ABSTRACT
Production of dry-cured meat products in the Mediterranean can be traced back to several centuries before Christ. The amount of dry-cured hams and dry fermented sausages is around 19% and 15%, respectively of total manufactured meat products. For dry-cured sausages this value should not be higher than 12%, which could also be valid for dry-cured hams. The varieties of sausages differ in: raw materials, ingredients, degree of chopping, type and diameter of casing and ripening conditions. The sausages are kneaded and stuffed in natural or artificial and subjected to a curing-matured process, with or without fermentation, and optionally smoked, giving them typical aroma and flavour. Quality characteristics Spanish law classifies the dry-cured sausages in the function of the ingredients used in the elaboration process. The essential quality factors of the Spanish dry-cured sausages are mentioned in the quality standard of meat products.
