North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

, Italian sausage (''salsiccia'' in Italian) most often refers to a style of

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 preserved ...

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

. The sausage is often noted for being seasoned with

fennel Fennel (''Foeniculum vulgare'') is a flowering plant species in the carrot family. It is a hardy, perennial herb with yellow flowers and feathery leaves. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean but has become widely naturalized ...

as the primary seasoning. In Italy, however, a wide variety of sausages are made, many of which are quite different from the aforementioned product. The most common varieties marketed as "Italian sausage" in

supermarket A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limit ...

s are hot, sweet, and mild. 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 Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

, 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 Marcus Terentius Varro (; 116–27 BC) was a Roman polymath and a prolific author. He is regarded as ancient Rome's greatest scholar, and was described by Petrarch as "the third great light of Rome" (after Vergil and Cicero). He is sometimes calle ...

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". Confirmation of the birth in

Basilicata it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = ...

are also the writings of Cicero and Martial that mention Lucania as the birthplace of the sausage.

References

American sausages Italian sausages Italian-American cuisine Italian-American culture in New York City Cuisine of New York City Fresh sausages {{US-cuisine-stub

History

See also

References