Mortadella Deconstruction

Mortadella

As told by Jaalid Amoroso

Brief Description

Mortadella is an Italian Sausage made from heat-cured pork that is typically finely hashed or ground and incorporates up to at least 15% of tiny cubes made from pork fat. Mortadella is flavored with spices like black pepper, myrtle berries and pistachios and is also a product of Bologna.

History

Mortadella originated in Bologna, which is the capital of Emilia-Romagna. Emilia-Romagna is a region in Northeast Italy that is known to be one of the wealthiest and most developed regions in Europe. Emilia-Romagna is a very common tourist location and includes the world’s oldest university The University of Bologna. Although this region is part of the Adriatic Coast it is more famous for its meat products such as Parma’s prosciutto and our beloved mortadella.  

                                                                                 

                                                   

                                                                       

Traditionally mortadella would be ground to a paste using a larger sized mortar and pestle.

In the past the Romans had developed the name farcimen mirtatum meaning myrtle sausage. This name was created due to the fact that the sausage was heavily flavored with myrtle berries before black pepper became available in European Markets.

Ban From The U.S.

From 1967 till 2000 mortadella was banned from the United States after an outbreak of the African swine fever in Italy. Soon after the ban was placed the swine fever was conquered in most of Italy. The ban at this point was mainly supported for political reasons instead of health concerns.  Essentially America got away with its zero-tolerance policy for quiet some time, but needed to make concessions once the idea of exporting hormone injected beef and genetically altered food arose. Mortadella was as illegal as Cuban cigars and according to some folks desired just as much. One movie even hit the big screen over this topic as seen below!    

(Sophia  Loren in  1971 comedy Lady Liberty)                             

The Rise of Bologna

In the absence of mortadella a sausage was created that omitted the cubes of pork fat called Bologna. Bologna is a synonym for mortadella. However, as nouns these two items have major differences.  Bologna can be made from many different things. Even though it is most commonly created from beef and pork, it is not unlikely for scraps and organs to be used as well. Mortadella must pass very strict guidelines to receive its IGP stamp (a mark of quality given to foods specific to a region of Italy). Bologna can also be placed in synthetic casing containing collagen or plastic. Many Italians feel dissatisfied with the common comparison between the two and say they are nothing alike.

                                  

Emulsified Sausages

Emulsifying is the process of combining two liquids, which are not soluble in each other such as oil and water. Emulsified sausages are cooked sausages that have been finely comminuted to the consistency of a fine paste. Hot dog, frankfurter, mortadella, bologna, and pâté are typical examples. In most cases they are smoked and cooked with moist heat (steamed or in hot water).  When emulsifying higher quality meats you don’t need help from water retention agents. However, commercial based products that use all sorts of meat trimmings need many chemicals and water-binding agents to compensate for the lower meat grade.

How Mortadella is made

A few different steps are involved with this process that include grinding and pressing pork meat. The meat gets pureed with the spices until it reaches a temperature of around 50 degrees. Adding ice to this initial meat mixture will cool it down a bit and help the meat be able to work through the emulsifier blades more effincently. Once this temperature is reached fat gets added into the blender to be emulsified as well. When the emulsification is complete the meat mixture gets put into a bowl on ice and the internal garnishing’s get added. These ingredients vary but typically include diced pork fat, pistachios, and black pepper. Once mixed together properly the meat gets placed in a sausage stuffer and then a casing shortly after. It is then placed in an oven until it reaches a temp of around 154 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature should secure that the meat was cooked long enough and wont burst. The mortadella is then chilled for 24 hours in a refrigerator. Once cooled off it is ready to be sliced and enjoyed!