Cotechino

[JohnL]

I wonder if someone can help me find a good source for cotechino.

I live in the Columbus Circle area.

really anyplace in Manhattan or the Bronx.

also

Westchester.

i love this simmered (per Marcella Hazan) or

even grilled (with a little balsamic --ohhh myyyy!

thanks

[slkinsey]

Salumeria Biellese.

[Jason Perlow]

I'm quite sure you can get it at the Arthur Avenue retail Market or Biancardi's next door.

[mjc]

Buon italia in the chesea market has it.

So too does Faicco's pork store on Bleeker.

[Bux]

I'll add DiPalo's, but I think Salumeria Biellese, Sam's first answer, is going to be closer than any other place so far.

[emsny]

Though a perfectly good sausage, akin to a French saucisson, Biellese's is not really what I would call a cotechino; we ate one a few days ago. It has almost no skin ground into the meat mixture and therefore lacks the lip-sticking lusciousness of a true cotechino. I've eaten Faicco's too, but honestly don't remember it well enough to offer a description.

[Bux]

I believe DiPalo's has true cotechino.

[JohnL]

Thanks all!

I am ready to "hit the streets"--some good suggestions.

I heave read that some places only carry Cotechino atround the holidays.

I used to get a good version at Citarella but this year they a version in a box

that i believe was "preserved." --I was tempted to try it but it wasn't cheap and....

I also tried on line following some recommendations by David Rosengarden's newsletter but had no luck.

I have read that cotechino, being very perishable is not available on line (at least I haven't found it there).

I will try Faicco's and DiPalo --I am also excited to visit Biallese--I did not know about these folks previous to the thread here.--cotechino or not-this looks like a wonderful operation--I love good sausages of any type.

I am mildly suprised that cotechino is not more popular here--though a number of restaurants serve it--and several cookbooks have recipes for it. My guess is--it is a fresh sausage (or should be) thus perishable also must be cooked.

I have tried the recipe in Marcella hazan's book--simmered in milk--with great success and a good friend of mine who is Northern Italian, slices it and grills it then drizzles balsamic vinegar over the slices and serves with shards of parmesan--this is absolutely fantastic! The grillling seems to intensify the delicate pork flavors.--I recommend this. He also serves grilled cotechino over polenta--also good.

[genarog]

I've been fortunate to try Cotechino in Bologna. When I came back to NY I found fresh Cotechino on Arthur Ave, and also in Astoria. It wasn't even close. I thought maybe I was cooking it the wrong way, but then I had a dish of Cotechino and Lentils at Babbo, which was great, but again the texture was not even close to the melt in your mouth texture of the one in Bologna. Has anyone been able to find something in NY similar to the real deal?

[Batard]

Salumeria Biellese.

←

John, I was just there this past Wednesday for some boudin noir, and bought some Cotechino while I was there. I've never eaten it in Modena, so I lack a true baseline, but it was awfully good. They might even have Zampone if you ask, but I don't think they have that every day. Salumeria Biellese is worth a trip downtown.

[temesvari]

So I bought three cotechini from Faicco's on Bleecker, and have a question about cooking them.

The cotechini are in very thin plastic casings, and I've cooked them directly in that in previous years (after making numerous piercings into the plastic casing) but was wondering if i could instead remove the plastic casing and just wrap them properly in cheesecloth and cook them that way, or will I lose too much of the fat into the water, since they will have to cook a fairly long time

To anyone who knows, thanks

(I apologize for posting this twice - by mistake in the Pennsylvania board)

[vice]

I've almost always seem cotechini stuffed in natural casings which will allow some fat to escape, and people generally poach those for a pretty long time (~2 hrs). If they're particularly thin, I guess I might be concerned about excess fat leakage.