Rosetta

The Rosetta is a traditional salami from the south-west of Brescia which most likely owes its name to its shape (a result of how it is tied together) that resembles a loaf of rosetta bread. The first memories that are tied to its production date back to before the 1900’s and are written by two sisters, Battistina and Maria Chiecca, who remember their father Giacomo, a butcher, who worked to produce this salami.

The production area is not well defined, but it is limited to the towns in Brescia near the municipality of Rudiano.

One of the characteristics that makes this product special is the type of casing, which is made from the lining which covers the abdominal organs known as the peritoneum, rather than the pig’s intestines.

The production of the rosette requires a great deal of skill: in fact, to obtain the casing it is necessary to know how to handle the offal of the pig immediately after it is gutted. Once the peritoneum, which is a single piece, has been detached, it must then be cut into sections so as to obtain an open ended circle; a slight pressure must be applied using only your fingers, starting from the centre and running towards the end of the hole. It is then left to rest for about ten minutes. During this time the pieces will change colour from a pink that is marbled with red to a white colour; even the texture changes, from soft and wet it becomes flexible and greasy. After 10 minutes, the pieces which are a similar size to each other are coupled and then a seam is stitched that must leave an opening for the stuffing from one side. From one peritoneum you can get between 14 and 26 pieces, depending on the pig and the skill of the butcher. The mixture of meat which is used to stuff the peritoneum is the same mince as the one used for salami and the stuffing process must be slow and delicate because the membrane can tear due to excessive pressure. Once this process is complete, the last part is sewn shut and a string is tied around it: the string is placed in a way which tightens the Rosetta and closes it by making a knot along each of the vertical lines.

The Rosetta is quite large in size, the fresh weight can be more than a kilogram and it can be aged for more than a year thanks to the casing and how big it is. It is eaten sliced.

The Rosetta is a product of artisan butchery that was done with the goal of preserving the salami until the next year’s production. Furthermore, this type of product gives value to pork components that are not usually used, such as the peritoneum. Today there are very few butchers left who are able to process and stuff the meat to make the Rosetta. Without the transmission of this manual knowledge, the Rosetta tradition runs the risk of being lost.

The research activities necessary for the reporting of this product in the Ark of Taste online catalogue were financed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, the General Directorate of the Tertiary Sector and Corporate Social Responsibility – notice n° 1/2018 “Slow Food in action: communities protagonists of change”, pursuant to Article 72 of the Tertiary Sector Code, referred to in Legislative Decree No. 117/2017.