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What is the soppressata?
The soppressata - soprassata or sopprata - is a typical Italian preserved product - of various regions - based on meat and pork fat - ground or cut with a knife.
It is a salami or, more precisely, a raw sausage - except for the suppressed Tuscan cooked meat.
Derived from the first fundamental group of foods, soppressata is a nutritional source of high biological value proteins, vitamins - especially of the B group - and specific minerals - mainly iron. However, it is rich in salt - a source of sodium - of saturated fat and cholesterol.
Some soppressate have the recognition of Traditional Agri-food Product (PAT) or of Protected Designation of Origin (DOP). The sausage is produced, with the due differences linked to local customs, in most of central-southern Italy - Basilicata, Puglia, Calabria, Abruzzo, Molise and Campania. There are also central-northern suppressants, although less famous and known.
The term soppressata is of Lucan origin and constitutes an arrangement from the vulgar terms "subbursata" or "soperzata". These refer to the pressing phase, applied during drying, which makes the sausage with a vaguely flattened shape.
According to a written finding of 1719, the soppressata was born in Basilicata, from which - in the next three hundred years - it also spread to the surrounding territories, in Europe and, thanks to Italian immigrants, also in the Americas (especially in Pennsylvania or more in general in the USA).
There are many types of soppressata, even quite different ones, which make it impossible to define a single recipe or a single production method.
Nutritional Properties
Nutritional properties of soppressata
Soppressata is a derivative of meat, a fundamental exponent of the first fundamental group of foods - nutritional sources of essential amino acids, specific vitamins and minerals.
It is a very caloric food, regardless of the recipe, whose energy derives mainly from lipids, followed by proteins; carbohydrates are absent (or almost), as are dietary fiber. The profile of fatty acids may vary depending on the raw material used; choosing meat and light farmed pork fat, the lipids will be predominantly unsaturated. On the contrary, using homemade meat and heavy pork fat, saturated lipids can be more abundant. Proteins have a high biological value, that is they contain all the essential amino acids in the right quantities and proportions with respect to the human protein model.
The soppressata is rich in cholesterol. Made in a workmanlike manner, it does not contain lactose or gluten. However, some commercial soppressate can be enriched with powdered milk derivatives, useful for ensuring the right consistency in seasoning, avoiding that the food dehydrates by lightening (greater yield). The soppressata is rich in purines and histamine.
Among the vitamins, excellent levels of the water-soluble B group are deduced, including above all thiamine (vit B1), riboflavin (vit B2), niacin (vit PP), pyridoxine (vit B6) and cobalamin (vit B12). As far as minerals are concerned, the concentrations of phosphorus, iron and zinc are appreciable. Sodium is excessive.
Diet
Suppressed in the diet
The soppressata is a food that does not lend itself to the customary diet, not even of healthy people and in perfect health.
The excess of fats and calories makes it totally inadequate to the diet of the obese and, in general, in the low-calorie slimming diet.
Lipids, which we have seen to be predominantly unsaturated in commercial products, still have a substantial fraction of saturated chains; moreover, cholesterol is abundant. These two characteristics make the suppressed diet unsuited to hypercholesterolemia. Note : we also remember that heavy domestic pigs can have a higher concentration of saturated fatty acids.
The richness of peptides with a high biological value makes it a good source of essential amino acids, even if the overall nutritional properties impose a medium frequency and a medium portion of consumption.
The water-soluble vitamins of group B, of which the meat is rich, have the essential role of coenzymes in cellular processes. The richness in iron can help in the prevention or treatment of iron deficiency anemia - frequent in fertile and pregnant women, in marathon runners etc. - but once again we remember that the consumption frequency and the recommended portion are not very relevant. Phosphorus, rarely lacking in the western diet but of which the sausage is rich, is very important both for the structure of the bones (hydroxyapatite) and of the nervous material (phospholipids). Zinc is a powerful antioxidant.
The soppressata contains too much sodium. This, contained in cooking salt, is a potential risk factor for the onset and aggravation of primary arterial hypertension. Furthermore, it may be related to gastric ailments such as stomach acid, gastritis, etc.
