Spotty's Little Known Facts

[Montreal Wanderer]

there was an old clown who lived in blissful ignorance
i don't know why he chose to live in blissful ignorance
perhaps he'll die?

One sincerely hopes not. Die that is.

[bobo the clown]

there was an old clown who lived in blissful ignorance
i don't know why he chose to live in blissful ignorance
perhaps he'll die?

One sincerely hopes not. Die that is.

Ooooh, I will .... sooner or later.

I'm resigned to that.

[Bruce Rioja]

there was an old clown who lived in blissful ignorance
i don't know why he chose to live in blissful ignorance
perhaps he'll die?

[thebish]

there was an old clown who lived in blissful ignorance
i don't know why he chose to live in blissful ignorance
perhaps he'll die?

don't worry - bobo knows what i mean!

[Lord Kangana]

Isn't this harassment, you know like those wimin on Twatter got? It is really, isn't it?

[thebish]

^ troll! go and poach some eggs!

[bwfcdan94]

there was an old clown who lived in blissful ignorance
i don't know why he chose to live in blissful ignorance
perhaps he'll die?

One sincerely hopes not. Die that is.

Ooooh, I will .... sooner or later.

I'm resigned to that.

I am sure you still have many rants about the Welsh left in you Bobo.

[Lost Leopard Spot]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

[Bruce Rioja]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

So not much different to today's supermarket sausages then, Spotty?!

[thebish]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

away with you and your socialistic claptrap theories!

[Lost Leopard Spot]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

away with you and your socialistic claptrap theories!

I didn't tell you, did I - earlier, about 1450, they were initially called footsausages to distinguish them from quail's eggs and fairy cakes.

[thebish]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

away with you and your socialistic claptrap theories!

I didn't tell you, did I - earlier, about 1450, they were initially called footsausages and only eaten by the proletariat to distinguish them from toff food like quail's eggs and fairy cakes.

that's more like it!!

[bobo the clown]

Communists. Communists, the lot of you.

[Montreal Wanderer]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

Old cars were named bangers for much the same reason. However the second world war etymology has to be challenged since the word was in common parlance long before then. OED's first noted usage is 1919.

Wikipedia acknowledges this

Although it is sometimes stated that the term "bangers" has its origins in World War II, the term was actually in use at least as far back as 1919.[1] The term "bangers" is attributed[by whom?] to the fact that sausages, particularly the kind made during World War II under rationing, were made with water so they were more likely to explode under high heat if not cooked carefully; modern sausages do not have this attribute.

Perhaps it was in WW1.

[Bruce Rioja]

Wikipedia acknowledges that? Oh well.................

[Montreal Wanderer]

Wikipedia acknowledges that? Oh well.................

Sorry, Wiki acknowledged that the Oxford English Dictionary was correct and the WW2 claim is spurious. OED is the reliable source.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I'd also add that many modern sausages still contain water, some contain a fair bit. The ones I make contain...

Pork leg (5-10% fat) 75.01%
Home made rusk 7.50%
Iced water 14.99%
Seasoning 2.50%

As I put very little fat in my sausages, the water and rusk are very important if I don't want a dry sausage. Experts will argue that I should have more fat, but I find mine to be succulent and tasty and with less fat I'm sowing down my fat bastardness

[Lost Leopard Spot]

It's a little known fact why sausages are called bangers, but during the second world war because of the scarcity of ingredients, their high water content caused them to quite often explode as the water turned to steam in the process of grilling them.

Edit: I learnt that today, courtesy of the Times.

Old cars were named bangers for much the same reason. However the second world war etymology has to be challenged since the word was in common parlance long before then. OED's first noted usage is 1919.

Wikipedia acknowledges this

Although it is sometimes stated that the term "bangers" has its origins in World War II, the term was actually in use at least as far back as 1919.[1] The term "bangers" is attributed[by whom?] to the fact that sausages, particularly the kind made during World War II under rationing, were made with water so they were more likely to explode under high heat if not cooked carefully; modern sausages do not have this attribute.

Perhaps it was in WW1.

There were antecedents* to the bangers of WWII, but in the main it was WWII rationing that caused the sausages to explode.
*WWI sausages contained less water than WWII sausages because rationing only took place late in the war in 1917 and was mainly confined to luxury goods.
The bangers of WWI were so known by soldiers who noted that some sausages exploded in a similar manner to the German handgrenades also known by the Tommies as bangers. The reason why the WWI sausages exploded was to do with the manner of cooking them on top of a shovel - due to the nature of this improvised pan the sausages were not routinely turned (as they tended to roll off into the mud if disturbed) and therefore the distribution of steam within individual sausages occasionally caused one to explode if and when it was turned.
It was the old soldiers of WWI that are generally regarded as spreading the nickname bangers during WWII when the much inferior WWII sausages started regularly exploding.
The Times article did make it clear that bangers was a name generally given during WWII, and did not claim the nickname originated then. I abbreviated the explanation in order to convey the nub of the reasoning as to why they are called bangers (my fault for being too concise).
And by the way Monty, not only old cars, but also exploding fireworks, ugly prostitutes, long-term prisoners (in South Africa) and gang members (in USA) are also known as bangers.

[bobo the clown]

I'd also add that many modern sausages still contain water, some contain a fair bit. The ones I make contain...

Pork leg (5-10% fat) 75.01%
Home made rusk 7.50%
Iced water 14.99%
Seasoning 2.50%

As I put very little fat in my sausages, the water and rusk are very important if I don't want a dry sausage. Experts will argue that I should have more fat, but I find mine to be succulent and tasty and with less fat I'm sowing down my fat bastardness

Iced water 14.99%

Impressive. Not 15% ... nor 14.98% ... but 14.99%. It that which makes the difference.

... oh, and that it's iced.

Of course.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I'd also add that many modern sausages still contain water, some contain a fair bit. The ones I make contain...

Pork leg (5-10% fat) 75.01%
Home made rusk 7.50%
Iced water 14.99%
Seasoning 2.50%

As I put very little fat in my sausages, the water and rusk are very important if I don't want a dry sausage. Experts will argue that I should have more fat, but I find mine to be succulent and tasty and with less fat I'm sowing down my fat bastardness

Iced water 14.99%

Impressive. Not 15% ... nor 14.98% ... but 14.99%. It that which makes the difference.

... oh, and that it's iced.

Of course.

The peril of using a spreadsheet for my calculations. Given my scales don't do decimal places it is likely that the real water content is between 14-16 percent. Iced water as a cold mixture is much easier to put in skins than a warm one (the water makes the mixture sticky).