Little potbelly – that’s what Italians call their bacon. And bacon is not a regional speciality like Camembert or Parma ham, but a completely mundane everyday Italian food. However, this cut of pork has successfully become ennobled in some regions of Italy, such as in Calabria (pancetta di Calabria) and in Piacentina in Emilia-Romagna (pancetta Piacentina), where it may bear the blue and yellow “protected designation of origin” label.

At the time of Roman emperors legionnaires received a ration of pancetta or lardo (fatty bacon preserved in salt and spices and stored in marble cases) every three days. Hard-working Lombard masons were similarly fed: They at least managed to get five kilos of it at the beginning of a new job – for back-breaking work. Along with other fats pancetta was the main source of energy for people until the mid-20^th century, when the dieting craze began. Recipes such as macchheroni all’amatriciana and spaghetti carbonara are clear indications of this today.

Pancetta comes from pork bellies and, depending on quality, from the more fatty or the leaner parts. Three varieties of it are available: natural, cured and smoked. Viewed in terms of taste it doesn’t matter whether it’s rolled (arrotolata) or flat (tesa). The flat variation comes primarily from central Italy, where it is also salted and aged for twenty days.

Pancetta arrotolata is the most common variety found in many countries of continental Europe. It is always rolled in such a way that a wide strip of fat is on the outside. It can be very lean (magretta) on the inside or even be refined with coppa (yet another speciality – bacon made from pork shoulder). In any case it is shaped and held together with string. In the United Kingdom, pancetta is more commonly sold as packs of cubed belly (rather than rolled).

Bacon continues to play a big role in Italy in the preparation of sauces, rice, noodles, meat and even fish dishes, whereas elsewhere people are only slowly becoming aware of it. Like rocket, it has come a long way towards establishing itself as a permanent feature in the culinary consciousness of its new home.

A recipe for “Maccheroni all’amatriciana“ is available here.