Tradition has it that after the destruction to Jerusalem a number of Jews arrived in the Valnerina area bringing with them their expert knowledge on how to cure pork, given that for religious reasons they were forbidden to eat the animal and therefore needed to preserve it for trade.
Since then,
salting and
seasoning of ham, capocollo and sausages has become a
speciality of the inhabitants of Norcian hence the name
”norcineria” that is used for these goods throughout Italy.
As well as an excellen
prosciutto crudo, Norcia still produces
capocollo,
spallette,
lonze,
pancette and
guanciali. The so-called
insaccati, meaning all cured meat that uses the animal's intestine as an exterior cover, such as salame and sausages, include
salami ciauscoli,
coppe and
salsicce, also made from
boar meat.
