Ventricina del Vastese

Ventricina del Vastese is made with pork legs, loin and shoulders, trimmed, boned and cut into 2–3 centimetre pieces. They are seasoned with equal parts of salt and sweet pepper powder, sometimes with wild fennel and pepper; the best pepper comes from Altino.

The meat is red-orange and fragrant, sometimes with citrus notes; the taste is spicy but balanced. Unlike the spreadable Teramo ventricina, this one is sliced. It is a Slow Food Presidium.

The Presidium covers the middle and upper Vastese, in the province of Chieti: ventricina is found all around Vasto, but traditional ageing takes place mainly in the cooler inland villages.

• Carunchio
• Castiglione Messer Marino
• Furci
• Scerni
• Cupello
• Fresagrandinaria
• Roccaspinalveti
• Palmoli

1. After slaughter, legs, loin and shoulders are trimmed and cut into 2–3 cm pieces; the meat rests overnight.
2. It is seasoned with equal parts of salt and sweet pepper powder, sometimes with fennel and pepper: one quintal of powder takes about 12 quintals of fresh peppers.
3. It is stuffed into the pig’s bladder, washed in water with oranges or lemons, pressed to remove air and tied by hand in a net: it becomes a ball of 1–2 kg.
4. It hangs for 7–8 days in a room with the fire lit.
5. It matures in a cool, airy place; after three months the mould is cleaned off and it is covered with lard. The rules require at least 120 days, but traditionally it is eaten after 7–8 months.

Ventricina del Vastese is enjoyed sliced, with bread, but at home it also goes into sauces.

• Sliced with country bread and a glass of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo
• In ragù, as they do inland from Vasto
• On boards with pecorino and Abruzzo cheeses
• In savoury pies and fillings

• Slice it not too thinly, removing the bladder and lard.
• Once opened, cover the cut with food paper and keep it in the fridge.
• Whole, it keeps in a cool, dry place, protected by the lard.
• Ask how old it is: the longer it ages, the drier and tastier it gets.

Photo 1: a ventricina from Palmoli cut in half, with the pieces of meat reddened by pepper. Credits: Nightrain83 (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons, resized; the menu icon is also made from it.

In the past black or red pigs were used; today white breeds are raised in the area on GMO-free feed. Each pig yields about three good-sized ventricine.

Ventricina was cut only on important occasions in farming life, such as harvest and grape picking. Every summer Vasto holds a festival in its honour.