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Building on Basics: Charcuterie
Folks - charcuterie is NOT breakfast food. It is NOT candy. It is NOT S'mores It is NOT all cheese It is not butter and compound butter spreads Charcuterie is all about the meats! This French tradition was born in the 15th century. A period of time when there was no refrigeration and the use of smoke, salt, and vinegar was used to preserve meats and offal to avoid waste! These preservation techniques date back several thousand years and has been used in many countries. What was more commonly preserved was pork/offal. However, there are other meats used as well. It wasn't until the 1990's that folks in the USA decided to create derivatives with all sorts of themed arrangements. But, it is not true charcuterie and never will be simply because of the translation of the word. Let's look at what a true charcuterie set-up is and what it has. The word "charcuterie"is a term used to describe "cooked flesh". There is three types of items offered: Forcemeats, Salumi, and Sausages. Forcemeats are your spreadables made with a mixture of meats and offal (organ meat). When you hear terrines, pâtés, ballontines, and such, that is what Forcemeats are. Salumi refers to Italian meats, often including whole cuts like a leg or roasts (think Prosciutto). And then we have have sausages. This is the common ground meats and spices that are stuffed into an intestinal casing, to which it is dry-aged or cooked. Depending on what you are using, these are salted, rich, smoky, and/or charred. It is important to get a balance of flavors into this on your board. With a combination of textures available, the right palate cleansers, and balancing flavors, this will be a great line-up of offerings! That's the main component of a Charcuterie set-up!
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