APULICA / MEATS AND CURED MEATS
Pancetta di Calabria (cured pork belly)
PDO · Meats and cured meats · Calabria
In brief
- The pigs, of large breeds such as the Calabrese, Large White and Italian Landrace, are born in southern Italy and reach Calabrian farms by four months of age; slaughter and processing take place in Calabria. (Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP)
- It is cut from the lower ribs, dry-salted for 4-11 days, then rinsed and dabbed with wine vinegar. (Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP)
- It is often coated in ground chilli, which turns the outside red; when sliced it shows alternating pink lean and fat. (Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP)
- It is aged for at least thirty days. (Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP)
History and origin
In Calabria the pig has been at the heart of home cooking for centuries. The roots of regional pork curing most likely go back to the Greek colonisation of the Ionian coast, and as early as 1691 Father Giovanni Fiore da Cropani, in «Della Calabria illustrata», writes of salted meats made into lard, sausages and soppressate.
A century later, during the French decade, the Statistica Murattiana of 1811 confirms that salted pork was the favourite in both Calabrias and that pork was the only meat salted in every district.
Pancetta di Calabria is one of the four protected designations of origin for Calabrian cured meats and has been in the European register since 1998. It is looked after by the Consortium of Salumi di Calabria DOP, based in Cosenza.
Sources: Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP · eAmbrosia — Pancetta di Calabria (PDO-IT-1567) · Qualivita — Consorzio di tutela dei Salumi di Calabria DOP
Area and method of production
It is made throughout Calabria from pigs of large traditional breeds such as the Calabrese, Large White and Italian Landrace, born in Calabria or in the neighbouring regions named in the specification, raised in Calabria from four months of age and slaughtered and processed there.
The pancetta comes from the lower belly, with the rind, in rectangular pieces of three to four kilos and three to five centimetres thick. Salting is dry and lasts four to eleven days; then the pancetta is washed with water and moistened with wine vinegar. The surface may be coated with chilli powder, the so-called impepatura.
Ageing lasts at least thirty days, in rooms with controlled temperature and humidity. Portioning and slicing take place only in the production area. According to the designation, the region's hot, dry winds help gradual ageing even in summer.
Sources: Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP
How to recognise it
Pancetta di Calabria is recognised by its rectangular cut with the rind and a thickness of three to five centimetres. Outside it may be a deep red, from the chilli powder of the impepatura.
When cut, the slice is pink and shows thin alternating stripes of lean and fat. The aroma is intense and natural, and the taste well seasoned, with the chilli, when used, adding a lively note.
It is sold whole, in pieces or sliced, vacuum-packed or in a modified atmosphere, labelled Pancetta di Calabria DOP. It keeps best in a cool, dry place. The cut, the lower belly of pigs of large breeds, explains its thickness and the regular alternation of lean and fat.
Sources: Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP
In the kitchen
Pancetta is eaten raw, thinly sliced, or cooked. In Calabrian tradition it is served with the classic local salted bread baked in a wood-fired oven, simple and full of flavour.
In the kitchen it is very versatile. It is the base of many soffritti for pasta dishes, from classics such as carbonara to home recipes: pasta with fresh broad beans, cooked pulses, polenta. It also goes into several typical regional dishes, where it adds savouriness and, in the peppered version, the warmth of chilli.
With Capocollo and Salsiccia di Calabria it makes up the region's board of designated cured meats.
Sources: Qualigeo — Pancetta di Calabria DOP
Protection
- Protected designation of origin (PDO) — PDO-IT-1567 (eAmbrosia — Pancetta di Calabria (PDO-IT-1567))
When
- The sources consulted give no months.
Where
Read more
Calabrian PDO cured meats: capocollo, soppressata, salsiccia and pancetta
Capocollo, Soppressata, Salsiccia and Pancetta di Calabria: four PDOs since 1998, pigs raised in the region, set ageing times, and what, like 'nduja, is not PDO.
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