[Sca-cooks] white sausages

[Terry Decker]

Boudin appears to derive from the Latin "botellus"  (meaning "small 
sausage") a diminutive of "botulus" which may mean "sausage, blood sausage, 
or entrails" depending on context.  The Old French "boudin" appears to 
enters Middle English via Norman French as "pudding," specifically as "black 
pudding" or blood sausage.  Over time the term pudding expands to a range of 
sweet and savory dishes some no longer packed in a sausage casing.  The 
usage for both pudding and boudin expanded into a general usage with the 
meaning more precisely defined by context or modifiers.  Ergo, boudin blanc 
and boudin noir, etc.  There is an close historical overlap of about 300 
years between Old French and Middle English.  Unfortunately I don't have the 
etymologic dictionaries available to delve into the contextual definitions 
in Old French although I suspect they may closely relate to those of 
"botulus."

Bear


This is a question I've been asking myself for year. Normally "boudin" is
blood sausage. Why do they still call it "boudin", and not simply
"sausage", if there's no blood (as in boudin blanc)?