For the excess of purines, the soppressata must be avoided in the diet against hyperuricemia and gout. Furthermore, it is a very abundant source of histamine, which makes it inadequate for the nutritional pattern for this food intolerance. It has no contraindications in celiac disease. On the other hand, if it is a commercial type, it may contain powders deriving from milk and therefore lactose; here is to be excluded also from the diet for intolerance to milk sugar or to allergy to proteins of the same ingredient.
The soppressata is not easily digested; for this reason it is necessary to exclude it from those suffering from gastric diseases such as dyspepsia, stomach acid, gastroesophageal reflux disease, gastritis, peptic ulcer and duodenal ulcer.
It should also be noted that the raw soppressata is a food with a high risk of bacterial contamination and parasitic infestation. This characteristic, which should especially discourage pregnant women and immunosuppressed subjects, dangerously increases the risk of infection with Clostridium botulinum and Listeria monocytogenes, and the risk of infestation with Toxoplasma gondii . C. botulinum produces a neurotoxin that can be lethal if left untreated. L. monocytogenes and T. gondii are teratogens, responsible for miscarriage, neurological delays and fetal death during pregnancy.
Many commercial sausages can also contain preservatives called nitrates - especially sodium or potassium. These, combining with digesting dietary proteins, can give rise to nitrosamines, potentially carcinogenic factors. It is therefore a good idea to make sure that the soppressata does not contain it and, in any case, consume it in moderation to lower the risk of stomach and bowel cancer. A good habit to further reduce the risk related to nitrates is to associate the food that contains them - in the same meal - with other foods rich in vitamin C (citrus fruits, kiwi, lettuce, parsley, peppers, etc.).
It cannot be integrated into the diet of vegetarian, vegan or observant subjects of the Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Buddhist religions.
The average portion of soppressata is 50 g (about 250 kcal) and the frequency of occasional consumption.
Production
Outline of soppressata production
Below we will refer to a single type of soppressata from southern Italy.
Most soppressate is based on pork; some are cut with a knife point and larded - cubed fat - others are ground. Note : there are some variations of beef and mutton, but they are not very common.
For the soppressata from Basilicata, a selection of not too much or medium-fine cuts is used, such as ham, shoulder, belly scraps and tender lard.
After the preparation of the meat the seasonings are added: salt or half salt, whole grains of black pepper - possibly crushed - and dried pepper in povere - paprika. The addition of red wine may depend on the recipe, the aging times and the size of the brawn. So we mix everything. Note : the dough is cut like a knife, not "row" like the salami.
Follows the bagging in natural clean gut - from a pig's blind intestine or other pieces, properly turned upside down - or synthetic cellulose, then tied with string and pierced with a needle. Note : the size of the gut changes considerably depending on the production area and the type of soppressata to be obtained.
At this point, the soppressata is left to dry in dark rooms with adequate humidity and temperature - better if equipped with a fireplace, to regulate the climate - from three weeks to three months, depending on the size. They are not hung like salamis, but stacked in boxes or baskets, placed one above the other, to exert the necessary pressure.
They are ready when the weight decreases stabilizing at 70% of the initial. These can therefore be eaten naturally or preserved in extra virgin olive oil. Some people smoke them or submerge them in lard - instead of oil.
Types
Types of soppressata
Of soppressata there are different types and variants; below we list the most important ones:
- Soppressata of Ricigliano - province of Salerno
- Soppressata basilicata (PAT); are areas of great production: Castelluccio, Rivello, Lauria, Viggianello, Rotonda, Latronico, Lagonegro, Vietri di Potenza, Cancellara and Vaglio
- Apulian Soppressata - famous that of Gravina and Martina Franca, in the Murgia
- Neapolitan Soppressata
- Calabrese Soppressata (DOP)
- Molise Soppressata; are areas of great production: Rionero Sannitico, Macchiagòdena, Montenero di Bisaccia and Castel del Giudice
- Tuscan superstructure or capofreddo or capaccia; it is cooked and represents the equivalent of the Emilian head cup. It is mainly made with slaughter waste - for example ears, tendons, nose, tongue, etc. - and seasoned with spices, parsley and lemon peel
- Gioi Cilento Soppressata: of lean meat but with a soul of whole lard
- Soppressata from Brescia (PAT).
