Špekáček

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Špekáček

Špekáček (masculine, singular; often also in the plural: špekáčky , Slovak špekaček or špekačky ; German about " bacon sausage ") is a traditional Bohemian smoked cooked sausage made from beef and pork with diced pieces of bacon. It has been recognized as a protected guaranteed traditional specialty (g. T. P.).

history

The scalded sausage špekáčky has been produced in the Czech Republic (or Bohemia ) for over 120 years (later also in Slovakia ). It was presented to the public for the first time in 1891 at the Prague Jubilee Exhibition in 1891 . A smokehouse, which was new at the time, was presented in a tent, in which the sausage was smoked on site and offered fresh for sale, back then with “ horseradish ”. Since the beginning of the 20th century, špekáček - along with Klobasse , for example - has become one of the most important sausage types in Czechoslovakia .

Since 2011, this boiled sausage has been recognized as a guaranteed traditional specialty (g. T. S.) in the European Union .

use

You can consume špekáčky in different ways:

  • cold or heated in water, with mustard and bread
  • in Bohemia it is very popular to eat them grilled; in Prague one could find countless snack bars selling špekáčky (fried or often grilled over charcoal)
  • however, it is particularly popular: to grill špekáčky over an open fire, as is often done in summer when camping and other similar occasions; the sausages are cut crosswise at both ends, skewered on a cut branch and grilled
  • the špekáček sausage is also traditionally the main basis for the also very old utopenec recipe - špekáčky pickled with onion rings in a vinegar-water brine

Composition, norms

The composition and consistency of this scalded sausage has long been regulated and is important for the taste of the end product. Since the 1891 issue, some food standards have appeared:

  • 1961: Československá státní norma 57 7101 (Czechoslovak State Standard 57 7101) from 1961, the first standard that regulated the quality of sausages
  • 1977: Československá státní norma 57 7115 (Czechoslovak State Standard 57 7115) from 1977
  • 2001: Vyhláška č. 326/2001 Sb. (Regulation 326/2001)
  • 2011: EU regulation 158/2011, which restores earlier, stricter standards
  • 2016: Vyhláška č. 69/2016 Sb. (Regulation 69/2016)

Overall (with the exception of EU standard 158/2011), they led to a relaxation of the requirements for the composition of this product. This is also made clear by the following overview:

year Beef
in% 		Pig
in% 		Bacon / fat
in% 		comment
1891 50 20th 30th Hindquarters only beef
1961 (40) (30) (30) Fat max. 33%, water max. 48 to 52%
1977 38.5 17.5 27 Beef also permitted from the forequarter from 1977; Pork with rind is also permitted; additionally (optional) veal permitted; 23% water / ice max; Fat max. 45%
2001 at least 40 Fat max. 45; Water limit not set (measured in tests up to 53%); Poultry meat is permitted if the end product is labeled as “poultry špekáčky”
2011 38.5 17.5 27 23% water / ice max.
2016 at least 40 Fat 45% max.

The individual recipes are only partially comparable: some have limits for bacon, others for fat in general; The information for water and ice is also anything but uniform. The ratio of beef and pork, which plays a role in quality and taste, has also changed permanently: from 50 percent beef (1891, from the hindquarters), beef from the forequarter is used from 1961, and then from 2001 onwards not explicitly beef, but can be mixed with pork and veal as desired or replaced entirely by them .; Mechanically separated meat was - unlike other similar bohemian boiled sausages - not permitted. Salt, spices and the like are not included in the table.

The sausage meat, which contains diced bacon up to 8 mm in size, is filled in natural intestine (beef ring intestine or pork small intestine) with a diameter of 4.0-4.6 cm, individual pieces that are 8 to 9 cm long are separated with string ; they form a continuous strand, usually several meters long.

The decreasing quality of the sausage is blamed in the media both on the increasingly relaxed norms (with the exception of the EU norm from 2011) and the fact that state control is waning. Around 2014 the špekáčky were tested with an inglorious result. Of 15 tested products from different companies, all of them met the then valid standard from 2001, but only 10 products met the somewhat stricter standard from 1977 - and none of the products met the standard from 1961.

