Victor Sack wrote:
> Blair P. Houghton > wrote:
>
>> Victor Sack > wrote:
>>> If you can find it, also try Hungarian paprika speck (lardo, in Italian
>>> terms).
>> Salt pork?
>
> Different thing. Salt pork is made with pork belly. Lard is almost
> pure fat from the back. The method of preparation and the taste
> sensation is very different. Here is how lardo di Colonnata is made.
> It is, in a sense, a by-product of extraction of marble from the
> quarries of Carrara. Marble tubs/troughs are rubbed with garlic, then
> layered with fat, each layer covered with sea salt, freshly-ground black
> pepper, rosemary, salt, juniper berries, and other aromatic herbs. A
> small slab of bacon is included in the top layer of salt, to help start
> the pickling process. Traditionally, the tubs were topped with marble
> slabs, but now wooden lids are often used instead. The pickling process
> lasts a minimum of six months. The marble is porous, letting in the
> air, and contains calcium carbonate which plays a part in the curing
> process, creating a weak alkalic environment which prevents the
> development of the soap-like off-taste on the surface of the fat.
>
> Victor
Frankly, Victor, although accurate as usual, this doesn't make it sound
really delicious! Which it is.

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