Homage to the Swiss sausage

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X-rayed bangers: under a baggage scanner the sausages appear orange, the same colour as explosives ROTH SCHMID

Popular fairground fayre ROTH SCHMID

The cervelat is a popular snack for construction workers ROTH SCHMID

Thanks to the cervelat, many Swiss children got their first experience of learning to build a camp fire outdoors ROTH SCHMID

Grilling a cervelat is an art which demands patience. The ends must also be properly cut in order to cook ROTH SCHMID

Between 2006-2012, it was forbidden to import Brazilian cows. This led to fears for the future of the cervelat as Brazilian cows' intestines are used to encase the nation's favourite sausage. This work by artist Hans Stäubl, "Serment du Grütli", dates from this period. Hano Stäubli

Butcher Jean-Pierre Corpataux also paints, and puts the cervelat at the centre of his work ROTH SCHMID

Numerous recipes exist using cervelats including the cervelat cordon bleu ROTH SCHMID

The cervelat exists in different sizes and colours, and can have different tastes according to the ingredients ROTH SCHMID

The skin is important for the quality. In the photo, cow intestines are being filled with air to select them according to size ROTH SCHMID

During preparation the intestines are washed with water and seasoned ROTH SCHMID

A butcher checks the quality of his secret sausage recipe ROTH SCHMID

The intestines are filled with meat ROTH SCHMID

Cervelats are heated and smoked in an oven for just under two hours ROTH SCHMID

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Switzerland's favourite sausage, the cervelat, is a national icon. A new book published on Swiss National Day, August 1, takes a look at the popular Swiss banger, which enjoys universal popularity across the country. 

The Swiss produce different kinds of sausages but none are as famous as the cervelat, which evokes childhood memories of smoky barbeques. The traditional Swiss way of cooking a cervelat is to cut a cross shape on each end and to grill the sausage using a wooden skewer. As the meat sizzles and the skin turns dark brown you know it’s ready when the two extremities start to open up like a flower. It’s almost a sensual experience. 

Cervelats first appeared in 1900 at the time of the Exposition Universelle World Fair in Paris, where it was served as a Swiss delicacy. Today some 160 million cervelats, weighing 25,000 tonnes, are consumed raw, fried or grilled every year in Switzerland, which has a population of eight million. They make up around 30% of the Swiss meat industry’s sausage output.

(Images: ROTH SCHMID/AS Verlag, Text: Gaby Ochsenbein/swissinfo.ch)