China likes Calabrian Hot Chili Pepper

13.02.2019

Lin Bin, Minister for Economic Development and Commerce, during the visit of a delegation of the People’s Republic of China, met many commercial operators in Calabria, in November 2018, to explore potential of Calabrian Food & Beverage.

CHINESE TOURISM IN CALABRIA

Tourist potential was also explored.
While the Commercial Calabrian companies were preparing for their debut on the Chinese market, some agreements were signed with the tour operators, and the Chinese government issued a “Welcome Chinese Destination certification” for Calabria, which made the region the first in Italy adapted to the standards of Chinese tourism.
Not only that, the new Chinese tourists begin arrive in 2019: 5,000 arrivals are calculated until the middle of 2019, according to Zhang Chuniel, general manager of Cits, China International Travel Service, which launched an impressive communication campaign in Beijing.

Chinese tourists love Calabria

CHINESE PERSPECTIVE TOWARD FOOD & BEVERAGE

Along with tourism, the main attractor is indeed the agri-food sector. This is because the typical products of the region conquer the palate of the Chinese market that awaits already in the coming months, and only to start with, oil and wine made in Calabria.

“There are big spaces and we are ready to import the typical products of the region to satisfy new niches. This is why we asked the Calabrian companies to participate in the next China international fair in Shanghai” said Lin Bin.

CHINA LIKES CALABRIAN HOT CHILI PEPPER

The Hot Chili Pepper (so called “Diavolillo”) is the element that unites the two cultures. To the point that the Chinese giant Dezhuang, a worldwide producer, is a regular guest of the Diamante hot pepper festival, and has signed commercial agreements with the Calabrian “Diavolillo” producers.

Further, in the province of Guinzhou an international edition of the festival has been recently organized as part of the World Chilli Alliance. A world summit will follow for a sustainable hot chili pepper supply chain.

China loves our Hot Chili Pepper

INFRASTRUCTURES FOR NEXT ALLIANCES

The interest in the Special Economic Zone of the port of Gioia Tauro will be also reignited, after the Chinese visit of November 2018: 2,500 hectares of industrial areas, where it is possible to invest with incentives and incentives to companies.

Further, Lamezia airport, which seemed definitely cut off from the New Silk Road and from the commercial corridors (“One Belt, One Road”) for the expansion of China’s routes to Europe through the development of transport and logistics infrastructures, – instead returns to be evaluated as a possible destination.

Finally, Lin Bin visited the transhipment container terminal of Gioia Tauro and the retroport to consider potentiality of Chinese investments.

A POSITIVE BALANCE

New business opportunities are now assessed and, from both parties, between universities and business accelerators are signed protocols for development and innovation.

Particularly, the collaboration between the Mediterranean University of Reggio Calabria with Shanghai and Nanjing continues to encourage the entry of innovative companies, startups and Calabrian researchers into the Asian market.

Above all, the visit of Chinese delegation of November 2018 confirmed that China likes Calabrian territory and its business opportunities!

New Life of ‘Nduja in the Kitchen

18.11.2018

A SLOW EVOLUTION 

From its beginning, a poor street salami, to the symbol of Calabrian gastronomy,  ‘nduja has become an almost international product, known not only in Spilinga, in the province of Vibo Valentia, but all over Italy and Europe, crossing regional borders in the last twenty years.

It is a food with a long history, so much so that the first traces lead to the nineteenth century. Very poor origin, even the etymology could date back to that period, with possible derivation from “andouille”; the hypothesis is based on the presence of the Napoleonic army in Calabria. That “andouille” was a French sausage based on tripe (and not only) pork.

Nowadays, ‘nduja is a sausage based on pork entrails which, once seasoned, is cut into slices, boiled, cut into small pieces and used to flavor soups (wild fennel, cabbage, beans).

Today the ‘nduja is produced throughout all the region of Calabria, is a spreadable salami demonized by dieticians for its fat content, unsuitable for palates not prone to spicy, loved by everyone else. Indeed, one of its basic ingredient is chilli pepper, which in Calabria is cultivated, especially, on the plateau of Monte Poro, where Spilinga stands.

 

THE RECIPE

The “recipe” of the ‘ndujais simple. Its realization is however complex: the play of balance between lean and fat meat, between sweet and spicy pepper and between meat, hot pepper and salt is made complicated by the degree of spiciness, which varies significantly even among fruits born from the same plant. The artisan can not follow precise doses and therefore to help him, more than the balance, are the experience and the taste.

It is its advantage the uselessness of adding preservatives of any kind: it is just the bactericidal function of the pepper to guarantee food safety.

At the contrary, certain excesses are an eventual defect of ‘nduja. Indeed, a very unbalanced portion  of salami or the amount of capsaicin (the substance that determines the degree of spiciness) can be often capable to cover the taste of meat and to anesthetize the palate throughout the meal.

It is not, as you might think, a choice made to reduce costs: the chilli, in fact, is much more expensive than meat. Therefore, the secret of a good ‘nduja lies in the correct balance between its components.

However, this is a necessary but not sufficient condition to obtain a perfect salami: in fact, another important role is played by duration of meat processing, which is used to prevent fat rancidity (a rather common defect in low-level products).

Then comes the time of packaging inside the “orba” (the small intestine of the pig, used for the larger size sausages, which are considered the best). Alternatively, is used the “crespone”, a thinner casing, suitable for small-cut nduja.

The bagging phase is completely manual.

The aging lasts from 45 to 90 days and is mainly used to dry the dough which, thanks to the high percentage of fat, is always soft. Some artisans add a further organoleptic note through a slight smoking that contributes to the roundness of taste.

The ‘nduja is not produced only in Spilinga, even if it is right here that a good number of quality craftsmen is concentrated there. In Acri, at the foot of the Sila, is indeed present a certain amount of companies; theirs is a small-scale activity and for this reason it can afford a very short supply chain: Calabrian black pigs reared at home and fed with cereals produced on the farm, sweet and spicy pepper grown in the land owned, small machines (al maximum 60 kg of dough at a time, to prevent it from heating up during preparation). The production phase is rapid: no more than a week passes from the time of slaughter to maturing.

 

THE NEW LIFE OF ‘NDUJA IN THE KITCHEN

The success of the ‘nduja also passes for its rediscovery by the chefs. ‘Nduja, bread and red wine are a typical combination which enriches plates of pasta with sauce of tomatoes and onions, taken at the market, adding also the perfume of mint and bay leaf.

‘Nduja shall be melt over a low flame, mixing it with the pasta in the sauce and at the end sprinkling it with smoked ricotta or semi-seasoned pecorino, being also recommends to never cook the salami but only to heat it, in such a way to facilitate its break-up.

These dishes are the reinterpretation of a traditional Sunday dish, the macaroni with underwire with pork sauce and ‘nduja.

In the home cooking, moreover, ‘nduja has many other uses: in bean soup, spread on bruschetta, mixed with sheep’s ricotta, in the salad of ripe tomatoes enriched by two other products symbol of Calabrian gardens like oregano and onion Tropea.

 

IN THE STREET FOOD

The decided taste of ‘nduja is also a protagonist in the street food world: calzoni, panzerotti, potato croquettes, arancini, supplì, pizzas.

In the street it is a truly extraordinary dish, tasting ‘nduja in combination with a glass of “Pecorello”, an indigenous white vine, or with another local wine, Abbruzzino, accompanying it with an excellent bread kneaded with ‘nduja and, in the autumn, with an emulsion of porcini mushrooms.