The most representative typical Catalan cured sausages are fuet, longaniza de payés, secallona, and butifarra in their different varieties. To these are added bull, bisbe, and llonganissa de Vic with Protected Designation of Origin. Each has its own profile: a cured sausage is not the same as a cooked sausage, nor is a fuet the same as a secallona, even if both have white casings and come from Vic.
At La Casa dels Fuets, we have been making fuets and artisan cured sausages in Vic since 1964. What follows is not a list copied from another site: it is what we know firsthand about each product, how it is made, and what distinguishes it from the rest.
Cured or cooked: the first distinction to understand
Before delving into each sausage, there is a basic distinction that organizes everything. Catalan sausages are divided into two main families:
- Cured sausages: these are made with raw meat that is cured by dehydration and the action of natural molds in a drying room. They are not cooked. Fuet, longaniza de payés, and secallona are the most representative.
- Cooked sausages: these are made with meat that is cooked during the process. They are eaten cold. Cooked butifarra and bull are the most common.
With that clear, each sausage has its logic and its moment.
Fuet, the most Catalan cured sausage of all
Fuet is probably the most famous Catalan sausage outside of Catalonia, and for good reason. It is a cured sausage, thin, slightly irregular in shape, recognizable by the white layer of natural mold that covers it. This mold is not a defect: it is the result of fermentation in the drying room and a fundamental part of its flavor.
It is made with pork, bacon, and spices, and is cured for weeks until it reaches its characteristic firm but tender texture. Its flavor is mild, slightly spiced, without aggressiveness. It is the sausage for aperitifs, for sandwiches with pa amb tomàquet, for unpretentious platters that end up being the best part of the afternoon.
In Vic, where the benchmark fuet is made, the artisanal process involves natural casing, slow curing, and no artifice. The difference from an industrial fuet is noticeable in the first bite.
Longaniza de payés, the fuet's big sister
Longaniza de payés (llonganissa de pagès) is thicker than fuet, longer, and has a more intense flavor. It is made with leaner meat and a more pronounced seasoning, and requires more curing time. The result is a sausage with more character, which holds up better on a platter and pairs with fuller-bodied wines.
It is a reliable sausage: less striking than fuet for those unfamiliar with it, but highly valued by those who know what they are eating. At La Casa dels Fuets, we make artisanal longaniza de payés with the same philosophy we apply to fuet: natural casing, real ingredients, and unhurried curing in the drying room.
Secallona, for those who want intensity
Secallona is the driest and most intense of the three Catalan cured sausages. Thinner than longaniza, with a longer curing process that extracts more moisture and concentrates the flavor. The result is a compact sausage, with a direct flavor, which is cut into thin slices and offers a lot of versatility on a platter.
Its name says it all: seca comes from Catalan and refers precisely to that. It is ideal for those looking for a cured sausage with a punch, not the mildness of fuet but something with more presence.
Butifarra, the essential cooked sausage
Butifarra is the most emblematic cooked sausage of Catalonia and the one with the most varieties. It is made with minced pork, salt, pepper, and spices, and is cooked during the elaboration process. The most common versions are:
- Raw butifarra: eaten cooked, grilled or pan-fried. It is the star of calçots with romesco and the dish of butifarra with mongetes.
- Cooked butifarra: ready to eat cold. In a sandwich, on a platter, or alone.
- Black butifarra: made with pig's blood, spices, and sometimes rice. Intense flavor and unmistakable dark color.
- Egg butifarra: typical of Carnival, with egg in the mixture that gives it a yellowish color and softer texture.
Bull, the sausage that uses the whole pig
Bull is a cooked sausage made from the less noble parts of the pig: snout, tongue, jowl, ear. It is a traditional and resourceful sausage, with two main versions: bull blanc, light in color and mild in flavor, and bull negre, with pig's blood and spices, more intense and dark.
It is eaten cold, in slices, with pa amb tomàquet or as a starter on a charcuterie board. It is less known outside of Catalonia, but very present in any authentic Catalan charcuterie.
Llonganissa de Vic and its Protected Designation of Origin
Llonganissa de Vic deserves a separate mention. It is the salami from Vic, a cured sausage with Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) that can only be produced in the Osona region and neighboring municipalities. Its defining characteristic is the presence of whole black peppercorns visible when cut and a curing process that takes advantage of the cold and humid climate of the Vic plain.
It is a sausage with its own personality, different from salami from the rest of Spain. Drier, more aromatic, with that hint of pepper that makes it unmistakable. Vic is its capital, and it is no coincidence that it is also the city where La Casa dels Fuets has been making artisanal sausages since 1964.
How to enjoy Catalan sausages at home?
The most direct way to enjoy Catalan cured sausages is the simplest: good bread, ripe tomato, a drizzle of olive oil, and the sausage at room temperature. Pa amb tomàquet is not just any accompaniment: it is the context in which these sausages make perfect sense.
For a charcuterie board, the ideal is to combine at least one mild cured sausage (natural fuet), one more intense (secallona or longaniza de payés), and one cooked (cooked butifarra or bull). This way you cover textures and flavors without anything competing with anything else.
If you want to start with artisanal cured sausages from Vic, La Casa dels Fuets offers the entire range of artisanal fuets, from natural to more creative flavors such as truffle, blue cheese, or cayenne. All handmade, with natural casing, and shipped to your home in 48-72 hours.
