“Nduja is a very hot chilli paste originally made with pork offal and is typical of the southern Italian region of Calabria,” says Adelaide’s Salvatore Pepe. “The distinctive flavour of the Calabrian version comes from chilli that has been slow-dried in a wood oven, imparting a smoky flavour. The finished paste is encased in intestine and cured like a cacciatore sausage. The fiery spread can be used to give heat and flavour to just about any dish from crostini to pasta. Nowadays, the paste is made using better cuts of meat and although there are as many ‘secret’ recipes as there are butchers in Calabria, this is a good one, passed on to me by my friend, Francesco, a fourth-generation butcher from my home town of Polistena.”