
''Linguiça'' () is a Portuguese sausage made from pork and seasoned with onion, garlic, paprika and other spices. It can be used fresh in cooked preparations or undergo a curing and preservation process through smoking.
Uses in Portuguese cuisine
''Linguiça'', like many other
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.
...
s, is generally served as part of a meal, typically accompanied by rice, beans, and other pork products. ''
Feijoada'', for example, is a traditional Portuguese dish (considered Brazil's national dish), also common in
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
, that incorporates ''linguiça'' with
beans,
ham hocks, and other foods.
In a place, one variant is especially popular: the ''linguiça calabresa'' or simply ''calabresa'', prepared originally with
Calabrese chili pepper by Italian immigrants, and particularly used in pizzas as a spicy sausage. Its popularity compares with
pepperoni in the United States. It is common to differentiate the ''linguiça calabresa'' from its counterpart ''linguiça portuguesa'', prepared from the original Portuguese recipe, and also served in pizzas as mild sausage, generally with egg slices.
''Linguiça'' is also used in ''
francesinha'', a traditional Portuguese dish, from
Porto
Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
. The ''linguiça'' is incorporated in its sauce, giving it a distinct flavour.
Popularity and uses outside Portugal and Brazil
Outside of Portugal, ''linguiça'' is also popular in
Goa, Macau, and other former Portuguese colonial possessions. In these regions, it is typically sliced before being grilled or braised, often with a light-bodied beer. It is also popular in California,
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
, and southern
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
.
In Hawaii, ''linguiça'' is known as "Portuguese sausage", and is commonly eaten for breakfast. The sausage is usually smoked using banana leaves. Even the Hawaiian
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
breakfast menu features Portuguese sausage, along with other Hawaiian foods such as rice and
saimin.
See also
*
List of smoked foods
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Linguica
Portuguese sausages
Portuguese cuisine
Brazilian cuisine
Hawaiian cuisine
Smoked meat