# Hard salami, Genoa or Pepperoni?



## snickerdoodle (Dec 8, 2010)

Our grocer's deli is running a special right now where if you buy a pound of their higher priced deli meats, you get a FREE pound of hard salami, genoa or pepperoni (your choice).  These are not deli meats I typically buy and I don't even know what genoa is LOL.  Which one would you pick and what would you do with it?  Thanks in advance for all the wonderful ideas ya'll have!


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## Andy M. (Dec 8, 2010)

Hard salami and Genoa are similar.  Either can be added to a sandwich for a little extra flavor.  Genoa salami is an all-time favorite of my so there would be no problem choosing.  You can also use either in an omelet or as part of an antipasto (rolled as tightly as you can).

Pepperoni to me is primarily an appetizer food and pizza topping.  You can also add it to a coldcut sandwich or an omelet.

Any of the three could be chopped and added to a salad.

All in all, it's hard to go wrong here.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Dec 8, 2010)

snickerdoodle said:


> Our grocer's deli is running a special right now where if you buy a pound of their higher priced deli meats, you get a FREE pound of hard salami, genoa or pepperoni (your choice). These are not deli meats I typically buy and I don't even know what genoa is LOL. Which one would you pick and what would you do with it? Thanks in advance for all the wonderful ideas ya'll have!


 
Oh man!  I'm drooling just thinking about it.  What a tough choice.  All of them are great and I use them as additions to any sandwich, except PBJ's.  I also use them as nibbles and snacks.  The sandwich pepperoni is cheaper than the pizza pepperoni and often more flavorful, you can cut in quarters and make pizza or calzones.

Sorry, had to go get a mouth wiper...


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## FrankZ (Dec 8, 2010)

Buy three pounds and get one of each.


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## snickerdoodle (Dec 8, 2010)

FrankZ said:


> Buy three pounds and get one of each.


 
LOL, you know, I would but it's a coupon deal, limit 1 per customer .  I supposed I could make 3 trips...


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## Andy M. (Dec 8, 2010)

snickerdoodle said:


> LOL, you know, I would but it's a coupon deal, limit 1 per customer .  I supposed I could make 3 trips...




Ask for a third of a pound of each.


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## betterthanabox (Dec 8, 2010)

I would go with the Hard Salami, it is really tasty and keeps a long time, not to mention it looks beautiful on an antipasta platter or in a salad of marinated artichokes, mushrooms, onions, and mozzarella.


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## babetoo (Dec 8, 2010)

i would pick the pepperoni. the pizza size is really expensive. and the one they have would definitely work on pizza


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Dec 8, 2010)

Classic sandwich for me - Whole Wheat soft hoagie bun, extra virgin olive oil, black olives, iceberg lettuce, generous helping of Capiacola, generous helping of pepperoni, medium helping of Genoa Salami, sliced onion, sliced green pepper, couple slices aged swiss cheese.

Pepperoni has a more pronounced flavor to me than does either salami, and I'm a guy who loves strong flavors (can you tell from the breath-killer sandwich above?).  Salami will be a little more versatile than the pepperoni.  But pepperoni is another form of salami and works well in salads, pasta, tomato sauce, sandwiches, on pizza, with scrambled eggs, chopped and added to egg salad sandwich filling, in calzones, and even put together with rice and beans.  I also love taking a pinch of slices and popping them into my mouth for a snack, followed by a good slice of cheese.  The flavor profile of pepperoni has a slightly also works with the vinager and sugar of three-bean salad.  In fact, I love the stuff so much I might even throw it in apple pie!  Ha! Gotcha.  I'm crazy, but not that crazy.  I would throw it in a meat pie though, along with some Italian sausage, onions, and diced potatoes, or in lasagna.

To me, salami is relegated to sandwiches and hors-dueveres, unless it's a good soprasetta.

I'd go with the pepperoni.  But of course, that's MHO.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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## justplainbill (Dec 8, 2010)

Check out 
Fratelli Beretta - Quality is a family Tradition
http://www.fratelliberettausa.com/index.htm


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## Rocklobster (Dec 8, 2010)

I love Genoa.  I just eat it as is in an antipasto with bread, cheese, raw veggies and assorted pickles or marinate veggies.  I love the texture and flavor too much to mix it with other ingredients.


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## mkaylady (Dec 9, 2010)

I would also pick the Genoa Salami and use it on an antipasto plate with a good sharp Provolone Cheese, some black olives, and some roasted red peppers. For the expensive cold cuts you could choose Prosciutto de Parma and add that to your antipasto plate as well. I'm drooling just thinking about this.


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## bakechef (Dec 9, 2010)

Hard Salami usually has a smokey flavor, while Genoa has a slightly spicy flavor.  I like both, but Genoa is my favorite.

So how do you say it, GEN-noah or Gen-o-ah (like the city in Italy).  I pronounce it like the city in Italy, but many of my customers pronounce it with a NOAH at the end.


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## justplainbill (Dec 9, 2010)

Salame Genovese is the real Mccoy.  Most of the stuff available here is Genoa STYLE salami.  From where I was at in Italy (Viareggio), Genoa was closer than Milan but salame Milanese was more popular


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## snickerdoodle (Dec 9, 2010)

Well I ended up with the hard salami and only because (don't laugh) the slices were kind of flower shaped... and I though my girls would be more inclined to try it that way!  I had forgotten how much I love salami until I ate a slice last night.  I agree with Rocklobster that enjoying it as-is would be the way to go!  I see an antipasto platter in my future...


