Salama da Sugo Ferrarese
Salama da Sugo is Italy's most singular cured meat: a pork sausage seasoned with spices and aged for months, then slowly cooked in water for hours to create an incredibly rich internal "sugo" (sauce). Slice it and pour the sugo over creamy mashed potatoes.
A Slow Food product from Ferrara, it's the quintessential dish of winter celebrations.
Preparation
- 1
Wrap the salama da sugo in cotton cloth and tie it, hanging it from the pot handle without letting it touch the bottom.
- 2
Fill the pot with water and cook over very low heat for 4 hours.
- 3
Prepare the purée: boil the potatoes, mash them with hot milk and butter.
- 4
Add nutmeg and salt to the purée.
- 5
Slice the salama and pour the internal sugo over the purée.
- 6
Serve immediately, piping hot.
Chef's Tips
The salama must NEVER touch the bottom of the pot or it will break. The heat must be kept very low. The purée should be creamy and hot to properly receive the sugo.