Viadana spallotto is a cured meat named for the town of Viadana, which lies on the northern bank of the Po River in lower Mantova Province. Obtained from the foreleg of large adult pigs raised in the Po Valley, the spallotto has a rounded shape, about 30 centimeters long and 15 cm in diameter. It has the deep red color typical of cured meats and the consistency is tender thanks to abundant marbling. The flavor is intense and persistent, enhanced by balanced seasoning.
Since the foreleg is a difficult cut to manage, being composed of several muscle groups, preparing a spallotto requires great skill on the part of the butcher. Throughout the Po Valley, the processing of pork traditionally began with the arrival of cold weather in the fall. Organ meats and other “leftovers,” collectively known as the quinto quarto (“fifth quarter”), were shared with all those who participated in the slaughter and were consumed immediately, while larger, more valuable cuts including spallotto were processed and left to mature in household cellars. The climate of the lands along Po, characterized by cool, humid winters and hot, sunny summers, is ideal for curing meat. Today, refrigeration allows for the year-round production of cured meats. Spallotto matures for a period of 10-12 months, during which time its weight decreases by 50%. The final weight is approximately 3 kilograms, halfway between the better-known culatello (typically 3.5 kg) and the fiocchetto (about 2.8 kg).
In the past, it was traditional to consume a few spallotti (the plural of spallotto) in late June for the feast of San Pietro, patron saint of Viadana. Since it would only have aged for 6 months by this point, the spallotto was soaked for at least one whole day and then cooked in a mixture of equal parts water and wine (in the 1980s, the proportions changed to two thirds water and one third wine). Cooking began early in the morning over very low heat and continued for one hour per kilogram of meat. Once ready, the spallotto was left in its cooking liquid to keep it warm until consumed. Today, Viadana spallotto is only consumed raw, in its fully cured form, and is produced in very limited quantities. The long and delicate preparation process, which includes tying the meat in a particular way and massaging it daily, makes spallotto unsuitable for industrial-scale production.
Back to the archive >
