Carniolan sausage, Slovenia's most famous food

Where Carniolan sausage comes from

It’s a semi-cured pork sausage, the product, according to Taste Slovenia, of a long tradition of turning pork into foods that keep. The earliest record of the name kranjska klobasa dates from the later 1700s. The Tourist Board’s souvenir catalogue adds that it’s still made to the traditional recipe written down in the early 19th century, and Taste Slovenia says the recipe hasn’t changed for centuries. The name comes from Carniola, Kranjska in Slovene, the historic region at the heart of the country.

Protected geographical indication

Taste Slovenia counts it among the eight Slovenian meat products with protected geographical indication, alongside Karst prosciutto, Karst pancetta and pork neck, Prekmurje ham and the stuffed pork stomach of the Upper Savinja Valley. The Tourist Board’s 2008 souvenir catalogue spoke of designation of origin; I’m going with Taste Slovenia’s more recent information. Another EU-protected dish, in this case a traditional speciality guaranteed, is Idrija žlikrofi.

How Carniolan sausage is eaten

The Tourist Board recommends it as a snack, on its own or with a spoon stew, especially on countryside trails and at mountain stops, where you’ll also find goulash, jota or ričet. It adds a curiosity, the sausage went to space with Sunita Williams, a US astronaut of Slovenian descent. I’d order it at a village inn, with bread, where it feels least like a product made for tourists. To drink, a local beer, whose story is told in Slovenian beer.

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Buying it locally

If you want the real thing, look at the label. Taste Slovenia explains that protected products are checked by independent control bodies and made in their defined area, and it also mentions the national Selected Quality Slovenia mark, used by many meat producers whose products meet extra requirements on origin and traceability. The Tourist Board notes that Ljubljana’s central market has stalls selling meat alongside dairy, bread and vegetables, which makes it an easy place to find a good sausage for a picnic.

The best-sausage contest

Every year the national contest for the best Carniolan sausage takes place in Sora, near Medvode, according to the Tourist Board’s catalogue. It’s a good excuse to explore the countryside around Ljubljana if it coincides with your trip.

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Why you can’t bring it home

Here’s the catch for British visitors. gov.uk’s current rules ban bringing pork, beef or lamb products from the EU, including sausages, into Great Britain for personal use, citing recent animal disease in the EU. Make the most of it on the spot, then, and take home something that’s allowed, such as honey or wine; ideas are in what to buy in Slovenia, and the full rules in Slovenia customs rules.

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