The market · Meat · Southern Europe

Guanciale

Cured pork cheek — fattier and sweeter than pancetta, the Roman choice for carbonara and amatriciana.

porky · sweet fat

What to do with it

Rosa Ibarra's Clarified milk punch, mezcal and pineappleGuanciale would soften its edgeIbu Sari's Sambal ijoGuanciale would soften its edgeKenji Hara's Milk punch, with hojichaGuanciale would soften its edge
Classics built on it
ItalianCarbonaraPasta with crisp guanciale, bound off the heat in a sauce of egg yolk, pecorino and black pepper.No one here has made it yet

If you can't find it

Italian delis.

  1. 1Pancetta
    The same weight
    You lose some fat and funk — guanciale renders more and tastes deeper.
  2. 2Bacon
    The same weight, unsmoked
    You lose more — and smoked bacon makes it a different dish.

Goes with

pecorinoblack pepperegg

Knowing it

Where to buy
Italian delis. Pancetta is the nearest swap; bacon is further.
Worth knowing
Render it slowly in a cold pan so the fat melts and the meat crisps.

Kitchens that keep it in

ItalyItalianNot one cuisine but twenty regional ones, united by a respect for a few very good ingredients and the argument about how each dish is 'really' made.11 classics

More meat

MeatAndouillessmoky, spicy, porkyhotsavouryrichsalty3 classicsMeatBeef shinbeefy, gelatinousrichIn Beef rendang, Rendang, the Lagos way · 18 classicsMeatBeef sirloinbeefy, tenderrichIn Suya · 13 classicsMeatBone marrowrich, beefy, butteryrichNot cooked here yet