Longanisa is probably familiar among those sausage enthusiasts since this Filipino’s unique sausage has traveled around the world. The use of minched meat in Longanisa instead of ground meat making this flavorful sausage popular and tried by millions of people.
While the origina version of longanisa was made with pork intestines, today you can have better, safer and healthier options of longanisa made from beef and chicken. You know that eating pork is all bad so this is much better to totally replace the original version.
As a type of sausage, longanisa is not good for health especially when it consumed regularly and continously. However, there are still some benefits that your body can enjoy because longanisa is not bad as a whole.
 Longanisa Nutrition
- Saturated Fat 15.0g
- Sodium 220.0mg
- Cholesterol 40.0mg
- Carbohydrate 13.0g
- Sugars 11.0g
- Protein 7.0g
From the list above it is clear that longanisa is very high in fat and carbohydrate, which is not good for those doing a diet. Also, it contains sodium, cholesterol and sugar in a huge enough amount to ruin your health. The only good benefit from this sausagee is the protein content altough it has only 7 grams in one serving.
Health Benefits of Longanisa
- It Is High in Protein
Considering that longanisa is mostly made of meat, this food is surely rich in the protein content, allowing you to feel full without eating more carbohydrates. Eating longanisa for breakfast might be good to boost up your energy since it is also high in calories and fats.
These components can make you energizing to head up the day. Moreover, there are also some nutritional benefits of breakfast sausage that your body can reap.
- It Provides Selenium
Most products containing meat mostly contains high level of selenium, which is vital for your health. Selenium plays an important role in fighting the free radicals by creating antioxidants in your body. By Supplying your body with the right amount of selenium you can keep your health away from diseases.
- It is Rich in Thiamine
Another reason why eating longanisa for breakfast is good for you is because of the thiamine content. Thiamine aids your body boosting energy by converting the foods you eat. Also, it makes your body work better in absorbing certain types of amino acids. Eating longanisa with beans or lentis would even boost more thiamine to your body.
This food combination is especially recommended for breastfeeding and pregnant women who need more thiamin intake. However, you may need to make your own homemade sausage because the benefits of homemade sausage are even more amazing. Â
- It Boosts Vitamin B-12 Intake
Not only thiamine, but also vitamin B-12 are required by pregnant and breastfeeding women. This vitamin helps regulating your nerve function and using the iron in your body properly.Â
Cautions
Longanisa is indeed filled with benefits. However if you look closer to the nutrition above, you will find out that the drawbacks of eating longanisa is a lot. First it is high in fat, which is surely inappropriate for those who are on a diet.
Health benefits of skinless turkey breast that contain very low fat are better for your option. The worst part of eating longanisa is that you supply your body with high amount of sodium, preservatives and cholesterol. You know all of these can trigger many kinds of diseasese in your body. The good things from the meat are covered by those many side effects from eating the food. Â
Recommended Intake
It is very recommended to eat only a few of longanisa or any other types of sausage. You need more than just eating in moderation, but you need to eat it just when you want it the most instead. For a much better option you can make your own longanisa by using fresh minched meat and adding some spices without adding too much sugar and salt.
Homemade longanisa is better because you have no preservatives and you can control all of the ingredients put inside. If you really need a boost of energy in the morning, why dont you try turkey sandwich? The health benefits of turkey sandwich are quite abundant and it can keep you full until your lunch.
The conclusion is that anything related with processed foods are bad for health. Fresh ingredients are always best for health. It doesn’t mean that longanisa is bad, but as long as you make it right using the right meat and spices you are safe.
Use skinless chicken or beef for making your own longanisa and enjoy it for breakfast, or you can even try another type of unique food such as Vietnamese sandwich because many health benefits of Vietnamese sandwich could be good for your overall health. Again, remember to always use the right meat, not pork but chicken or beef instead.