What is the difference between sausage and ground meat?

[BamiaWruz]

Ok this has been on my mind for a long time and I've tried to search but have had no success

What is the difference between sausage and ground meat?
Not taking about the stuff in casings, but when you see them cooking with sausage on a show and it's just like browning fatty ground meat, what is it exactly?

Is it seasoned ground meat with extra fat in it?

[ZenSojourner]

You nailed it.

[Euonymous]

"The less the people know about how sausages and laws are made, the better they sleep in the night. "

If you must know, sausage is ground meat, fat, salt, pepper, and other spices. Which meat, seasonings, and proportions you use depend on the type of sausage you want to make.

When you see people cooking with sausage that's not in a casing, it's probably just because they're using fresh (un-aged) sausage that they've squeezed out of the casing beforehand

[BamiaWruz]

What kind of fat is mixed with the meat , or what part of the animal? Does it have a name and how do I go about making some sausage for recipes (like on pizza ..etc.)?

[goodhealthgourmet]

it honestly depends on the recipe. you can get away without adding fat if you're starting with fatty meat. here are a couple of different recipes to get you started - one with fat, one without:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/breakfast-sausage-recipe/index.html
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/breakfast-sausage/Detail.aspx

*however,* you mentioned pizza, and that usually gets spicy Italian sausage spices. not sure if you like it that way, but this one (surprisingly from Cooking Light magazine) is popular:
http://bookcook.blogspot.com/2007/01/...

[BamiaWruz]

Thank you so much!!
I will try the recipes. I thank you all for your replies, the confusion over sausage is over.

[Cherylptw]

Yep, sausage can be made out of any type of ground meat; it needs fat to keep from drying out and seasonings for flavor. I make my own chicken and turkey sausage without the casings

[goodhealthgourmet]

you pretty much answered your own question. assuming you're talking about something like basic breakfast sausage, it's often a combination of meats (e.g. beef and pork), plus seasonings and fat.