A Culinary Relic: Cappello del Prete’s Centuries-Old Tradition
After looking around for this famous recipe many of my Italian friends have been telling me about, I decided to try it, and it was delicious, so much so that I have decided to share where I got information to cook this fantastic culinary delight.
The Secret Weapon – Atuttagriglia
An Italian site called. As all my searches were in English, there wasn’t much information. But using my cunning talent for internet search, I decided to use a translation tool and search the Italian website, where I found atuttagriglia.com’s guide to Cappello del Prete. Below, I’ve outlined all I’ve managed to research about this famous food preparation of pork shoulder.
The Italian guide delves into the nuances of preparing Cappello del Prete, a specific cut of beef from the bovine shoulder celebrated in Italian culinary culture. This cut is unique for its elongated, triangular shape, resembles a priest’s hat, and is known by various regional names. The guide details how this lean, tender and flavorful meat is versatile and suitable for direct and indirect cooking methods like
Low and Slow and Hot and Fast. It offers buying tips, including a 10% discount coupon for an online butcher shop. The guide covers several preparation techniques, including boiling, roasting, and braising, alongside alternative styles like Flat Iron Steak and Top Blade Steak. Whether you’re a barbecue enthusiast or a slow-cooking aficionado, the guide provides comprehensive tips and recipes for cooking this unique Italian beef cut.
The name cappello del prete translates to priest’s hat, drawing inspiration from the cut’s unique triangular shape, which echoes the three-point hats traditionally worn by priests.
Cappello del prete, an Italian salame revered in Parma and Piacenza, embodies Italy’s rich culinary culture. This specialty meat isn’t just any ordinary salame; it is recognised as a Prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale, or a traditional agricultural-food product.
The dish traces its lineage back to the 16th-century butchery traditions in Emilia. It was traditionally consumed during festivities like Easter and Carnival, marking it as a meal for special occasions.
A meticulous process is involved in crafting cappello del prete. The meat is sourced from the pork shoulder, deboned, and carefully stripped of its rind. It is then salted and spiced with aromatic herbs and peppercorns, finally enveloped back into the preserved rind. Unlike typical salames, cappello del prete is consumed only after slow boiling for a minimum of four hours. This careful preparation ensures the flavours seep deep into the meat.
Once boiled, the salame is typically sliced into medium-thick portions and served hot, often accompanied by lentils or mashed potatoes.
Hemant Kumar is a project manager at Tridindia with more than nine years of commendable experience in writing about LMS, translation, and IT. His unmatched talent and passion for digital marketing gave him the opportunity to work as a multi-tasking project manager at TridIndia’s sister company, Link Building Corp. Today, he contributes to the world by imparting knowledge on SEO, link building and internet marketing etc., that helps business owners grow their online business.
