Alheira de Barroso-Montalegre

Appearance & taste

The sausage is cylindrical, about 3 cm thick and bent into a horseshoe. On the outside its colour ranges from yellow to chestnut brown, and the same goes for the cut surface. The mixture is even, but the pieces of meat can still be made out in it.

Because its composition means it cannot be sliced, it is sold only whole, always packed at the place of origin. The label carries “Alheira de Barroso — Montalegre — protected geographical indication”, the Community logo, the logo of the products of Barroso-Montalegre and a numbered certification mark through which each sausage can be traced back to the farm.

Production

The pork and pork fat come from animals of the Bísaro breed or from crosses with at least 50 % Bísaro blood, kept on semi-extensive farms. Meat from the bones is also used. It is mixed with chicken, turkey and/or duck meat and with rabbit meat.

The meat is selected, cleaned, cut and cooked. From it and from bread the sausage mixture is made, which is seasoned with salt, garlic, hot paprika (“Pimento”), sweet paprika (“Pimentão”), parsley, onion and oil from Trás-os-Montes and stuffed into pig small intestine. The sausage is then smoked over a low fire with wood from the region.

Origin & history

The pigs come from the municipalities of Boticas, Chaves and Montalegre in the district of Vila Real, an area known as Barroso. Processing takes place only in the municipality of Montalegre.

Because of the climate, the location and, according to the specification, the poor connections to the rest of the country, the people of Barroso lived mainly on bread, potatoes and pork they produced themselves. To make the meat last all year, preserving it became an art passed down from generation to generation. In the cold, dry climate the hearth fire burned constantly in every house; its weak, gradually acting smoke offered good conditions for smoking. According to the specification, the sausage is linked to its area by the local pig breed, its feeding with products of the region, the experience in selecting the cuts of meat, smoking with wood from the region and the cold, dry air, which helps the sausage keep.