When you think of pepperoni then you are probably thinking of those thin meat discs so beloved of pizza eaters. And yes ! It is the iconic meat topping.
Pepperoni is not as Italian as we might think. It originally came about as an American – Italian idea for a spicy dry sausage or salami prepared from a mixture of cured pork and beef containing chili pepper or paprika. The spice lends the sausage a particular piquant flavour making it ideal in its role as a topping. Rather like chorizo, it also has a similar colour and if paprika is used, lends a smoky flavour to the sausage.
The labeling of pepperoni sometimes seems surprising. If such a sausage contains more than 55% of any particular meat then it is either a pork or a beef pepperoni. Other ingredients permitted include antioxidants. Incidentally, no binders or extruder ingredients are allowed. Likewise, no tongue, heart or any other meat byproducts including offal is permitted.
The sausage is also encased which is treated with a potassium sorbate solution to reduce mold growth.
Labelling Of Pepperoni.
I also found some pepperoni prepared with poultry meat such as chicken. It has to be labelled as such. When the meat contains 20% or less of poultry, then it is labeled as ‘Pepperoni with Turkey Added’ if that is the poultry meat used. When the amount of additional poultry meat is over 20% then it must be labeled as lets say ‘Pork and Turkey Pepperoni’. When the poultry amount exceeds that of either pork or beef, it is termed ‘Turkey and Pork Pepperoni’.
One other key feature, the meat must be cured,usually with nitrites and nitrates to achieve a certain level of protection from bacterial growth in particular. Botulism is still a major issue in the food industry so any steps to maintain preservation is welcome. The other standard is that all living trichinae which means parasitic nematodes must be completely destroyed. The trichina worms produce a parasitic disease called trichinosis. The sausage produced must have an MPR of 1.6:1 or less.
From a nutritional perspective, pepperoni contains 460 kcal or 1927 kJ per 100g of meat. It is also a high protein food containing 20.35g/100g whilst the fat content is 40.2g/100g.
Pepperonis are now mass produced because they are so popular. As well as being a pizza topping, they are snacks in their own right. In fact various The Grocer magazine reckoned that in the USA, about 260 million pounds of this sausage is eaten.
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