Salsiccia is a universal name for different types of fresh Italian sausage. It usually refers to a sausage made with minced or ground pork meat, pork fat, and numerous spices. The mixture is stuffed into a natural pork or sheep casing, and it is rarely cured or smoked.
It is sold fresh and intended for grilling or frying. Although there are some disambiguations, it is believed that the original salsiccia was created in the region of Basilicata, but the use of fresh sausages has become so common that each Italian region has their typical salsiccia type.
VARIATIONS OF Salsiccia
MOST ICONIC Salsiccia
View moreSalsiccia di Bra is a traditional sausage hailing from Bra in Cuneo, Italy. Although the exact recipe is a secret, certified producers say that the secret of this cylindrical sausage lies in the right amount of lean veal meat, pig's fat, sea salt, white pepper, cinnamon, mace, and nutmeg.
Many producers enrich it further with fennel, garlic, cheese, leeks, white wine, and even prosecco or sparkling wine for Christmas. The combination is stuffed in a small ram's gut, and the sausage is traditionally eaten fresh and raw with a splash of lemon juice as part of antipasti or as a snack during aperitivo (pre-dinner drink).
MOST ICONIC Salsiccia di Bra
View moreLuganega is a special variety of Italian sausage whose origin is still a subject of debate - although today it is widely recognized as a northern sausage, some say that it originated from the south, deriving its name from the ancient town of Lucania.
Mainly produced in the regions of Lombardy, Trentino, and Veneto, it is often called salsiccia a metro, meaning sausage by the meter, due to the fact that it is made as one long, coiled sausage that is not divided into smaller pieces.
VARIATIONS OF Luganega
Luganega is a special variety of sausage whose origin is still a subject of debate - although today it is widely recognized as a northern sausage, some say that it originated from the south, deriving its name from the ancient town of Lucania. Mainly produced in the regions of Lombardy, Trentino, and Veneto, it is often called salsiccia a metro, meaning sausage by the meter, due to the fact that it is made as one long, coiled sausage, not divided into smaller pieces.
This generally mild sausage is made with pig’s meat, and depending on the region different parts of meat are used –some use pig's cheek or neck, while others use pork shoulder or rib meat as well. The maturation is between 4 days and 4 months, and although there are some cured versions that can be enjoyed sliced, luganega usually requires cooking - fattier versions are meant for stewing, while leaner ones are best when grilled.
This spicy sausage formed into a distinctive shape of a horseshoe is one of the most popular meat delicacies of southern Italy. Salsiccia di Calabria is made from a well-balanced mix of lean pork shoulder meat and bacon that are ground and seasoned with salt, black pepper, and fennel seeds.
Depending on whether Salsiccia is seasoned or not with peperoncino Calabrese chili pepper, this Calabrian sausage comes in three varieties: bianca (no chili), dolce (sweet chili) or piccante (hot chili).
Cotechino is a traditional pork sausage and a specialty of Emilia-Romagna, although there are variations in Lombardy, Molise, Trentino, and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The sausage is usually made from lean and fat (pork rinds) pork, cloves, cinnamon, and white wine.
It's available fresh and part-cured (pre-cooked in this case) – the fresh variety should be simmered over low heat for a few hours, while the part-cured variety is usually made for export and it's cooked in about half an hour. Cotechino is typically served with lentils, beans, mostarda di frutta (preserved fruits in mustard syrup), or mashed potatoes on the side.
VARIATIONS OF Cotechino
Cotechino Modena is a large Italian pork sausage originating from Emilia-Romagna. It's made with a mixture of pork, pork fat, pork rinds, salt, and pieces of pepper or whole pepper. Wine, sugar, spices and herbs are often added to the mixture for extra flavor.
The mixture is stuffed into natural or artificial casings and smoke flavorings are not permitted. If fresh, the sausage is sold whole (loose or packaged), and if cooked, it's usually sold vacuum-packed. Cotechino Modena must be easy to slice, and the firm, evenly grained slices should retain their shape.
Even though zampone Modena is nowadays produced within the entire Emilia-Romagna region, according to legend, this cured pork sausage first appeared in the winter of 1511 in Mirandola, when the city was under siege by the troops of Pope Julius II.
To save the little they had from the wartime pillage and plunder, the people of Mirandola hastily decided to slaughter their pigs, finely ground the meat, season it, and stuff it back into hollowed out pig's trotters. Zampone Modena is typically combined with pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and infused with red wine, which gives this fresh sausage its strong, aromatic flavor.
Salsiccia di fegato is a traditional variety of a very soft liver sausage produced in the region of Marche. Made with a mixture of ground pork liver, lard, and leaner cuts of meat flavored with salt, pepper, grated orange peel, garlic, and nutmeg, it can be considered a poor man’s variety of liver pâté.
Shortly cured, it develops both sweet and salty flavor enclosed in a soft, creamy texture. It is best enjoyed fresh, spread on some toasted bread, but it is also excellent when grilled, accompanied by mashed potatoes and mustard.
Mazzafegato, also called salsiccia matta, meaning mad sausage, is a poor man’s variety of a cured pork sausage produced in the region of Marche. The inferior parts of pork such as liver, tongue, tail, heart, spleen, lungs, and different leftover scraps of meat are coarsely ground and flavored with salt, pepper, pepperoncino, garlic, fennel flowers, lemon, and orange zest.
A sweet variety also exists, and it is additionally enriched with raisins, pine nuts, cinnamon, sugar, and red wine. Mazzafegato is usually served as secondo piatto, grilled or baked in the oven with aromatic herbs. It has a strong, decisive flavor that pairs nicely with hearty bread and robust red wines.
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