After 2007/2008, conflicts arose because Czech producers claimed that imported Slovak products were of poor quality; conversely, the Slovaks accused the Czechs of the same thing. Both countries had local regulations for the production of the bacon sausage for the domestic market, but not for export. There was a so-called "sausage war". However, both countries soon decided to submit a joint application to the European Union, in which the same manufacturing process and standard should be stipulated. This happened in 2010 in the application pursuant to Article 8 (2) of Regulation (EC) No. 509/2006 of the Council on traditional specialties guaranteed for agricultural products and foodstuffs, which was approved by Commission Regulation (EU) No. 158/2011 of February 21 It came into force in 2011, underlining the special position of the Špekáček variety for food culture in Bohemia (and also in Moravia and Slovakia).

Curiously, the company failed to apply for the protection of the name špekáček at the same time (see § 3 of the EU regulation: "Protection of the name in accordance with Article 13 (2) of Regulation (EC) No. 509/2006 was not applied for"). This makes it possible to sell lower-quality sausage products under the same name in both countries. The only difference is then only the small EU label that only the products according to the stricter provisions of the EU regulation are allowed to wear.

Similar sausages

The Swiss cervelat resembles the špekáček most closely in other European countries . This applies both to the production and approximately to the composition. There is only one difference: while all the basic ingredients (beef, pork and bacon) in the preparation of Cervelats gekuttert will receive the špekáček ungekuttert the bacon, diced into shape.

Remarks

  1. ↑ a b The text of the no longer valid state standards ČSN 57 7101 (1961) and ČSN 57 7115 (1977) cannot be viewed in the Czech standards collections (see e.g. technicke-normy-csn.cz/… )
  2. ↑ The source does not explicitly mention the year 1961 here.
  3. ↑ The conformity of the standard from 1977 and the EU standard from 2011 results from the fact that the composition values ​​from 1977 were given as the basis in the application to the EU.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION OF A GTS, REGULATION (EC) No. 509/2006 of the COUNCIL “ŠPEKÁČKY” OR “ŠPEKAČKY” , Enclosure : Information from the applicant (Czech or Slovak Association of Meat processing), online at: eur-lex.europa.eu/...52010XC0414(07)
  2. ↑ a b c d e Commission Regulation (EU) No. 158/2011 of February 21, 2011 for the entry of a name in the list of traditional specialties guaranteed (“Špekáčky” / “Špekačky” (GTS)) . In: Official Journal of the European Union . L 47/3 of February 22, 2011.
  3. ↑ a b c Špekáčky / Špekačky , online at: fleischtheke.info / ...
  4. ↑ Stalo se před 120 lety , online at: venusanka.cz / ...
  5. ↑ a b c Vyhláška č. 326/2001 Coll. Order of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, online at: zakonyprolidi.cz/.../2001-326
  6. ↑ a b c d Vyhláška č. 69/2016 Sb. Regulation of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, https://www.zakonyprolidi.cz/cs/2016-69
  7. ↑ a b Renata Petříčková: Špekáček není Buřt. A někdy ani špekáček. Server Vitalia, July 7th 2010, online at: vitalia.cz / ...
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Špekáčky dnes? Podívejte se, co říká norma a jaká je realita , online at: domaci.eurozpravy.cz
  9. ↑ a b c d e f g Close-up on the meat we eat , published in several languages ​​in November 2015 by BEUC (European Consumer Association), Brussels, online at: beuc.eu / ...
  10. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Špekáčky , overview of standards, information center “Bezpečnost potravin” (Food Safety), website of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, published on June 12, 2014, online at bezpecnostpotravin.cz/ ; taken from the magazine dtest , the organ of the Czech consumer association.
  11. ↑ a b špekáček , calorie tables (with composition), online at: kaloricketabulky.cz
  12. ↑ Bratři vedou klobásovou válku , in dtest , monthly magazine of the Czech Consumer Association, March 15, 2007, online at: dtest.cz/
  13. ↑ It's about the sausage , SZ-online, report from March 10, 2008, online from: sz-online.de / ...

See also

Web links

Commons : Špekáčky  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files