L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 22 L'Italo-Americano O n c e u p o n a time, making c i c c i o l i w a s simply part of w h a t h a p - p e n e d w h e n a p i g w a s s l a u g h t e r e d : t h e f a t w a s m e l t e d d o w n t o p r o d u c e strutto, the lard that families needed for cooking, and the small pieces left behind were pressed together and sea- soned. Nobody thought of them as a delicacy, they were just a practical consequence of using every edible part of an animal that had to pro- vide food for months. Today, however, ciccioli acquired a rather different s t a t u s : i n C a m p a g n o l a Emilia, near Reggio Emilia, there is even an annual com- p e t i t i o n , t h e C i c c i o l o d'Oro, where experienced norcini spend hours prepar- ing them over wood fires and compete for prizes. To understand their ori- gins, we have to return to the Italian countryside, where raising a pig was a common way for families to p r o v i d e f o r t h e m s e l v e s through the harshness of winter. The animal could be fed on household scraps and agricultural leftovers, and w h e n i t w a s s l a u g h t e r e d , usually during the colder months, nearly every part had a use: the better cuts w e r e e a t e n f r e s h o r p r e - served, the blood went into traditional preparations, the intestines became sausage casings, and the fat was ren- dered into lard, indispens- able in kitchens where olive oil was expensive or difficult to obtain. The truth was that a pig was far too valuable for anything edible to be wast- ed. B e c a u s e t h e s l a u g h t e r required more work than one household could manage alone, relatives and neigh- bors often helped, while the n o r c i n o , a s p e c i a l i s t i n butchering and preserving pork, directed the more deli- cate operations: fresh meat had to be processed quickly, and mistakes in salting or curing could mean losing provisions intended to last for months. For this reason, the norcino had an impor- tant place in rural communi- ties, and his arrival marked one of the most demanding moments of the agricultural year. Before ciccioli, however, c a m e l a r d , t h e m a k i n g process of which helps us u n d e r s t a n d h o w c i c c i o l i themselves came into exis- tence. Pieces of pork fat were cut into small portions and heated slowly in a large caul- dron, traditionally over a wood fire, until the fat melt- ed; then, the liquid was col- lected and allowed to cool i n t o t h e w h i t e , s o l i d l a r d used for everyday cooking a n d b a k i n g , w h i l e w h a t remained – small pieces of tissue that had not melted a w a y – w e r e p r e s s e d t o remove as much remaining f a t a s p o s s i b l e , t h e n s e a - soned with salt and, depend- ing on local practice, spices or other flavorings. Although they originated as a by-product, their cook- ing required considerable attention, so that the pieces developed their characteris- tic flavor without burning, while the pressure applied afterward determined much of their consistency. In Emil- ia, ciccioli frolli are rela- tively dry, crumbly and crisp, whereas ciccioli campag- noli, also known as pressed ciccioli, are compact, darker and more substantial. The latter are often sold in slices and look quite different from the small, crunchy pieces many people associate with the name. At home, ciccioli could be eaten with bread or polenta, or incorporated into dough t o g i v e i t f l a v o r a n d s u b - stance, which was particular- ly useful in a cuisine that depended heavily on cereals a n d m o d e s t q u a n t i t i e s o f meat; in Emilia-Romagna, gnocco ingrassato and various focaccias made with ciccioli belong to this very tradition. But ciccioli were not con- fined to the Po Valley, even if t h e i r n a m e s a n d u s e s changed; further south in Campania, cicoli became an important ingredient in traditional baked goods, par- ticularly tortano, the savory Neapolitan bread in which pieces of pork are combined w i t h c h e e s e , p e p p e r a n d other ingredients inside a r i n g o f d o u g h . T h e y a l s o found their way into pizza fritta, the fried pizza that p r o v i d e d a n i n e x p e n s i v e meal for many Neapolitans. Here, too, the ingredient was economical but tasty, and offered the flavor of pork without requiring expensive cuts of meat. In the twentieth century, the social and economic sta- tus of the country changed considerably, and so did the popularity of ciccioli: as Ital- ians moved away from agri- cultural work, domestic pig slaughter became less com- mon, and families increas- ingly purchased meat from butchers and supermarkets. Vegetable oils became more widely available, while lard gradually lost its position as a standard cooking fat in many households; so, once people stopped rendering pork fat at home, they also stopped producing ciccioli as a n a t u r a l c o n s e q u e n c e o f another task. C h a n g i n g a t t i t u d e s toward animal fats also con- tributed to ciccioli's declin- ing place in everyday diets, so they gradually became s o m e t h i n g t o e n j o y o n l y occasionally; however, they never disappeared, and tra- ditional butcher shops con- tinue to make them, particu- larly in Emilia-Romagna, where regional bakeries and restaurants also use them in e s t a b l i s h e d r e c i p e s . T h e domestic routine that once p r o d u c e d t h e m , t o g e t h e r with the assumption that every edible part of the pig would eventually find its way onto the family table, howev- er, is mostly gone. And, perhaps, it's ciccioli's connection with tradition a n d s i m p l e r t i m e s t h a t explain the enthusiasm sur- rounding Campagnola Emil- ia's Cicciolo d'Oro, orga- n i z e d b y a n a s s o c i a t i o n founded in 2000 to promote local food traditions. The competitors, who have to prepare ciccioli from scratch, demonstrate skills that once b e l o n g e d t o t h e o r d i n a r y work of rural households and specialist butchers: they must know how long to keep the cauldron over the fire, w h e n t o r e m o v e t h e r e n - dered fat and how firmly to press the remaining pieces to make sure the final result is the best. F o r c e n t u r i e s , c i c c i o l i e x i s t e d b e c a u s e f a m i l i e s needed lard and could not a f f o r d t o w a s t e w h a t remained; now people gath- er in Campagnola Emilia to judge the quality of what, once upon a time, was the humblest of all foods, their preparation an occasion in its own right. The ingredi- ents changed very little, but the reason for making them changed almost completely: g o n e i s t h e i d e a o f " d e l maiale non si butta niente", which left space for a region- al specialty worth celebrat- ing. FRANCESCA BEZZONE At the Cicciolo d'Oro in Campagnola Emilia, norcini still prepare ciccioli over wood fires, turning what was once a hum- ble by-product of making lard into a regional specialty worth celebrating (Original image created for L'Italo-Americano with the assistance of AI) LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES Nothing wasted: i ciccioli and Italy's rural kitchens

• Cover