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Linguica. It’s part of the culinary fabric of California’s great Central Valley, available at every greasy spoon from Redding to Bakersfield, served at breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can thank the Azoreans for this one.
I’ve heard tell that there are more Azoreans in California than there are in the Azores, which, if you are not familiar, are a small chain of islands off the coast of Portugal. You can see their names everywhere around here: Silva, Lopes, Mendes, Machado, Costa, Cardoza. Linguica eaters, all.
What is this strange sausage of which I speak? Linguica (Ling-GWEE-zuh) is a pork sausage heavily spiced with paprika, chiles and garlic. There are all sorts of variations, but linguica is normally a coarse, country sausage, and it is often smoked. I’ve eaten linguica all over the country, but the best have been in Gloucester, Massachusetts (where my mother and sister live), and here in the Valley.
A really good linguica, to my mind, is a cudgel of a sausage. Smoky, garlicky and rich with pork fat and red peppers, it is spectacular served with grilled onions on a hoagie roll. A man’s sandwich.
The Portuguese put linguica in almost everything, but in addition to sandwiches, I love it in soups with Portuguese cabbage (which is a lot like our collard greens) and potatoes. My friend David Leite has several good recipes using linguica in his cookbook The New Portuguese Table.
I made my version with wild pig. Of course if you can’t get wild boar, you can use pork. But use good-quality pork from a good butcher or a farmer’s market. I suppose you could also use bear, too, if you have that lying around.
If you’ve never made sausage before, start by reading this detailed tutorial on how to make sausages at home.
Portuguese Linguica
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 pounds pork shoulder or wild boar meat
- 1 1/2 pounds pork fat
- 34 grams kosher salt
- 6 grams Instacure No. 1 (optional)
- 1 tablespoon dextrose or white sugar
- 10 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon hot paprika or cayenne
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon crushed black pepper
- 1/2 cup dry milk (optional - it helps the sausage retain moisture while smoking)
- 3/4 cup red wine, preferably a Portuguese wine
- Hog casings
Instructions
- Chill the meat and fat until they're almost frozen by putting it in the freezer for an hour or so.
- Take out some hog casings -- you'll need about 3 to 4 standard lengths, about 15 feet -- and set in a bowl of very warm water.
- Chop meat and fat into chunks that will fit into your grinder. Combine the salt, instacure (if using), sugar, garlic, dry milk and the rest of the spices and mix it into the meat and fat with your hands. Let this rest in the fridge for about an hour. (Optional expert step: Mix the chunks of meat and fat with the salt and curing salt overnight before proceeding. Doing this will give you a better bind on the sausage.)
- Grind through your meat grinder using the coarse die, about 6.5 mm or so. If your room is warmer than 69°F, set the bowl for the ground meat into another bowl of ice to keep it cold. Put the mixture back in the freezer while you clean up.
- Add the wine to the meat mix, then mix thoroughly either using a Kitchenaid on low for 60-90 seconds or with your (very clean) hands. This is important to get the sausage to bind properly. Once it is mixed well, put it back in the fridge while you clean up again.
- Stuff the sausage into the casings. Do whole coils before making links. Twist off links by pinching the sausage down and twisting it, first in one direction, and then with the next link, the other direction. (Here's a quick video on making the links) Or you could tie them off with butcher’s string.
- Hang the sausages in a cool place. If it is warm out or if you are smoking your links, hang for one hour. If you have a place where the temperature will not go higher than 38°F, you can hang them as long as overnight.
- If you are smoking your sausages, get your smoker going while the sausages hang. Smoke the links for at least 3 hours, and as many as 12. I prefer a lighter smoke, so you can still taste the pork and spices. I prefer oak, but hickory, maple, pecan or a fruit wood would also work.
- Once the sausages have dried and/or smoked, put them the fridge until needed. If you are freezing the sausages, wait a day before doing so. This will tighten up the sausages and help them keep their shape in the deep-freeze.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is similar to my mother’s recipe. I made it, but added 1/2 cup whiskey and 1/2 cup homemade Portuguese wine. That is what my mother did. We also made morcella, with the blood, rice, green onions, and spices. I would love to have a piece right now. But it has to be homemade. My mother’s lingucia was in soupd, stews, sandwiches, for breakfast. I have made yours with a little change, and have her recipe back. Thank you so much from the whole family.
I was raised on the Central Coast in CA. Grew up on Silva brand. Made a batch of Linguica for the first time. Followed this recipe. Next time, I’ll add a bit more Paprika and cayenne to get a better red color and more bite. Also added some cider vinegar, adds some tang. Read the ingredients on a package of Silva’s, powdered milk is an ingredient. Have to say, it was pretty moist out of the smoker. Can’t wait to try this again.
Don’t forget about us California Madeirans. We are holding down the Portuguese traditions also (i don’t know why i feel compelled to say that).
Ok, my 2 cents, lol. I was born in Pico Acores and now live in Barrie Ont Canada. Linguica made in Pico the meat is cut half inch to three quarter cubes and the fat is a quarter inch cubes marinated for 3 day. Fry a bit of the meat mix just to taste the flavour and add if needed, then you smoke it. You can then BBQ it of fry it then enjoy with some bolo or inhames and of course a nice glass or two of wine lol. My dad’s recipe is a bit different from yours Hank but that all depends on who you ask and we’re they are from. Great blog loved reading it. Bon appetite .
I am half Azorean Portguese. My mother was 100% from Cape Cod and I grew up eating both Linguica and Chourico. I now live in Georgia and to those asking where to find it in the south, you will find it at any Publix grocery store near the Kielbasa and similar sausages. You can thank my late great uncle Manny who convinced managers in FL to start carrying it and the sales were so good they put it into all the Publix stores.
