Italian · V The Canonical Dishes · Basilicata

Soppressata di Basilicata — Pressed Spiced Pork Salame

Origin

Basilicata — the soppressata lucana tradition is strongest in the Matera province. The pressed shape distinguishes it from other southern Italian salami. The sweet-and-hot peperoncino combination is the Lucano hallmark; the fennel seed is the regional marker that differentiates it from the Calabrian version.

Description

Soppressata di Basilicata (or soppressata lucana) is the defining salame of the region — a coarsely ground pork salame made with the lean cuts (shoulder and leg) and spiced with peperoncino (both dried sweet pepper and hot chilli), black pepper, and fennel seeds, stuffed into natural casings and pressed during aging (hence 'soppressata' — pressed). The pressing produces the flattened, irregular shape that distinguishes soppressata from round salami. Two versions exist: dolce (with only sweet peperoncino, black pepper, and fennel) and piccante (with substantial hot chilli). The piccante version is a deeply spiced, assertively flavoured salame unlike anything from northern Italy.

III

The Thread

—Pressed salame made from coarsely ground pork with peperoncino and fennel seeds — the Calabrian soppressata DOP and the Lucana soppressata are related preparations; the Calabrian version has DOP status and uses lard in the mix; the Lucana version is leaner and often more assertively spiced with hot peperoncino Calabrian

—Coarsely ground pork strongly spiced with dried red peppers (sweet and hot paprika) and cured — the Mallorcan sobrasada and the Lucano soppressata piccante share the dried red pepper-as-primary-spice logic for a cured pork product; both are expressions of the Mediterranean sweet-and-hot dried pepper tradition applied to pork Spanish

Flavour Context

Soppressata di Basilicata piccante sliced has a deep red colour from the peperoncino and a slightly flattened, irregular cross-section from the pressing. The flavour opens with the clean pork sweetness, then the fennel appears, then the peperoncino heat builds slowly and lingers. The fat is evenly distributed through the coarse grind. With Lucano pane di Matera and a glass of Aglianico del Vulture, it is the Basilicata pantry at its most expressive.

Pillars V — VII

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