Cured pork tenderloin is found in various cuisines in

Mediterranean Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alb ...

and South America. It is typically salted or brined then dry-cured or smoked.

In different countries

Spain

Spanish cuisine Spanish cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices from Spain. Olive oil (of which Spain is the world's largest producer) is heavily used in Spanish cuisine. It forms the base of many vegetable sauces (known in Spanish as ''sofrit ...

, ''lomo embuchado'' is a dry-cured meat made from

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserve ...

tenderloin, sometimes called ''caña de lomo'' or just ''lomo''. It is similar to ''

cecina Cecina may refer to: * Cecina (meat), a Spanish and Mexican culinary specialty made of beef * ''Cecina'' (gastropod), a genus of freshwater snails in the family Pomatiopsidae * Cecina, Tuscany, Italy * Caecinia gens, an ancient Roman family * Fa ...

'', but with pork instead of

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantity ...

Italy

Italian cuisine Italian cuisine (, ) is a Mediterranean cuisine David 1988, Introduction, pp.101–103 consisting of the ingredients, recipes and cooking techniques developed across the Italian Peninsula and later spread around the world together with wav ...

, there are many variants of ''lonza stagionata''.

Capocollo Capocollo () or coppa () is a traditional Italian and Corsican pork cold cut ('' salume'') made from the dry-cured muscle running from the neck to the fourth or fifth rib of the pork shoulder or neck. It is a whole-muscle salume, dry cured, ...

is very similar, but made from the neck muscle rather than the tenderloin, and often stuffed into a casing. In the northeastern border region of Trieste and surroundings as well as coastal Slovenia and Istria in Croatia (influenced by Venetian culture) it is also known as ''ombolo''.

Corsica

Corsican cuisine The cuisine of Corsica is the traditional cuisine of the island of Corsica. It is mainly based on the products of the island, and due to historical and geographical reasons, has much in common with Italian cuisine, and marginally with those o ...

, ''lonzu'' is cured loin.

Cyprus

Cypriot cuisine Cypriot cuisine is mainly influenced by Greek and Turkish cuisines, whilst also sharing similarities with the cuisines of Italy and France. Food preparation Frequently used ingredients are fresh vegetables such as zucchini, olives, okra, green ...

, ''lountza'' ( el, λούντζα) is made of pork tenderloin, which is first brined and marinated in red wine, then dried and smoked. It may be sold immediately after smoking, or aged. As it ages, it becomes harder and more strongly flavored. It may be spiced with

coriander Coriander (;

. Lountza may be served cooked or uncooked with alcoholic drinks such as zivania or

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts ...

. Grilled lountza served with other Cypriot foods such as

halloumi Halloumi or haloumi (, el, χαλούμι, haloúmi; tr, hellim}) is a traditional Cypriot cheese made from a mixture of goat's and sheep's milk, and sometimes also cow's milk. Its texture is described as squeaky. It has a high melting poi ...

and

kefalotyri Kefalotyri or kefalotiri ( el, κεφαλοτύρι, tr, talar peyniri) is a hard, salty white cheese made from sheep milk or goat's milk (or both) in Greece and Cyprus. A similar cheese Kefalograviera, also made from sheep or goat milk (or ...

cheese often appears in

meze Meze or mezza (, ) is a selection of small dishes served as appetizers in the Levantine cuisine, Levant, Turkish cuisine, Turkey, Greek cuisine, Greece, the Balkan cuisine, Balkans, the Caucasian cuisine, Caucasus and Iranian cuisine, Iran. It i ...

platters. Sandwiches made out of grilled lountza and halloumi are favorite fast food snacks in Cyprus.

Greece

In the northern Cyclades islands of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

(

Mykonos Mykonos (, ; el, Μύκονος ) is a Greek island, part of the Cyclades, lying between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos. The island has an area of and rises to an elevation of at its highest point. There are 10,134 inhabitants according to t ...

Syros Syros ( el, Σύρος ), also known as Siros or Syra, is a Greek island in the Cyclades, in the Aegean Sea. It is south-east of Athens. The area of the island is and it has 21,507 inhabitants (2011 census). The largest towns are Ermoupoli, ...

Andros Andros ( el, Άνδρος, ) is the northernmost island of the Greek Cyclades archipelago, about southeast of Euboea, and about north of Tinos. It is nearly long, and its greatest breadth is . It is for the most part mountainous, with man ...

, Tinos), ''louza'' is preserved pork loin.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

and Serbia smoked, cured loins, tenderloins and shoulder blade are called (literally "that which is baked") or (literally "that which is hung"). They are commonly made of pork but beef varieties are also not uncommon. The terms (respectively) refer to the process of smoking over heat and being hung on hooks above the source of the smoke while they're left to cure. The cuts are universally prepared only during the winter and are considered winter food. The latter of two terms is more commonly used for the shoulder blade cut, whereas the tenderloin cut is sometimes also called (sweet) . Unlike Mediterranean-style cured meats like

prosciutto ''Prosciutto crudo'', in English often shortened to prosciutto ( , ), is Italian uncooked, unsmoked, and dry-cured ham. ''Prosciutto crudo'' is usually served thinly sliced. Several regions in Italy have their own variations of ''prosciutto cru ...

pancetta Pancetta () is a salt-cured pork belly meat product in a category known as salume. In Italy, it is often used to add depth to soups and pastas. (in Italian). Uses For cooking, it is often cut into cubes (''cubetti di pancetta''). In Italy, p ...

and buđola ( capocolla) traditionally made in dryer, littoral and near-littoral southern parts of these countries, smoke-cured loins are traditionally cured meats from the inner continental regions and harsh, freezing continental winters are a big part of curing specifics and flavor. The cuts are first brined in solution of salt and garlic (locally ), to enhance flavor and help preservation, commonly together with continental-style

bacon Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sand ...

( locally),

lardon A lardon, also spelled lardoon, is a small strip or cube of fatty bacon, or pork fat (usually subcutaneous fat), used in a wide variety of cuisines to flavor savory food and salads. In French cuisine, lardons are also used for larding, by thre ...

(also called , sometimes white bacon or soap bacon) and

ribs The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels. The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a se ...

. Then they are cured by hanging them in freezing winter winds, over a smoldering lumber (smoke being essential part of the flavor) for typically up to two months, because the freezing continental temperatures and lack of insects in the winter help curing and preservation. The smolder is occasionally extinguished completely to expose the meat fully to the freezing wind. The flavor is, as a consequence, much more intensely smoked and garlic tinged than is the case with Mediterranean-style cured meat and the cuts are typically dryer and harder. They are typically served as cold cuts, as part of traditional

, but are also used as flavoring for various cooked dishes.

Bulgaria

In Bulgaria, the cured pork loin is known as "Filet Elena" (Филе Елена).

Etymology

All of the names above come directly or indirectly from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

''lumbus'' '

loin The loins, or lumbus, are the sides between the lower ribs and pelvis, and the lower part of the back. The term is used to describe the anatomy of humans and quadrupeds, such as horses, pigs, or cattle. The anatomical reference also applies to ...

', apart from the Slavic terms from Balkans region which are derived from the actual method of preparation.

References

External links

* Pork dishes Dried meat Lunch meat Argentine cuisine Corsican cuisine Cypriot cuisine Greek cuisine Bosnia and Herzegovina cuisine Croatian cuisine Serbian cuisine Montenegrin cuisine Italian cuisine Bulgarian cuisine Philippine cuisine Spanish cuisine Venezuelan cuisine {{meat-stub es:Lomo de cerdo