Saucisson (), also saucisson sec or saucisse sèche, is a family of thick, dry-cured

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. ...

-shaped

charcuterie Charcuterie (, , also , ; ; from , and ) is a branch of French cuisine devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, Terrine (food), terrines, ''galantines'', ''ballotines'', ''pâtés'', and ''confit'', primarily from pork. Ch ...

French cuisine French cuisine is the cooking traditions and practices of France. In the 14th century, Guillaume Tirel, a Court (royal), court chef known as "Taillevent", wrote ''Le Viandier'', one of the earliest recipe collections of medieval France. In ...

. Typically made of pork, or a mixture of pork and other meats, saucisson are a type of

similar to

salami Salami ( ; : ''salame'') is a ''salume'' consisting of fermented and air-dried meat, typically pork. Historically, salami was popular among Southern, Eastern, and Central European peasants because it can be stored at room temperature fo ...

. There is also a tradition of making saucisse sèche in western Switzerland, the term ''saucisson'' being used only for sausages with interrupted maturation, therefore cooking sausages.

Origin

Saucisson comes from the Latin ' meaning ''salted''. The

Celtic peoples Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia ** Celts (modern) *Celtic languages ** Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music * Celtic nations Sports ...

were renowned for preparing all types of cured meats, particularly sausages. The fame of Gallic charcuterie was such that it was exported to Rome and the rest of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. The word ''saucisson'' first appeared in France in 1546 in the ''Tiers Livre'' of Rabelais.

Production

Stuffing

Saucisson stuffing is generally made of two-thirds to three-quarters lean meat and the rest fat (largely pork back-fat called '). The mixture is ground to different fineness depending on the type of saucisson and mixed with salt, sugar, spices, nitrites or

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with a sharp, salty, bitter taste and the chemical formula . It is a potassium salt of nitric acid. This salt consists of potassium cations and nitrate anions , and is therefore an alkali metal nitrate ...

, and with

fermenting Fermentation is a type of anaerobic metabolism which harnesses the redox potential of the reactants to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and organic end products. Organic molecules, such as glucose or other sugars, are catabolized and reduced ...

bacteria Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...

. For instance,

antilisterial ''Listeria'' is a genus of bacteria that acts as an intracellular parasite in mammals. As of 2024, 28 species have been identified. The genus is named in honour of the British pioneer of sterile surgery Joseph Lister. ''Listeria'' species ar ...

strains of ''

Lactobacillus sakei ''Latilactobacillus sakei'' is the type species of the genus ''Latilactobacillus'' that was previously classified in the genus ''Lactobacillus''. It is homofermentative; hexoses are metabolized via glycolysis to lactic acid as main metabolite; ...

'' are used in Europe for the production of saucisson and can be used for the conservation of fresh meat. Some versions of saucisson also contain pepper seeds, garlic, mushrooms, bits of dried fruits or nuts (such as pistachios, figs, or olives), cheeses such as

Roquefort Roquefort () is a sheep milk blue cheese from southern France. Though similar cheeses are produced elsewhere, European Union law, EU law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may bear the na ...

Laguiole Laguiole (; ''La Guiòla'' in Languedocien) is a commune in the southern French department of Aveyron. It is known for its Laguiole cheese, which has an ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (label of guaranteed origin), and as the birthp ...

, or alcohols such as wines or

Génépi Génépi or génépy () is a traditional herbal liqueur or apéritif popularized in the Alpine regions. ''Genepi'' also refers to alpine plants of the genus '' Artemisia'' (commonly called ''wormwood'') that is used to make a liqueur in the F ...

liquor.

Origin

Production

Stuffing

See also