Guanciale, Salumificio Calla' (300gr)

Guanciale, from the cheek (guancia in Italian) of pig, is made up of an important part of fine fat and light veins of lean meat trimmed in the typical triangular shape. The meat is then massaged with salt and left to rest for days. Once the salting period is over, the guanciale is cleaned of excess salt, flavored and covered with finely ground Calabrian red pepper. Finally, the guanciale is aged for at least ninety days in a special cool, dry, temperature controlled room. Our guanciale, obtained from pigs reared and slaughtered in Calabria , has a delicate but intense flavour and a slight spiciness; a good guanciale not only is a cooking ingredient but, thinly sliced, can be enjoyed on warm bread as an alternative to the more expensive lardo. Our artisan guanciale is gluten and lactose free.

The guanciale is known for being the main ingredient of famous Italian pasta dishes such as the carbonara , the amatriciana and the gricia but it is used in many more recipes from all over Italy because it adds tons of flavours, from bean soups to stews.

Please note that the weight is approximate. Our guanciale is artisanally made and cut by hand, not in a factory, and the weight can vary a few grams either way.

It all started in 1965 when Vittorio Callà, a breeder opened a butcher shop in Mileto, a small village not far from Vibo Valentia. Mileto is known for its numerous butchers and the quality of the meat (hence its name "City of meat"), with visitors coming every day to buy fresh meat and seasoned.

Thanks to the passion and knowledge of Vittorio and the help of his family, the small butcher in a few years, had become a synonym for high quality meat. In 1978 the second generation took over and decided to go one step further, they decided to build a slaughterhouse so they could control the whole process and ensure animals were treated properly.

Now, the next generation has taken over from Vittorio’s sons, and the small butcher shop is slightly bigger, but it is as artisan as it was when Vittorio first opened producing some of the best cured meat, including the famous Ndjua. All their meat and cured meat only uses natural ingredients without preservatives, they are 100% natural.