The Italian word for cold cuts (salumi) indicates a food made from uncooked or cooked meat, often with the addition of salt, animal fat, herbs and spices. Although the cold cuts’ meat can be of different animals (beef, sheep, goose, donkey, wild boar, deer, roe deer and even fish), the pork is certainly the most widespread meat to produce this food.
The pork products have achieved so much success over the centuries that in Italy, between the 12th and 17th centuries there has been a strong development of trades related to the transformation of these meats, like the norcino’s trade: experienced butchers that in late Autumn were passing from farmhouse to farmhouse helping the farmers to slaughter the meat of the pig and to process it into gourmet products.
Today they are mostly used to accompany other foods, such as focaccia, bread, gnocco fritto or we can accompany some cold cuts with vegetables and fruits, for example, ham with melon or figs.

Thanks to Il Cibo delle Coccole