Cotechino

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A traditional sausage from Italy that combines ground pork with spices and is frequently eaten during special celebrations
2. This Italian delicacy features a pork mixture seasoned with various spices and is commonly enjoyed in festive culinary traditions
3. A type of Italian sausage made from seasoned pork and often enjoyed during holiday feasts or gatherings

Etymology: Cotechino takes its name from the Italian "cotenna", meaning pork rind or skin, a clue to how the sausage was traditionally made. Its character comes from the rind: the skin is used as the casing, and the mixture inside is often pork skin and fat along with lean meat, which gives the finished sausage its soft, gelatinous texture. The sausage is particularly associated with the northern Italian region of Modena, where it has long been a festive dish. Because it is cured and then cooked slowly, cotechino is traditionally served at New Year's and other winter celebrations, often with lentils, a pairing said to symbolize prosperity. The English word was borrowed directly from Italian, so it keeps the Italian form and its link to the word for rind.