Linguiça Portuguesa
Thin, long sausage whose name derives from the Latin lucanica, an etymology shared with the Lombard luganega and the Greek loukaniko. More modest than the chouriço, it is part of the composition of cozido à portuguesa.
| Lean pork shoulder | 700 g |
| Pork belly | 300 g |
| Fine salt | 22 g |
| Sweet paprika (colorau) | 15 g |
| Hot paprika | 5 g |
| Fresh garlic, crushed | 15 g |
| Dry white wine | 50 ml |
| Powdered bay | 1 g |
| Ground black pepper | 2 g |
| Narrow hog casing (Ø 28–32 mm) | — |
- Preparation: Trim the meats and cut into cubes. Chill hard.
- Mincing: Mince through the 8 mm plate.
- Seasoning: Mix the paprika, the garlic and the wine to form a paste (massa de pimentão). Work the meat in with the salt and the spices. Knead vigorously.
- Maceration: Cover and refrigerate for 48 to 72 hours, stirring daily.
- Stuffing: Stuff into the narrow casing to form one long continuous sausage, then shape into a horseshoe.
- Smoking: Cold smoke for 5 to 10 days over oak wood.
- Drying: Continue drying for 1–2 weeks at 12 to 15 °C.
- Cooking: Grill, pan-fry, or add to feijoadas, cozidos and rice dishes.
The name linguiça derives from the Latin lucanica, a shared etymology with the Lombard luganega, the Greek loukaniko, and the Spanish longaniza (see the luganega entry for the complete lineage). What separates the linguiça from the Portuguese chouriço is its form and use: thinner and longer, it is meant to be grilled or pan-fried quickly, whereas the thicker chouriço stands up to long cooking in stews or in the cozido.
Like the chouriço, it macerates in the massa de pimentão before stuffing (see that entry for the technique). But the cutting of the meat differs: the linguiça uses larger, less worked pieces, which, at the cut, give it a visible grain that the more finely minced chouriço does not show. The smoking step is generally shorter, which leaves it paler in colour.
The linguiça is the point of departure of one of the longest diffusion trajectories in this book. Exported to Brazil by the Portuguese colonists, it became the linguiça calabresa, today one of the most widely produced sausages of Latin America, whose entry appears in the Americas section. Exported to Goa, it met the Konkan palm vinegar and gave rise to the Goan chouriço. In each case, the stuffing technique remained; only the seasoning changed, and the product of arrival no longer resembles that of departure.
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