Cured Meats

In Italian language there are some words that describe all these typical products as salami, raw ham, mortadellaand speck. Italian salami here means "salumeria", the specialized butcher where you can buy all these Italian coldcuts.

They are usually sold sliced (better if freshly cut, even if there are packages that are maintained at the right temperature) and is well described by the English words used for them: cold cuts.

Common Italian words for cold cuts are: "affettati" (= sliced) or "insaccati" (=inside a bag).

Italians eat them on sandwiches, as snacks, as simple appetizers, as Italian starters or even as a take-away lunch. Even when we talk about kinds of dried sausage, it’s important to stress the fact that as they are typical Italian products, they are consumed in great quantities and so they always seem to be "fresh", in the sense that they are good . (I wrote it between inverted commas because these products are cured and need to dry for months after being prepared).

If one happens to go to a supermarket, you'll see the counter assistant regularly opening fresh packs of raw ham, mortadella and salami, as they are part of an everyday Italian diet.

Italian cured meats are one of the most common Italian starters, served as an antipasto platter called "misto salumi" or, adding olives and cheese, "antipasto di terra" (terra means land or country, to differentiate it from seafood antipasto, made with seafood).

There's also the “king” of roasted ham that looks like a pork thigh, as it maintains its shape, as opposed to common ham, which is sometimes presented in a square shape.

Depending on where it is produced and which methods are followed for its productions, it may change color (usually those salted are darker) and taste.

There are so many varieties of Italian cured meats that only a connoisseur can truly appreciate them. Outside Italy we will find only a few varieties, but if you come to visit Italy, try different ones. It will be well worth the effort!

Speck is a smoked raw ham produced in northeast Italy. It has a strong tasty and is perfectly suited to Gorgonzola cheese .

The most popular amongst Italian cured meats is certainly Bologna sausage, called Bologna as it is the city from where it originates.

It is the cheapest cold cut, but that doesn't mean it is not good, as nobody refuses a mortadella sandwich made with fresh bread!