ofhorse,dried,smokedandsmashedtopieceswitha
hammer,usedtobeconsideredpoorman’sfarebutnow
appearonthemenusofeventhesmartestrestaurants.
BackinPiedmont,intheareaaroundAlba,
burgundy-colouredsalamedicavallo(horsesalami)has
alwaysbeenconsidereda greatdelicacy,tobesavedfor
specialoccasions.Here,donkeymeatis alsopopular.
Baled’asoareexactlywhattheirnamesays:“donkey’s
balls”– spheresofdonkeymeat,thatis,nottesticles–
a sortofboilingsausage,likeanequinecotechino.
InareaswheretherewerestrongJewish
communities,gooseappears.Inthe15thcentury,
undertheauspicesofLudovicoSforza,theJewsliving
alongthePoriverintheLomellinadistrictofSouthern
Lombardyfarmedgeeseandcuredtheirmeattomake
salamed’oca,a salamiwrappedintheskinofthebird’s
neck,and,usingthebreast,theprosciutto-likepetto
d’oca.SimilarspecialtiesalsosurviveintheFriuliregion
andinthetownofPitigliano,a Jewishenclaveinthe
TuscanMaremma.Asdoeskosherbeefsausage.
WhichleadsmetosalsicciadiBra,namedafter
thesmalltowninPiedmontwhereI nowlive.Today,
mybutcherDomenicoScagliamakesthissausagewith
85 percentvealand 15 percentpancetta,butoriginally
it consistedentirelyofbeef.It apparentlycameinto
beingbyroyaldecreefortheJewishcommunityin
nearbyCherasco,wherethere’sstilla synagogue.Each
butcherinBrawouldhavetheirownsecretrecipeand
onlydivulgedit tothepersonappointedtocarryon
thebusiness.Butnow,thankstoEUregulationson
transparentlabelling,I canrevealthatScaglia’sincludes
mixed spices (Ceylon cinnamon, cloves, coriander,pimiento,nutmeg,maceandcarawayseeds),Grana
PadanocheeseandlocalArneiswhitewine.
TheparticularityofsalsicciadiBrais thatit’seaten
raw.AnelderlycouplefromRomerecentlystopped
inBratoeatat therestaurantofa friendofmine,
GiacomoBadellino.Theywantedsomethinglocal,
soheservedthemanantipastoofsalsiccia.Theywere
shocked.“Isthismeatraw?”askedthewife.“Sì,”said
Giacomo.“Haven’tyoupeoplediscoveredfireyet?”
askedthehusbandsarcastically.
IntheAlps,charcuteriegoeswildwiththemeat
ofthelocalfauna.InrestaurantsintheVald’Aosta
you’llfindbocondudiable,“the devil’s morsel”:
slicedmocetta,orcured
chamoisvenison,served
withtoastedryebread
rubbedwithgarlicand
spreadwithbutterand
honey.InFriuli,pitina
is a ball-shapedsausage
traditionallymadewith
chamoisorroedeervenisonflavouredwithrosemary.
InthemountainvalleysofLombardy,finally,they
maketheweirdestsalumeofall,violinodicapra,using
goatmeatorroedeerorchamoisvenison.It owesits
name,“violin”,notonlytoitsshapebutalsotothe
wayit’ssliced– proppedagainsttheshoulder,swishing
theknifelikea bow.If,asRobertBurnsclaimed,the
haggisis the“greatchieftaino’ thepuddin’-race”,the
violinois certainlytheStradivariusofsalumi.It’s
Italian,butit’sfarfrombeingMediterranean–
literally, but also in spirit and in substance.●Cucina poveraprobably
capturesthe essenceof
Italian foodbetterthan the
“Mediterranean diet” label.PHOTOGRAPHY MARCELLO MARENGO (BUTCHERS & CHARCUTERIE) & GETTY IMAGES (BRA).
GOURMET TRAVELLER 79