Cudighi () is an

Italian-American Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...

dish consisting of a spicy Italian sausage seasoned with sweet spices that can be bought in links or served as a

sandwich A sandwich is a Dish (food), dish typically consisting variously of meat, cheese, sauces, and vegetables used as a filling between slices of bread, or placed atop a slice of bread; or, more generally, any dish in which bread serves as a ''co ...

on a long, hard roll, often with mozzarella cheese and

tomato sauce Tomato sauce (; ; ) can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes. In some countries the term refers to a sauce to be served as part of a dish, in others it is a condiment. Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, s ...

. It is primarily found in the

Upper Peninsula of Michigan The Upper Peninsula of Michigan—also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. or Yoop—is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula of ...

in the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

Preparation

Cudighi can be served many ways in many

dishes. As a sandwich, it was originally served with raw onions and mustard on a roll, but is today typically served with mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce. Additional toppings may include mushrooms, onions, and green peppers. The taste of Cudighi varies with the amount of clove and cinnamon present in the mix.

History

Cudighi appears to be derived from Cotechino, a Northern Italian fresh sausage made from pork,

fatback Fatback is a layer of subcutaneous fat taken from under the skin of the back of a domestic pig, with or without the skin (referred to as pork rind). In cuisine Fatback is a preferred fat for various forms of charcuterie, particularly sau ...

, and

pork rind Pork rind is the culinary term for the skin of a pig. It can be used in many different ways. It can be rendered, fried in fat, baked, or roasted to produce a kind of pork cracklings (US), crackling (UK), or scratchings (UK); these are ...

, and is primarily found in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, particularly in Marquette County. The sandwich and its distinctive sausage were first sold in northern Michigan by Italian immigrants in 1936, who called it ''Gudighi''. The sandwich was originally dressed with mustard and onions; using tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese as toppings became popular following World War II.

Preparation

History

See also

References

Further reading