Sai Ua
A herb-packed grilled sausage genuinely shared between Laos and northern Thailand's historical Lanna Kingdom, with 15th-century court-food documentation in Lanna alongside separate accounts tracing the dish to Laos and northeastern Myanmar — a real shared heritage across the wider Tai-speaking cultural zone, not a single-country invention. Real sai ua is intestine-cased and herb-dense, packed with lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, and cilantro root, giving it a distinctly aromatic profile unlike Western sausages; substituting dried herbs or pre-mixed Western sausage spice loses that defining character entirely.
Meat
⚠ Contains: Fish. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
Ingredients
- 800g ground pork, with some fat
- Natural sausage casing (or form into patties)
- 3 stalks lemongrass, minced
- 3 slices galangal, minced
- 5 kaffir lime leaves, minced
- Cilantro root, minced
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 shallots
- 4 dried red chiles
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
Steps
- Pound or blend the lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaf, cilantro root, garlic, shallot, and chiles into a fragrant paste.
- Mix thoroughly into the ground pork with the fish sauce.
- Stuff into casings and twist into links, or form into patties if casing is unavailable.
- Grill or char-roast over charcoal until browned and cooked through, turning often.