Горнооряховски суджук (Gornooryahovski Sudzhuk): Difference between revisions

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Горнооряховски суджук (Gornooryahovski Sudzhuk) is a Bulgarian Згу ([[PGI]]) sausage.

[[sausages]] must not be above – 5 °C. The [[meat]] is cut into pieces weighing 100-150 g each. It is then

25 °C and 100 to 85 % air humidity for approximately 48 hours and with uninterrupted ventilation,

on racks at 15-18 °C and 85 to 70 % air humidity for 10 to 20 days with uninterrupted ventilation.

The geographical location is a lowland hilly area 199 m above sea level. The area has a moderate continental climate with a mean annual air humidity of 71 % and a mean annual temperature of + 11,5 °C. The average wind speed is 2,2 m/s, with prevailing north-easterly and north-westerly winds. These climatic conditions favour a characteristic combination of the mould species ''Penicillium'' and ''Aspergillus'' in specific proportions. This combination of moulds covers the membrane of Gornooryahovski Sudzhuk [[sausages]] as a dry, white, powdery coating.

The maturing process is of particular importance in lending the [[sausages]] their distinctive qualities. As the [[sausages]] mature, their filling becomes more tender and juicy and they acquire their distinctive firmness, taste and colour. The added saltpetre is turned consecutively into nitrites, nitrous acid and nitrogen oxide under the influence of denitrifying micro-organisms naturally propagating under the manufacturing conditions characteristic of the region (a temperature of 22 to 25 °C) and the accumulated lactic acid from the anaerobic breakdown of the glycogen under the influence of the meat enzymes. The nitrogen oxide reacts with the myoglobin from the muscle tissue and with the haemoglobin from the blood, forming nitrosomyoglobin, and respectively nitrosohaemoglobin, which give the mature [[meat]] its distinctive red colour. Transformation of the colour of the product to red- brown, the swelling and firming of the [[meat]] filling and a specific odour indicate that the anaerobic processes must be discontinued. The skill of the master manufacturers is crucial in assessing when the process must be stopped to prevent the formation of substances which would make the sausages unfit for consumption. In the past, the authentic maturing method was achieved by placing the [[sausages]] in a heap and covering them with rugs, which increased their temperature. Since the technology has been modernised, the same effect, resulting from the physical and chemical changes in the product, is achieved by heating the air and ensuring uninterrupted ventilation in order to reduce the humidity in the room to 85 %.

Under relatively constant drying conditions in the room (a temperature of 15-18 °C and air humidity of approximately 75 %), the region’s characteristic mould develops, which prevents the fats from going rancid and a grey ring from forming. It contributes to the even drying of the product and enhances the aroma of the seasoning. When the individual sausages are compacted the skill of the master manufacturers becomes of particular importance. They must tighten the press gradually and distribute pressure evenly so as to prevent the gut from splitting while giving the sausages their typical horseshoe shape, elliptical cross-section and uniform thickness. The [[sausages]] catch the mould from the wooden boards during the pressing process.

During the Bulgarian National Revival period, the [[sausages]] produced in Gorna Oryahovitsa were called ‘Sara’ and ‘Smarlama’. After the Liberation, they became known under the name of ‘Gornooryahovski Sudzhuk’ and ‘Dried Beef Sausage’. The Austro-Hungarian ethnographer Felix Phillipp Kanitz, in his ‘Danube Bulgaria and the Balkans’ (1882), described the traditions of the people of Gorna Oryahovitsa in connection with meat production and sudzhuk [[sausage]] manufacturing trades. The first advertisement for sudzhuk [[sausage]] production was published in the Bulgarian Almanac in 1911 by the Nedev family of Gorna Oryahovitsa. The local market trade in sudzhuk [[sausages]], which was well developed, was one of the reasons for conducting the first international sample trade fair in Gorna Oryahovitsa (taking place from 1922 to 1932). In 1931, the ‘Gorna Oryahovitsa indoor market regulations’ were issued. These delegated State control over the sale of sudzhuk [[sausages]] to local manufacturers. After the 1940s, due to their amazing and distinctive flavour and high quality, sudzhuk [[sausages]] became established on the Bulgarian market and were promoted under the name ‘Gornooryahovski Sudzhuk’.