Charcuterie is the French term for prepared pork meat (and offal) products as well as the delis that sell them. The goal of charcuterie is to use up scraps that would otherwise go to waste and to extend the life of pork meat, and the artisanal and industrial methods for doing so have been developed since the 15th century. As the French are fond of saying, "Tout est bon dans le cochon."
Charcuterie includes cured meat, fresh or smoked sausage, pâté, andouille sausage, black pudding, rillettes, hams, headcheese and other ready-to-eat pork products that are made using a variety of methods, from poaching to smoking to salt-curing. In addition to France, countries such as Italy and Germany also have strong pork traditions.
A cardoon is a vegetable, also known as the artichoke thistle, that looks a bit like celery on a bad day and has a flavor reminiscent of artichoke hearts and salsify.
Popular in Italy, Spain and France, the cardoon is related to the Globe artichoke. An invasive, frost-sensitive plant that needs a lot of space, the cardoon grows as a weed in the Argentine pampas, California and Australia.
Cardoons can be baked, braised or boiled, and it's often a good idea to blanch them for up to 30 minutes before using them. (Beware of sneaky thistles that may be lurking on the outer stalks -- it's best to peel the outside a bit.)
High in sodium, cardoons are nevertheless recognized as a good source of potassium, calcium and iron. Artichoke oil, which is similar to sunflower or safflower oil, can be extracted from cardoon seeds. It is currently being studied and tested for its biofuel potential.
Offal is an awful-sounding British term that is a catch phrase for the food group known as edible animal innards and entrails. In the U.S., offal is called the hazy-sounding "variety meats." What we're talking about here are brains, pig's feet, heart, kidneys, liver, sweetbreads, tongue, tripe, that sort of thing.
People tend to divide on the issue of offal. Of course, chop the stuff up and put it in a sausage and most people don't know the difference. But others may disagree about whether the butchered animal parts are trash or treasure.
