Lunch meats—also known as cold cuts, luncheon meats, cooked meats, sliced meats, cold meats, sandwich meats, and deli meats—are precooked or cured meats that are sliced and served cold or hot. They are typically served in

sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

es or on a

tray A tray is a shallow platform designed for the carrying of items. It can be fashioned from numerous materials, including silver, brass, sheet iron, paperboard, wood, melamine, and molded pulp. Trays range in cost from inexpensive molded pulp tray ...

. They can be purchased pre-sliced, usually in vacuum packs, or they can be sliced to order.

Types

Bresaola Bresaola ( , , , ) is air-dried, salted beef (but it can also be made of horse, venison and pork) that has been aged two or three months until it becomes hard and turns a dark red, almost purple color. It is made from top (inside) round, and ...

Chicken breast Chicken is the most common type of poultry in the world. Owing to the relative ease and low cost of raising chickens—in comparison to mammals such as cattle or hogs—chicken meat (commonly called just "chicken") and chicken eggs have beco ...

* Chicken loaf (also known as chicken roll) * Corned beef *

Cotechino The ''cotechino'' (, ) is an Italian large pork sausage requiring slow cooking; usually it is simmered at low heat for several hours. Its name comes from ''cotica'' (rind), but it may take different names depending on its various locations of pr ...

Dutch loaf Dutch loaf (also called old-fashioned loaf, spiced luncheon loaf, and spiced lunch meat) is a luncheon meat made from coarse-ground lean pork and beef mixed or coated with spices, formed into a loaf shape and then smoked over a hardwood fire. It is ...

Ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

** Baked ** Boiled ** Chipped chopped ** Cooked ** ''Éisleker'' ** ''

Jamón ''Jamón'' (, pl. ''jamones'') is a kind of dry-cured ham produced in Spain. It is one of the most globally recognized food items of Spanish cuisine. It is also regularly a component of tapas. Most ''jamón'' is commonly called ''jamón serrano ...

'': ''serrano'' or ''ibérico'' **

Prosciutto ''Prosciutto crudo'', in English often shortened to prosciutto ( , ), is Italian uncooked, unsmoked, and dry-cured ham. ''Prosciutto crudo'' is usually served thinly sliced. Several regions in Italy have their own variations of ''prosciutto crud ...

** Smoked * Head cheese **

Salceson Salceson is a type of meat found in Polish cuisine and other Central and Eastern European cuisines. There are several varieties of salceson which depend on the ingredients. Varieties * Black 'Salceson' which contains blood * White 'Salceson' ma ...

Meatloaf Meatloaf is a dish of ground meat that has been combined with other ingredients and formed into the shape of a loaf, then baked or smoked. The final shape is either hand-formed on a baking tray, or pan-formed by cooking it in a loaf pan. ...

** Ham and cheese loaf ** Olive loaf ** Pepper loaf ** Pimento loaf **

Spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spice ...

d luncheon loaf ** Veal loaf * Mortadella *

Pork roll Pork roll is a processed meat commonly available in New Jersey and neighboring states. It was developed in 1856 by John Taylor of Trenton, and sold as "Taylor's Prepared Ham" until 1906. Though since then food labeling regulations require Tay ...

Roast beef Roast beef is a dish of beef that is roasted, generally served as the main dish of a meal. In the Anglosphere, roast beef is one of the meats often served at Sunday lunch or dinner. Yorkshire pudding is a standard side dish. Sliced roast beef ...

* Roast

lamb Lamb or The Lamb may refer to: * A young sheep * Lamb and mutton, the meat of sheep Arts and media Film, television, and theatre * ''The Lamb'' (1915 film), a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in his screen debut * ''The Lamb'' (1918 ...

* Roast

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

Sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

s **''

Bierwurst ''Bierwurst'' is a German cooked, smoked '' Brühwurst'' sausage originally from Bavaria, with a garlicky flavor and dark red color. It is seasoned with black peppercorns, paprika and mustard seeds for flavor. The meat is partially cured and th ...

'' or ''beerwurst'' ** Blood tongue (''Zungenwurst'') **

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

, Polony ***

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

** Braunschweiger *** ''

Brühwurst Brühwurst ("scalded sausage" or "parboiled sausage") is the collective name for several types of sausages according to the German classification. They are a cooked sausage that are scalded ( parboiled), as opposed to being raw. They are typica ...

