreen, the best smelling town on earth. They also make hot dogs, which I imagine are a serious cut above. In addition to the beautiful smoke flavor, the sausages all boast standout seasonings. The Cajun is seasoned for serious people in South Louisiana. I haven’t had the hot and spicy yet, but when I get some I’ll approach it with respect.

I cook Conecuh Sausage on the grill — I think I’ll probably do that tonight — and on the stove in cast iron. It’s good on bread or in a bun. I use it in red beans and rice, shrimp and grits, and Rusty’s uses it to season greens to wonderful effect. Now that I have a potentially unlimited supply, I can expand to use Conecuh instead of chorizo in this recipe, and any time I make anything that would be better with smoked sausage. — stews, omelets, cornbread, gumbo, you name it.

I’m hopeful that all area Harris Teeters will now have Conecuh Sausage. Please check the one nearest you and let me know. UPDATE: Conecuh Sausage is also available at the Harris Teeters in Bethesda and Herndon. And do whatever you have to do to get ahold of some. Try it. It will fill your life with joy.

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