Abstract: A dry or semi-dry sausage product is provided which includes up to 15% by weight of an added particulate protein component. The added protein component is in addition to the protein present in the meat used in the sausage mixture and serves to improve the performance of the resulting product, particularly after the sausage has been heat treated at high temperatures during processing to eliminate pathogens which may be present in the ingredient mix. The added protein component is typically a denatured or hydrolyzed protein and can include one or more of meat stock, milk protein hydrolyzate, yeast extract, hydrolyzed yeast, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, hydrolyzed animal protein and cooked meat.