Culatello di Zibello: a gastronomic and cultural heritage

Culatello di Zibello is much more than a simple cured meat. Its production, which has remained unchanged for over a century and still takes place today following the methodologies of tradition, is considered a cultural heritage, even more than a gastronomic one, by the inhabitants of the municipalities that are part of the Culatello di Zibello DOP Consortium. Culatello is obtained from the thigh of a heavy pig. The pigs chosen for its production come from selected farms in Emilia Romagna and Lombardy. The diet of these animals is determined by a strict disciplinary which has guaranteed the DOP brand to culatello di Zibello. The thigh is worked in such a way as to assume the characteristic pear shape. It is then salted and massaged, inserted into a natural bladder and tied with a string. The whole process is strictly manual. Then follows the seasoning, followed in every phase. Slicing culatello also requires a precise ritual. The salami is brushed, freed from the rope and bladder, cleaned and finally wet with wine. Only at this point can it be sliced.