Il Salame Gentile dei Pallavicino

In the olden days, when all pork meat ended up as salami, the “gentile” salami was used as a gift that the people of the fiefdom gave to the Marquises Pallavicino, as it was considered the greatest of all gifts.  If, indeed, the “culatello” is the king of cured pork meats, then the “gentile” salami is the prince of salamis! It is only thanks to the gut in which the ground meat is packed that the “gentile” receives this noble “investiture”. In fact, the ground meat used for the “gentile” is identical to the one used in the other salamis.

The gut used for the “gentile” salami is the straight intestine, a two layered gut with a thin layer of fat in the middle whose purpose is to keep its contents soft until after the summer,  thus making it possible to enjoy an excellent salami completely out of season! Once, it was only possible to make one “gentile” salami per pig, but today, since the guts can be purchased, so many can be made that this delicacy need no longer be too exclusive. The real problem in its preparation is that the packing is extremely difficult due to the air bubbles which could get trapped inside and cause the deterioration of the salami. Then the curing process that, given the large quantities of meat and the consequent high amount of internal humidity to remove, can be the cause of serious problems.  However, if everything goes as it should, the “gentile” turns out to be one of the best salamis to eat: the long curing process, in fact, helps the fat blend in with the lean. The result is a fragrant meat that almost melts in your mouth! Eaten with the “micche” (loaves) of white bread from this area there is no better snack.
Weighs from 1 to 2.5 kg.