Chitterlings
Chitterlings (, and goat is also used for making chitterling.
Etymology and early usage
Chitterling is first documented in Middle English in the form cheterling, c. 1400. Various other spellings and dialect forms were used. The primary form and derivation are uncertain.[1]
A 1743 English cookery book The Lady's Companion: or, An Infallible Guide to the Fair Sex contained a recipe for "Calf's Chitterlings" which was essentially a bacon and
Linguist Paul Anthony Jones has written, "in the late 1500s a chitterling was an ornate type of neck ruff, so called because its frilled edge looked like the folds of a slaughtered animal's entrails".[5]
Regional traditions
As pigs are a common source of meat in many parts of the world, the dish known as chitterlings can be found in most pork-eating cultures. Chitterlings made from pig intestines are popular in many parts of Europe, and are also eaten in the southern United States.[6]
United Kingdom
Chitterlings were common peasant food in medieval England, and remained a staple of the diet of low-income families right up until the late nineteenth century and not uncommon into the mid-twentieth century.
Tell 'em at home that I should like for supper—well, lamb's fry if they can get it; and if they can't, black-pot; and if they can't get that, well, chitterlings will do.
It illustrates that chitterlings were the poorest choice of poor food. George Sturt, writing in 1919 details the food eaten by his farming family in Farnborough when he was a child (probably around 1830):
During the winter they had chance to weary of almost every form and kind of pig-meat: hog's puddings, gammons, chitterlings, souse, salted spareribs—they knew all the varieties and welcomed any change. Mutton they almost never tasted: but sometimes they had a calf's head; sometimes even, though less often, a joint of veal.[7]
Chitterlings are the subject of a song by 1970s Scrumpy and Western comedy folk band, The Wurzels, who come from the southwest of England.[8]
Haggis, made with sheep intestine, is still a common traditional food in Scotland.
Balkans, Greece, and Turkey
Kokoretsi, kukurec, or kokoreç are usually prepared and stuffed, then grilled on a spit. In several countries such as Turkey, Greece, Albania, and Bulgaria, lamb intestines are widely used. In Turkish cuisine, the intestines are often chopped and cooked with oregano, peppers, and other spices.[9]
Spain
Gallinejas are a traditional dish in
Zarajo: A traditional dish from Cuenca is zarajo, braided sheep's intestines rolled on a vine branch and usually broiled, but also sometimes fried, and sometimes smoked, usually served hot as an appetizer or tapa. A similar dish from La Rioja is embuchados, and from the province of Aragon, madejas, all made with sheep's intestines and served as tapas.[10]
France
Tricandilles are a traditional dish in Gironde. They are made of pigs' small intestines, boiled in bouillon, then grilled on a fire of grapevine cane. This is considered an expensive delicacy.
Andouillette is a type of sausage, found especially in Troyes, which is made predominantly of pig chitterlings.
Andouille is another kind of French chitterlings sausage found especially in Brittany and Normandy.
Saucisson is a type of sausage, which traditionally uses chitterlings both as a packaging and as an ingredient.
Latin America and the Caribbean
People in the
Jamaica
In Jamaica, chitterlings are usually prepared in a number of ways. Usually the intestines of a goat are used as part of the ingredients of
Mexico
In Mexico, tripas are very popular served as a guisado in tacos. They are cleaned, boiled, sliced, and then fried until crispy. They are often served with a spicy, tangy tomatillo-based salsa. In Guadalajara, along with the traditional preparation for tacos, they are often prepared as a dish, served with a specialized sauce in a bowl and accompanied by a stack of tortillas, additional complementary sauces, limes, and salt.
See also
Asia
Chitterlings are also eaten as a dish in many East Asian cuisines.
China
Both large and small intestine (typically pig) is eaten throughout China. Large intestine is called feichang, literally 'fat intestine' because it is fatty. Small intestine is called zhufenchang, literally 'pig powder intestine' because it contains a white, pasty or powdery substance. The character zhu or 'pig' is added at the beginning to disambiguate. This is because in
Large intestine is typically chopped into rings and has a stronger odor than small intestine. It is added to stir-fry dishes and soups. It is also slow-cooked or boiled and served as a standalone dish. It releases oil that may be visible in the dish. Small intestine is normally chopped into tubes and may be simply boiled and served with a dipping sauce. Preparation techniques and serving presentations for both small and large intestine vary greatly within the country.
