Prior to hasselback and charcuterie boards and other updated usages of it, salami was just a reliable, travel-friendly cured meat. For those who have a minhag to serve salami on Purim (because it’s hung), here are our team’s favorites uses for it!

Cue the Cure

Origin

Salami originated in Italy; in Italian, “salare” means to make something salty.

Process

Salami is made from ground beef mixed with garlic, salt, minced animal fat, and seasonings. This raw mixture is then stuffed into casings and cured through air-drying.

Popularity

Salami was popular in some regions of Europe due to the scarcity of fresh meat, since it can be stored at room temperature for more than 30 days.

Salad-Topped Salami Pizza

Recipe by Naomi Nachman

Originally published in Perfect Flavors and shared with permission of the copyright holders, ArtScroll/Mesorah Publications.

Meat pizzas have become popular, so when I had pizza dough and leftover salami in my fridge, I created this salami pizza.

SERVES 6

• 1 batch pizza dough
• ½ cup barbecue sauce
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 1 14–16-oz (400–450-g) salami, sliced
• ½ red onion, sliced (reserve the rest for the salad, if desired)

Salad

• 3 cups arugula
• ½ pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• ½ tsp mustard
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Preheat oven to 450°F (225°C). If not using a pizza stone, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Roll pizza dough into a 12–15-inch (30–38-cm) circle or rectangle. Transfer to a pizza stone or prepared baking sheet.

In a small bowl, mix together barbecue sauce and mayonnaise. Spread half the mixture in a thin layer on the rolled-out dough. (Reserve the remainder for the topping.) Top pizza with slices of salami and onion, distributing both evenly. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the crust is starting to brown.

Meanwhile, prepare the salad: Place arugula and cherry tomatoes into a medium bowl. Add remaining red onion, if desired. Whisk together oil, lemon juice, mustard, salt, and garlic. Just before serving, add desired amount of dressing to bowl; toss to coat.

Spread salad over hot pizza; drizzle with reserved barbecue sauce mixture.