{"id":4753,"date":"2018-03-14T15:32:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-14T20:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/live-gordon-food-service.pantheonsite.io\/nduja-spells-opportunity\/"},"modified":"2023-02-01T14:18:11","modified_gmt":"2023-02-01T20:18:11","slug":"nduja-spells-opportunity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gfs.com\/es-us\/ideas\/nduja-spells-opportunity\/","title":{"rendered":"Nduja Spells Opportunity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nduja (pronounced en-DOO-yah) represents one of the biggest menu opportunities for 2018, says Gordon Food Service\u00ae Corporate Consulting Chef Gerry Ludwig, CEC. \u201cIt\u2019s really taken off recently, with a strong showing on menus during our street-level research in 2017.\u201d<\/p>\n

This intense, spicy sausage hails from Calabria, Italy, and stands out with both its deep flavor and spreadable texture. It\u2019s an artisanal butchery product that sees pork shoulder, Calabrian chile and pork fat that\u2019s stuffed into a casing, then hung up to cure. \u201cThe fat ratio is high enough that even after it cures, it\u2019s still spreadable.\u201d Application ideas are numerous, serving up big flavor in small doses\u2014in items like vinaigrettes and flavored butters, as well as pizza and pasta finishes, to name a few.<\/p>\n

As a flavor booster, \u2018nduja is second to none, introducing deeply savory notes with a serious blast of heat. At the Loyalist in Chicago, it helps make this concept\u2019s biscuit program stand out, serving freshly baked biscuits with \u2018nduja butter and ramp honey. Sarah Grueneberg, Executive Chef of Monteverde, also in Chicago, amps up the flavor of arancini, that classic Italian bar snack. Her \u2018Nduja Arancini sees risotto balls flavored with \u2018nduja, rolled in breadcrumbs, then deep fried. She serves them with olive oil, poached tuna and tomato. <\/p>\n

Just a little bit of \u2018nduja goes a long way, which is good considering its hefty cost (about $30-40 a pound). Some chefs are circumnavigating its price tag by making their own versions in-house. \u201cWe saw some really innovative takes on \u2018nduja, like a dry-aged American country ham pur\u00e9ed in a food processor with some sort of fat\u2014either a duck fat or pork fat, for instance\u2014then flavored with some kind of chile, maybe paprika and cayenne,\u201d he says. They do call their takes \u2018nduja\u2014their versions still deliver a spicy, spreadable sausage\u2014but these chefs are making it a more affordable option for menu development.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t think of too many parts of the menu that \u2018nduja wouldn\u2019t add a little sizzle,\u201d Ludwig says. \u201cYou can serve it as a spread, use it as a flavoring ingredient in soups, stews, salads and more. It\u2019s also a great component in global fried rice dishes, pizzas and flatbreads, and pastas.\u201d Adding nduja gives operators a first-to-market edge, creating menu differentiation and flavor complexity.<\/p>\n

Here are three opportunities calling on this spicy, spreadable sausage.<\/p>\n

1. Spread the flavor<\/h3>\n

\u201cOne of our favorite presentations of nduja on our trends tour was as a shareable spread,\u201d Ludwig says. As an element on a charcuterie plate or as a stand-alone bar snack or appetizer, \u2018nduja offers a flavor-packed experience. At Chicago\u2019s Forbidden Root, the N\u2019duja Sausage plate offers nduja drizzled with olive oil and local honey, garnished with pickled mustard seeds and served with grilled bread.<\/p>\n

Examples<\/p>\n