A dry-cured pork salami sliced onto buttered rye for lunch. It kept without cold storage, which is why it exists, and it remains a standard topping on the Danish smørrebrød table.
It is a fermented raw-meat cure where safety depends on hitting a pH and water-activity target in the first days, measured rather than judged, and on a room held at steady temperature and humidity.
What goes into it
- pork and pork fat
- salt and curing salt
- pepper, allspice and other spices
- casings
How it is made
Minced pork and fat are mixed with salt, nitrite and spices, stuffed into casings, and hung in a cool room where the sausage first ferments — bacteria dropping its pH over a few days — and then dries for weeks, losing a third or more of its weight.
How long it takes: four to eight weeks
How it is eaten
Sliced thin on buttered rye with remoulade and fried onions.
History
Salted and air-dried sausage that kept without cold storage; it remains a standard topping on the Danish lunch table of smørrebrød.
Frequently asked questions
What is Spegepølse?
Spegepølse is a charcuterie & cured from Denmark: dry-cured pork salami sliced onto buttered rye for lunch. Salted and air-dried sausage that kept without cold storage; it remains a standard topping on the Danish lunch table of smørrebrød.
How is Spegepølse made?
Minced pork and fat are mixed with salt, nitrite and spices, stuffed into casings, and hung in a cool room where the sausage first ferments — bacteria dropping its pH over a few days — and then dries for weeks, losing a third or more of its weight. It takes four to eight weeks.
Can I make Spegepølse at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. It is a fermented raw-meat cure where safety depends on hitting a pH and water-activity target in the first days, measured rather than judged, and on a room held at steady temperature and humidity.
What goes into Spegepølse?
Pork and pork fat, salt and curing salt, pepper, allspice and other spices, casings.
How is Spegepølse eaten?
Sliced thin on buttered rye with remoulade and fried onions.
