Charcuterie
Charcuterie (/ʃɑːrˈkuːtəri/ ⓘ, shar-KOO-tər-ee, also US: /ʃɑːrˌkuːtəˈriː/ ⓘ, -EE; French: [ʃaʁkyt(ə)ʁi] ⓘ; from chair, 'flesh', and cuit, 'cooked') is a branch of French cuisine devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, ballotines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork.
In larger restaurants, a dedicated specialist known as a charcutier may prepare charcuterie instead of the garde manger.
The Herbsts in Food Lover's Companion say, "it refers to the products, particularly (but not limited to) pork specialties such as pâtés, rillettes, galantines, crépinettes, etc., which are made and sold in a delicatessen-style shop, also called a charcuterie.
"[3] Montagné in his 1938 edition of Larousse Gastronomique defines it as "[t]he art of preparing various meats, in particular pork, in order to present them in the most diverse ways".
The emulsification may either be smooth or coarse in texture, depending on the desired consistency of the final product.
Meats commonly used in the production of forcemeats include pork, fish (pike, trout, or salmon), seafood, game meats (venison, boar, or rabbit), poultry, game birds, veal, and pork livers.
The proteins are cubed, and then seasoned, cured, rested, ground and finally placed into the desired vessel.
The final style is mousseline, which are very light in texture using lean cuts of meat usually from veal, poultry, fish, or shellfish.
[5] The word sausage is derived through French from the Latin sal, 'salt', as the sausage-making technique involves placing ground or chopped meat along with salt into a tube casing.
Additionally, animal stomachs and bladders, as well as edible artificial casings produced from collagen and inedible plant cellulose or paper, are used.
[8] Galantine is a chilled poultry product created after the French Revolution by the chef to the Marquis de Brancas.
Sources suggest the spelling of gelatin transformed into the words galentyne, galyntyne, galandyne, and galendine.
The galantine is then wrapped in cheesecloth and poached in poultry stock until the proper internal temperature is reached.
Finally, the nitrite inhibits the growth of botulism-causing organisms that would ordinarily thrive in the oxygen-deprived environment in the sausage casing.
These risks are generally regarded as minimal, and regulations in the United States limit ingoing nitrites to 156 parts per million (0.0156%) (less for bacon) as a precautionary measure.
The sweeteners also assist in stabilizing the colors in meat and help the fermentation process by giving a nutrient to the bacteria.
Other flavoring agents may include dried and fresh chilies, wine, fruit juice, or vinegar.
[18] Fermented sausages are created by salting chopped or ground meat to remove moisture, while allowing beneficial bacteria to break down sugars into flavorful molecules.