My favorite way to eat it is cut length wise and grilled outside then place on Portuguese white bread if you can find it with a little salted butter melting around around it. Of course it is a main ingredient in the Azores version of Kale Soup which is a course stew not blended like the mainland Portugal Kaldo Verde version.
By the way, if you don’t live in an an area that carries these you can order it online from sites like Linguica.com (Gaspar’s in Dartmouth MA which is the brand Publix carries).
How interesting to find this recipe. I came across your site looking for sausages recipes, and was amazed to find this here, as I am Portuguese, born in Madeira island, and living in Lisbon.
I am not a huge fan of linguiça and chouriço (not sure if you have the ç character in your fonts, we spell it like ss), but I do eat it… Usually the grinding is very coarse, and both linguiça and chouriço are dry and hard. Both get more use nowadays thin sliced and used almost as flavorings (in soups, rice, stews) or in a couvert – a dish of thin sliced chouriço along some other sausages and cold meats is common in a portuguese couvert, along with bread and butter or a mix of olive oil with herbs and balsamic vinegar as a dip for bread.
I am from San Leandro, California currently living in the Portland Oregon metro area…I along with my whole family was raised on Santo’s Linguica 5 generations deep…Some of my family went to school with the family and Stewart/the last owner of the meat store before he was imprisoned…I have a recipe that is very very close to the texture and flavor of that linguica and am having a local butcher shop to start making it for me at $5 a pound….Cant wait till its on the market…I have so many orders to fill…
Sue,
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
My Grandmother and great Aunts have long passed and along with them their ability and recipe for Linguica.
I notice you do not use any liquid (vinegar or wine or ….) for marinade – is this correct?
Thank you again,
Tony
Jason: Depends on my mood. Sometimes I cold smoke for a few hours at 90 degrees or below (using the Instacure No. 1) or sometimes I hot smoke at 225 degrees for a couple hours, or until the interior temperature gets to be about 150 degrees.
What temperature do you smoke your sausages?
I am a sausage maker from Portland Oregon and I must say this recipe turned out amazing! I just couldn’t get enough! I told a friend of mine from Hawaii that I’d make it for him can’t wait until he gets to try it.
Here is my linguica recipe. I’ve tried to replicate the flavor I remember from my childhood. This is very close:
Sue’s Portuguese Linguica (Azores style)
5 lb pork shoulder
1 ½ lb pork fat
2 heads of garlic, minced
1T Cumin
4T paprika
1 1/2T bl pepper
6T salt
1T oregano
1 tsp sugar
1T cayenne (opt)
Coarsely grind pork then grind the pork fat. Combine.
You can also cut pork and fat into small cubes instead of grinding. True linguica is not ground.
Add garlic and spices. Mix lightly but well. I use the beater attachment on my kitchenaide to mix both the pork and fat then the flavorings. Refrigerate for 24-48 hrs to allow flavors to meld.
Stuff, twisting at 12” increments then smoke. Using hickory chips I smoke at 200 degrees for 1 ½-2 hrs or until internal temp reaches 185.
I will try the dry milk in Hank’s recipe above in my next batch.
Correction I order my Lingucia from Netto’s in Santa Clara. Souza’s is a portuguese bakery in San Jose.
Debbie Lee
OMG !!!!!! I would love to have some homemade Linguica, I miss it so much. My grandmother came from the Azore Islands and was 100% Portuguese and I was raised on Linguica. She passed away when I was 17 and I am now 57, however I still remember watching her make Lingucia and Molasathis (spell?) which is a portuguese donut with no hole in it. lol I live in Portland, OR and order my Lingucia from Souza’s meat market in San Jose, CA. which is where I was raised. 😉
Debbie Lee (grandmothers name was (Lopes)
I am a 2nd generation Portuguese from Ferndale Ca. my Grandfather emigrated from the island of PICO . His name was Jauquin Machado Medina. The best linqucia is in Santa Clara Ca. at Netto’s tell them you are portugese and you want the course old style. I have them ship 20lbs. to me in Oceanside, Ca every few mo. the stuff is as good as my Ava used to make.
I also miss SANTOS Linguica…the very best.
They used pork ‘picnic shoulder roast’ in their recipe.
The meat was grinded chunkier and fattier than anyone elses.
Goularte’s is the next best thing. They have a website.
Red Wine sounds right,paprika,margoram, garlic…It shouldn’t be overly spicy and of course, no preservatives.
It should marinate in refrigerator 24-48 hours.
Morcella is so flavorful and available in some markets.
Great with scrambled eggs.
Miss Santos linguica in bay area. Too bad they closed. If anyone knows the ingredients, I would be interested. I know only two of the pieces to the puzzle because of the old man telling me. Port wine and red wine vinagar
Good Luck finding it Deb. I grew up in NorCal and I love it, but now I live in TN and have to bring it back with me when I visit. TSA loves checking my bags between the linguica and the salami. That is what we had for breakfast this morning actually.
Hank, Love the site, you’ve inspired me to new cooking adventures… Just a thought, I have a rich Argentine heritage and they eat what they call “chorizo” (which is probably more like this linguica than mexican chorizo) on a crispy bageutte with Chimmi Churri smothered all over. It’s delightful and I’d expect it wouldn’t be any different with this linguica.
Trying to find linguisa…preferably Central Valley of CA.(I think Silva from San Jose is the best)..in Asheville NC…or anywhere close, please!