Mortadella Bologna PGI - Slice "1 kg"

The production and processing area of Mortadella Bologna PGI includes the regions of Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Tuscany, Marche, Lazio and the autonomous province of Trento.

The first processing step consists in the selection of the pork meat from the striated muscles and the high-quality fat; the latter, mainly from the throat fat, constitutes the so-called 'lardelli'. The meat components, after being trimmed, are appropriately minced in mincing plants. To prepare lardelli, the fat is cubed, heated, washed in water and drained. After kneading in vacuum machines, the product is bagged and tied in natural or synthetic casings. The most delicate phase is the cooking phase, which takes place in dry air ovens until a minimum temperature, at the core of the product, of 70 °C is reached. Immediately afterwards, cooling is carried out rapidly until the temperature inside the product drops below 10 °C.

The origins of Mortadella Bologna PGI probably date back to Etruscan times, a hypothesis supported by the presence of other types of mortadella with different characteristics in the territories once inhabited by the Etruscans. The name may derive from the Latin terms murtatum, meaning meat minced in a mortar, or myrtatum, meaning meat sausage seasoned with myrtle berries. In support of the Latin origin of the name, we can cite a stele from the Imperial Roman period preserved in the Archaeological Museum in Bologna, which depicts seven piglets being led to pasture on one side and a mortar with pestle on the other. Evidence of the link with Bologna can be found as far back as the 15th century, when the Viscounts of Milan willingly offered a fatted ox to the city every year in exchange for fragrant mortadella. Bologna, on the other hand, was a guarantor of the quality of this product and, in 1661, Cardinal Farnese issued a proclamation codifying the production of mortadella, providing one of the first examples of specifications similar to today's PDO and PGI marks. The manufacture and application of the required seals of guarantee were the responsibility of the Corporazione dei Salaroli, one of the oldest in Bologna, which already in 1376 had a mortar with pestle as its coat of arms.

Characteristics

It is pink in colour and has a slightly spicy and intense aroma, characteristics that make it unique among charcuterie products. When cut, the surface is velvety, the slice should have pearly-white squares of fatty tissue, the taste is delicate, with no traces of smoking.

Pairings

You can cut it into thin slices or cubes. Impress your guests with a gourmet aperitif. Excellent with traditional hot bread, as a topping for pasta and savoury pies or as an ingredient for salads.

Pork, tripe, salt, sugar, spices, natural flavouring, antioxidant (sodium ascorbate), preservative (sodium nitrite).

Gluten-free, no added glutamate, no added polyphosphates and no milk derivatives.

Mortadella Bologna PGI should be stored in cool places, with the right level of humidity, in order to keep its quality level intact. Once started, it is preferable to cover the cut with transparent food film to ensure that the best characteristics of the product are maintained. If sliced, it should be consumed within a few days.