Upper Savinja Pork Stomach

This poetry of taste, aroma and appearance has been created for more than 400 years in the Upper Savinja valley from the best meat and bacon of locally bred and raised pigs and has long been the pride of every smallholder in the area.

CULINARY SPECIALITIES

Upper Savinja pork stomach (Zgornjesavinjski želodec) is dried home-produced pork that has been produced in the area of the Upper Savinja valley for several centuries. It was first mentioned in written sources as early as 1620. It is made from the best pork and bacon. The selection and preparation of meat and bacon, spices and the unique microclimatic conditions in which it matures greatly contribute to the characteristic taste. Due to the quality of the ingredients, the pork stomach has a high nutritional value, and due to the pre-Alpine climate and the natural drying of meat on wooden boards, it also has a unique, appetizing aroma.

Taking into account the natural conditions, experience, tradition and quality, the maufacturers of pork stomach in the Upper Savinja valley named the product Zgornjesavinjski želodec. By choosing this name, they protected the tradition, and by geographical protection of the product, the manufacturers also ensured its quality. Only two manufacturers have a certificate for the production of authentic Upper Savinja pork stomach with geographical protection: Branko Petek from Podvolovljek and Marjan Goličnik from Šmihel near Mozirje.

PRODUCTION

Upper Savinja pork stomach is still produced in a traditional way. Fresh pork leg and shoulder meat is ground and mixed with cubed bacon. The mixture is seasoned with sea salt, pepper and garlic water. The mixture is then used to fill pork stomachs and occasionally also pork bladders, which are then sutured, drained and pressed for a few days to obtain a characteristic flat shape. They dry gradually and completely naturally in a wooden dryer for four to five months. However, the process is far from over. The pork stomachs must be turned and inspected daily, and the drying process must be carefully monitored.

The well-dried Upper Savinja pork stomach is cut into thin slices and offered as a cold cut or appetiser. Locals believe that it is best eaten with homemade black bread and cider.

Only 250kg of Upper Savina pork stomach per year comes from the cellars of both certified manufacturers. The traditional manual production and special drying conditions give it added value, and it is a regular feature on festive menus. Mr. Jože Tlaker from the Association of Manufacturers of Upper Savinja Stomach emphasises that the producers want to continue to raise the quality of products in the future, especially by controlling production and evaluating products. Certified samples are evaluated by the commission at the Biotechnical Faculty, while all the others are assessed by the association’s commission, which rates them based on a sensory basis – by tasting. In addition to quality control, the association also strives to include as many new producers as possible in the certification process.
The publicist Aleksander Videčnik has been researching folk customs, habits and people's lives in the Upper Savinja valley for many years, and in his book Zgornjesavinjčani od rojstva do smrti (People of Upper Savinja valley from birth to death) he wrote many interesting things about the Upper Savinja pork stomach. He emphasised the importance of this local speciality: “The fact that a good pork stomach is the pride of every husbandryman proves how much importance people attached to this dish, which was once a distinct delicacy and by no means an everyday dish. That is why there is a strong competitive spirit among the producers.”

There is only one real one - from the Upper Savinja Valley

Consumers of Upper Savinja pork stomach should not confuse it with other products with similar-sounding names (such as ‘želodec’ or ‘Savinjski želodec’), which are sold in many larger stores. They really can't be compared with the authentic Zgornjesavinjski želodec – neither in taste, nor aroma or appearance.

Every year, manufacturers from the Upper Savinja valley present their delicious Upper Savinja stomachs to the evaluation committee and visitors for evaluation in Rečica ob Savinji. Why not plan a visit to the area during the time of the competition, so you can attend the event and taste a dish that was also popular with the English King George V when he visited Hotel Plesnik in the Logar valley in 1932. After biting into local Upper Savinja pork stomach for the first time he liked it so much he ordered it to be delivered to his English palace.

In 2018 the Association of Manufacturers of Upper Savinja Stomach succeeded in having Upper Savinja stomach registered in the Register of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Slovenia.

Upper Savinja pork stomach is a geographically protected culinary speciality.

Pravilnik o geografski označbi Zgornjesavinjski želodec

Odločba ministrstva za kmetijstvo, gozdarstvo in prehrano o dodelitvi zaščitnega znaka, z dne 12.12.2011.

Pravilnik o označevanju 2011

Pravilnik o kolektivni znamki

(Source: nasasuperhrana.si)