This includes sausages that are uncooked and ones that are cooked once but need recooking or reheating. Most are made of raw pork, veal or beef, bacon or ham, egg, pickling salt and spices, and are then cooked in water and sometimes lightly smoked. Some are made of cooked ingredients which are then cooked a second time after being stuffed into links, and may also be smoked.
Fresh bratwurst is one type of raw sausage that that needs full cooking.
Fresh sausages that come cooked but need reheating include knockwurst and wieners. Fresh sausages, both raw and cooked, need to be kept refrigerated. They are fully cured. Some are firm and are best sliced, but there are also soft sausages made for spreading. Liverwurst is one category of spreadable sausage and must contain at least 30 percent pork liver.