Chistorra (Txistorra)
The Chistorra is the great Navarre sausage. Originating in this province (Navarra), it is a fresh, reddish or deep red sausage, of thin gauge and each with a weight of 0.5 pounds. Pretty similar to but thinner and longer than the chorizo, the Txistorra, as it is called in Navarra, is made from fresh minced pork plus garlic, salt and paprika.
With a Basque - Navarrese and Aragonese origin, though it is said to be native to North West Navarre and Guipúzcoa, the Chistorra is a sausage that is usually cured for a short time. It is made using the same ingredients as for the chorizo, but its fat content is much higher, in some cases reaching 70% fat, though it usually has 50% to 55% fat, and is cased in sheep gut, which provides smaller diameter than chorizo, without ever exceeding 25 mm.
The Chistorra is made at almost every butcher shop of Navarra, where the climate favors natural drying. In the Txistorra manufacture there is no need to use smoke. With a short curing period between 1 to 5 days, it is presented in a fine straight gut.
The history of Navarra is linked to its recipe for and quality of Txistorra produced there. It is in this place where the most favorable climatic conditions for natural drying are present. The folk saying goes as that the day after the pork killing the meat and guts were chopped and marinated and let stand a few days, then the guts were filled and placed in a rod on the roof for their maturation.
Chistorra was not just born in Navarra, but it is always present in its fairs, festivals or traditional meetings. There is not a December 21 (day of St. Thomas) without its typical meal of talo, Chistorra and cider.