Italian sausage
In North America, Italian sausage (salsiccia [salˈsittʃa] in Italian) most often refers to a style of pork sausage. The sausage is often noted for being seasoned with fennel or anise as the primary seasoning. In Italy, however, a wide variety of sausages are made, many of which are quite different from the aforementioned product.
Alternative names | salsiccia, sasitsa |
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Course | Sausage |
Place of origin | Italy |
Region or state | Basilicata |
Main ingredients | pork, red pepper flakes, pepper paste, fennel |
Variations | Various Italian sausages |
The most common varieties marketed as "Italian sausage" in supermarkets are hot,[1] sweet,[2][3][4][5] and mild.[6] The main difference between hot and mild is the addition of hot red pepper flakes to the spice mix of the former. The difference between mild and sweet is the addition of sweet basil in the latter.
In Australia, a variety of mild salsiccia fresca (literally meaning "fresh sausage") seasoned primarily with fennel is sold as "Italian sausage".
History
Initially known as "lucanica", the first evidence of the sausage dates 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 Lucania as the birthplace of the sausage, confirming its origins in Basilicata.
See also
References
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-08-25. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
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: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-08-25. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Products Archive". Premio Foods. Retrieved 2019-10-16.
- "Hot and Sweet Italian Sausages in Tomato Sauce Recipe". Food Network. Retrieved 2019-10-16.
- ""Sweet Italian sausage" Basil". Bing. Retrieved 2019-10-16.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-08-25. Retrieved 2015-07-10.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)