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## msmofet (Dec 9, 2010)

Get the Genoa!! Hard salami taste nasty to me. Pepperoni is religated to cheese plates or pizza.


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## PattY1 (Dec 9, 2010)

msmofet said:


> Get the Genoa!! Hard salami taste nasty to me. Pepperoni is religated to cheese plates or pizza.




I feel just the opposite! I love Hard Salami, I don't like Genoa. 
If I was planning to make Cold Cut Subs, I would get the Hard Salami.
If I was planning on making Pizza, Pepperoni Rolls or Cavitini I would get pepperoni. Both go well on a snack tray with cheese.

Can you get 1 pound of Hard Salami and 1 pound of Pepperoni? That is what I would do.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Dec 10, 2010)

snickerdoodle said:


> Well I ended up with the hard salami and only because (don't laugh) the slices were kind of flower shaped... and I though my girls would be more inclined to try it that way! I had forgotten how much I love salami until I ate a slice last night. I agree with Rocklobster that enjoying it as-is would be the way to go! I see an antipasto platter in my future...


 
Good thinking, getting the kids to try it is important!  Any of the 3 would have been good.


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## taxlady (Dec 11, 2010)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Good thinking, getting the kids to try it is important!  Any of the 3 would have been good.



When I was a kid the adults didn't have to do anything to get us to try any kind of salami. I just didn't like big bits of black pepper. So I took them out.

And this discussion is having a bad influence on me. Guess what was in my shopping cart at Costco today? And that I'm eating right now on RyVita.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Dec 11, 2010)

You know, I haven't had any bacon or ham for over three weeks...now all this talk about salami and pepperoni...argggh!!!  Time to get the food processor out.

My doctor is going to love it, though!


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## Rocklobster (Dec 11, 2010)

Speaking of hard salami, our family's favorite is Calabrese. We are spicy food fans, and it has a great zing...It blends well with a creamy brie, or camembert on a piece of crusty bread.


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## taxlady (Dec 11, 2010)

Rocklobster said:


> Speaking of hard salami, our family's favorite is Calabrese. We are spicy food fans, and it has a great zing...It blends well with a creamy brie, or camembert on a piece of crusty bread.



Oh my! Gilding the lily, eh. But it does sound decadently yummy.


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## Rocklobster (Dec 11, 2010)

taxlady said:


> Oh my! Gilding the lily, eh. But it does sound decadently yummy.


LOL! Well, my approach to the culinary arts has never been subtle. I like to consider myself a Jackson Pollock of gastronomy. Pioneers have to endure some harsh conditions before they achieve success...

And, I'll eat anything....


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## Claire (Dec 11, 2010)

I'm one of those adventurous types, and if someone gave me the choice, I'd go with what I hadn't tried before!  I tend to think as Genoa as a type of hard salami, so go for it.  Great on pizza or in an Italian sub-sandwich (I'm not going to get into what they're called in various parts of the country), or if you're having an appetizer party, cut in cubes or sliced then rolled into a tube and speared with a toothpick.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Dec 12, 2010)

The best Salami in the world for me is Gavilovic Winter Salami, my wife brought a "stick" home from the Dolac in Zagreb last week.Dont get me wrong Italian is good, Hungarian is better but Gav is the best.


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## justplainbill (Dec 12, 2010)

Bolas De Fraile said:


> The best Salami in the world for me is Gavilovic Winter Salami, my wife brought a "stick" home from the Dolac in Zagreb last week.Dont get me wrong Italian is good, Hungarian is better but Gav is the best.


You're lucky to be able to move salami across national borders.  Our ability to do so into the USA is limited .


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## Bolas De Fraile (Dec 13, 2010)

justplainbill said:


> You're lucky to be able to move salami across national borders. Our ability to do so into the USA is limited .


Bill mate we have some similar rules over here, when Poland join the EU we had a large  influx of very hard working people, there is a fantastic store nearby set up by two wives who's husbands are plumbers, the wives bought a transit van and drive to Poland in 24 hrs to bring back amongst other thing wonderful charcuterie for the deli counter


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## buckytom (Dec 13, 2010)

i would go for the pepperoni just so i could shave it into butter sweated onions, then adding that to scrambled eggs and put it all on a hard roll. yummm!


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## snickerdoodle (Dec 13, 2010)

buckytom said:


> i would go for the pepperoni just so i could shave it into butter sweated onions, then adding that to scrambled eggs and put it all on a hard roll. yummm!


 
Oh man that sounds awesome!  Pepperoni is on my list for the next trip!  Thanks for the idea.


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## buckytom (Dec 13, 2010)

it's one of my favourite egg sandwich combos, snicker. the keys are to slice the pepperoni amd onions super thin so they kinda match the fluffiness of the eggs.

i've found large ring pepperoni slices better for this.


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## snickerdoodle (Dec 13, 2010)

buckytom said:


> it's one of my favourite egg sandwich combos, snicker. the keys are to slice the pepperoni amd onions super thin so they kinda match the fluffiness of the eggs.
> 
> i've found large ring pepperoni slices better for this.


 
Makes sense, thanks for the tips!


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