Sausages in Italian cuisine
A wide variety of sausages are made in Italy, having evolved through the centuries into many regional varieties. The sausages will typically be either a type of fresh sausage, or a type of dried sausage. There are also some types of sausages that can be either used fresh or cured, such as Tuscan sausages.
History
The Italian sausage was initially known as lucanica, a rustic pork sausage in ancient Roman cuisine, with the first evidence dating back to the 1st century BC, when the Roman historian Marcus Terentius Varro described stuffing spiced and salted meat into pig intestines, as follows: "They call lucanica a minced meat stuffed into a casing, because our soldiers learned how to prepare it." The writings of Cicero and Martial also mention lucanica as a speciality introduced in Rome by the Lucanian slaves. A recipe for preparation is provided in the first century Apicius.
Types of sausage in Italy
''Mazzafegato''
Mazzafegato sausage is a sausage typically from Abruzzo, Lazio, Marche, Umbria, and Tuscany regions that includes mashed liver. The style from Abruzzo includes pork liver, heart, lungs, and pork cheek, and is seasoned with garlic, orange peel, salt, pepper, and bay leaves.
''Salsiccia al coriandolo''
The salsiccia al coriandolo, from the comune of Monte San Biagio, Lazio, also includes coriander, sweet chili peppers, and sweet red wine.
''Salsiccia al finocchio''
Salsiccia al finocchio is a sausage popularised in the Sicily region. These sausages differ from the Tuscan style sausage due the addition of crumbed, dried fennel seeds to
''Salsiccia fresca''
Salsiccia fresca is a type of sausage that is usually made somewhat spicy. It is made from fresh meat and fat, and is flavoured with spices, salt, and pepper, and traditionally stuffed into natural gut casings. Salsiccia fresca al peperoncino is a spicy sausage flavoured with chopped garlic, salt, and chilli pepper.
''Salsiccia secca''
Salsiccia secca is an air dried sausages typically made from either the meat of domestic pigs or from the meat from wild boars.
''Salsiccia sotto la cenere''
Another Sicilian sausage, salsiccia sotto la cenere is a style of sausage traditionally cooked in the ashes of the hearth.
''Salsiccia toscana''
Salsiccia toscana, also known as sarciccia, is made from various cuts of pork, including the shoulder and ham, which is chopped and mixed with herbs such as sage and rosemary.