'' *** ''

Mettwurst Mettwurst () is a strongly flavored German sausage made from raw minced pork preserved by curing and smoking, often with garlic. The southern German variety is soft and similar to Teewurst. Braunschweiger mettwurst is partially smoked but stil ...

'' ** Chorizo **

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

** ''

Extrawurst Extrawurst can be either a type of cold cut or part of a German idiomatic expression. Sausage type Extrawurst is a type of Austrian scalded cold cut. It is moist, light-coloured, fine-textured, and made from a well-spiced mixture of beef, pork ...

'' ** '' Gelbwurst'' ** '' Jagdwurst'' ** '' Krakowska'' (

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

-style pork sausage) ** '' Kabanos'' ** '' Myśliwska'' **

Liverwurst Liverwurst, leberwurst, or liver sausage is a kind of sausage made from liver. It is eaten in many parts of Europe, including Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Netherlands, Norway, Polan ...

** '' Prasky'' **

Morcilla A blood sausage is a sausage filled with blood that is cooked or dried and mixed with a filler until it is thick enough to solidify when cooled. Most commonly, the blood of pigs, sheep, lamb, cow, chicken, or goose is used. In Europe and the A ...

** Salami *** Alpino *** Capicola *** Finocchiona ***

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

-style ***

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish-style ***

Pepperoni Pepperoni is an American variety of spicy salami made from cured pork and beef seasoned with paprika or other chili pepper. Prior to cooking, pepperoni is characteristically soft, slightly smoky, and bright red. Thinly sliced pepperoni is one ...

*** '' Soppressata'' ** Salchichón ** ''

Saucisson sec Saucisson () or saucisson sec is a family of thick, dry-cured sausages in French cuisine. Typically made of pork, or a mixture of pork and other meats, saucisson are a type of charcuterie similar to salami or summer sausage. Origin Sauciss ...

'' (dry, maturing, salty, savoury-tasting French salami) ** Sausagemeat

stuffing Stuffing, filling, or dressing is an edible mixture, often composed of herbs and a starch such as bread, used to fill a cavity in the preparation of another food item. Many foods may be stuffed, including poultry, seafood, and vegetables. A ...

Summer sausage Summer sausage is an American term for any sausage that can be kept without refrigeration until opened. Summer sausage is usually a mixture of pork, but may be made of or contain other meats such as beef or venison. Summer sausage is fermente ...

** '' Teewurst'' *

Smoked meat Smoked meat is the result of a method of preparing red meat, white meat, and seafood which originated in the Paleolithic, Paleolithic Era. Smoking adds Flavor (taste), flavor, improves the appearance of meat through the Maillard reaction, and ...

Montreal-style smoked meat Montreal-style smoked meat, Montreal smoked meat or simply smoked meat in Quebec (French: ''smoked-meat''; sometimes ''viande fumée'' or even ''bœuf mariné'': Literally “marinated beef”) is a type of kosher-style deli meat product made ...

Pastrami Pastrami (Romanian: '' pastramă'') is a food originating from Romania usually made from beef brisket, lamb, pork, chicken sometimes from turkey. The raw meat is brined, partially dried, seasoned with herbs and spices, then smoked and steamed. ...

Tongue The tongue is a muscular organ in the mouth of a typical tetrapod. It manipulates food for mastication and swallowing as part of the digestive process, and is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper surface (dorsum) is covered by taste ...

* Turkey breast * Spam and Treet

Health

Most pre-sliced lunch meats are higher in

fat In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple est ...

, nitrates, and

sodium Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable ...

than those that are sliced to order, as a larger exposed surface requires stronger preservatives. As a result, processed meats may significantly contribute to incidence of heart disease and

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

, even more so than red meat. A prospective study following 448,568 people across Europe, showed a positive association between processed

meat consumption Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chick ...

and mortality caused by cardiovascular disease and cancer. Similarly, a prospective study in the US following half a million people flagged a similar association between death and increased processed meat consumption. The

World Cancer Research Fund International World Cancer Research Fund International is a not-for-profit association related to cancer prevention research related to diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the del ...

guidelines on cancer prevention recommend avoiding all

processed meat Processed meat is considered to be any meat which has been modified in order to either improve its taste or to extend its shelf life. Methods of meat processing include salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, and/or the addition of chemical pr ...

Safety

In 2011, the US

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

advises that those over age 50 reheat lunch meats to "steaming hot" and use them within four days.

References

External links

* {{Sausage Dried meat Meat Sandwiches World cuisine Lunch Types of food Sliced foods

Types

Health

Safety

See also

References

External links