Japan
In Japan, chitterlings or motsu (もつ) are often fried and sold on skewers or kushi (串) in kushikatsu (串カツ) or kushiage (串揚げ) restaurants and street vendor pushcarts. When grilled, it is usually called horumon (ホルモン), as in Horumonyaki. It is also served as a soup called motsuni (もつ煮) with miso, ginger, and finely chopped green onions to cut the smell, as well as other ingredients and internal organs such as the stomach, depending on the preparer. In Okinawa, the soup is called nakamijiru (中身汁) and served without miso as the chitterlings are put through a long cleaning process to get rid of the smell so the miso is not needed. In Nagoya it is called doteyaki (どて焼き) and is served with red miso and without the soup. In Fukuoka, it is called motsunabe (もつ鍋) and is served as a nabe stew along with cabbage, chives, mungbean sprout, and tofu.
Korea
In Korea, chitterlings (gopchang) are grilled or used for stews (jeongol) in Korea. When they are grilled, they are often accompanied by various seasonings and lettuce leaves (to wrap). Stew is cooked with various vegetables and seasonings.
Philippines
In the Philippines, pig intestines (
New Zealand
In New Zealand, sheep and lamb intestine is used, and sometimes pig, and is usually prepared very simply. First, moments after slaughter, a hose is run through the intestine to expel any intestinal matter; the intestine is then usually braided and boiled with cabbage and potato. The dish is called terotero in Maori culture.
United States
In the Southern United States, chitterlings, commonly called "chitlins", are part of the culinary tradition of soul food. When slave plantations held seasonal hog-killings, they preserved all parts of the animal that could be preserved. Chitterlings, which could not, were cooked immediately and served mainly (although not exclusively) to the slaves. As such, they have a mixed reputation among African Americans, with some rejecting them as a relic of oppression and others embracing them as a delicacy.[6]
Chitterlings are carefully cleaned and rinsed several times before they are boiled or stewed for several hours. A common practice is to place a halved onion in the pot to mitigate the very unpleasant odor that can be particularly strong when the chitterlings begin to cook. Chitterlings sometimes are battered and fried after the stewing process and commonly are served with apple cider vinegar and hot sauce as condiments.
In 2003, the
In 1965, blues harmonica player and vocalist
Safety
Disease can be spread by chitterlings not cleaned properly and undercooked. Pathogens include
See also
- Chitlin' Circuit
- Chunchullo (in Latin America)
- Flaki
- Gopchang
- Haggis
- Kishka (food)
- Pacha
- Tripe
References
- ^ a b Oxford English Dictionary, 1st edition, updated March 2021, s.v.
- ^ The Lady's Companion: or, An Infallible Guide to the Fair Sex (1743). T. Read, London, Digitized by Google Books [1]
- ^ "The lady's companion: or, An infallible guide to the fair sex". January 31, 1743. p. 310 – via Google Books.
- ^ Glasse, Hannah (January 31, 1784). "The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy: Which Far Exceeds Any Thing of the Kind Yet Published, Containing ... to which are Added, One Hundred and Fifty New and Useful Receipts, and Also Fifty Receipts for Different Articles of Perfumery, with a Copious Index". W. Strahan. p. 62 – via Google Books.
- OCLC 1041518889.
- ^ a b Miller, Adrian (28 June 2022). "Inside the 'Chitlin Circuit,' a Jim Crow-Era Safe Space for Black Performers". Gastro Obscura. Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ Sturt G, William Smith, Potter and Farmer 1790-1858
- ^ "The Wurzels—Chitterling". YouTube.
- ^ "Kokorec Recipe". grouprecipes.com. Retrieved 2011-04-27.
- ^ "Zarajo and other Spanish terms". Dictionary of the Spanish language (in Spanish). Real Academia Española. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ^ "Chinchulín, chunchules, and other Spanish terms". Dictionary of the Spanish language (in Spanish). Real Academia Española. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- ^ Trescott.
- ^ The Hill Newspaper 2-28-07
- ^ Alonso, Maribel. "Preparing Chitterlings for the Holidays". FoodSafety.gov. US Dept of Health & Human Services. Retrieved 16 September 2017.