Lucanicae
IV. LVCANICAE. lucanicas similiter ut supra scriptum est. [lucanicarum confectio]: teritur piper cuminum satureja ruta petrosilenu condimentum bacae lauri liquamen et admiscetur pulpa bene tunsa ita ut denuo bene cum ipso subtrito fricetur; cum liquamine admixto pipere integro et abundanti pinguedine et nucleis inicies in intestinum perquam tenuatim productum et sic ad fumum suspenditur.
Lucanicae (Lucanian sausages): make the Lucanian sausages as described above. [Making the sausages]: grind pepper, cumin, savory, rue, parsley, spice mixture, and bay berries; add fish sauce and mix in well-pounded meat, working it again thoroughly with the ground mixture. Then, with fish sauce mixed in along with whole peppercorns, plenty of fat, and pine nuts, stuff it into an intestine drawn out very thinly, and hang it up in the smoke.
This sausage is named after Lucania in southern Italy, and was allegedly brought back to Rome by soldiers in the third century BC. Sausages bearing this name can be found today throughout the Mediterranean, from the Portuguese and Brazilian linguiça to the Hebrew naqniq, though the recipes have long since greatly diverged.
While the original recipe is for a cured sausage, but given the risks of home-curing, I’ve instead suggested recreating it as a fresh sausage. It also works well as meatballs or meat patties for those without sausage skins.
Ingredients
- 500 g fatty pork shoulder, minced
- 50 ml fish sauce
- 40 g pine nuts
- 20 black peppercorns
- 20 bay berries
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp dried rue
- 2 tsp dried savoury
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp chopped parsley
- ⅓ tsp liquid smoke
- Sausage skins
Method
Pulverise the pine nuts, peppercorns, and bay berries, then mix together with the other ingredients, using a mincer or food processor if available. Prepare the sausage skins and stuff with the filling to create small sausages. When ready to cook, grill under a medium heat.