Cervelat, also cervelas, servelat or zervelat, is a sausage produced in Switzerland, France and parts of Germany. The recipe and preparation of the sausage vary regionally.
The sausages are spelled cervelas in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, Cervelat in the German-speaking part, and servelat in the Italian-speaking part. The terms ultimately derive from cerebrum, the Latin word for brain, which was used in early recipes. The term "Cervelat" is the oldest of the three. It was first recorded in 1552 by Rabelais, and is derived from zervelada, a Milanese word meaning a "large, short sausage filled with meat and pork brains." Modern recipes do not include brains, and arose towards the end of the 19th century in Basel, as a reworking of the traditional recipe.
The taste of the sausages depends on the region, but generally they are similar to that of a frankfurter, but with a smokier flavour and a texture brought about by its fat shape and the tightly wrapped natural casing. Various European semi-dry cervelat are similar to summer sausage in the U.S., and Thuringian sausage can be considered a type of cervelat. In the United States, the term Thuringer sausage is used for a type of cervelat, rather than Thuringian sausage in the European sense.