View source for Chitterlings

{{Short description|Food made from pigs' small intestines}}
[[File:ChitlinsSmall.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.3|Chitterlings in broth]]
'''Chitterlings''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|tʃ|ɪ|t|(|ər|)|l|ɪ|ŋ|z}} {{respell|CHIT|linz}}), sometimes spelled '''chitlins''' or '''chittlins''', are a food most commonly made from the [[small intestine]]s of pigs,<ref name="foodsafety">{{cite web|last1=Alonso|first1=Maribel|title=Preparing Chitterlings for the Holidays|url=https://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/chitterlings.html|website=FoodSafety.gov|publisher=US Dept of Health & Human Services|access-date=16 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180507203431/https://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/chitterlings.html|archive-date=7 May 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> though beef, lamb, [[Goose as food|goose]] and goat are also used, especially by [[African-American Muslims|Black American Muslims]].

They may be filled with a [[forcemeat]] to make [[sausage]].<ref name=OED>''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'', 1st edition, updated March 2021, [https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/31959 ''s.v.'']</ref> 

==Etymology and early usage==

''Chitterling'' is first documented in [[Middle English]] in the form {{Lang|enm|cheterling}}, {{circa|1400}}. Various other spellings and dialect forms were used. The primary form and derivation are uncertain.<ref name=OED/>

A 1743 English cookery book ''The Lady's Companion: or, An Infallible Guide to the Fair Sex'' contained a recipe for "Calf's Chitterlings" which was essentially a bacon and [[offal]] [[sausage]] in a calf's intestine [[Casing (sausage)|casing]].<ref>''The Lady's Companion: or, An Infallible Guide to the Fair Sex'' (1743). T. Read, London, Digitized by Google Books [https://books.google.com/books?id=rV4DAAAAQAAJ]</ref> The recipe explained the use of calves', rather than the more usual pigs', intestines with the comment that "[these] sort of{{nbsp}}... puddings must be made in summer, when hogs are seldom killed".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rV4DAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA310|title=The lady's companion: or, An infallible guide to the fair sex|date=January 31, 1743|page=310|via=Google Books}}</ref> This recipe was repeated by the English cookery writer [[Hannah Glasse]] in her 1784 cookery book ''[[Art of Cookery]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dYIEAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA62|title=The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy: Which Far Exceeds Any Thing of the Kind Yet Published, Containing ... to which are Added, One Hundred and Fifty New and Useful Receipts, and Also Fifty Receipts for Different Articles of Perfumery, with a Copious Index|first=Hannah|last=Glasse|date=January 31, 1784|publisher=W. Strahan|page=62|via=Google Books}}</ref>

Linguist Paul Anthony Jones has written, "in the late 1500s a ''chitterling'' was an ornate type of [[Ruff (clothing)|neck ruff]], so called because its frilled edge looked like the folds of a slaughtered animal's entrails".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Around the World in 80 Words: a journey through the English language|last=Jones|first=Paul Anthony|date=2018|publisher=Elliott & Thompson|isbn=978-1783964000|location=[S.l.]|oclc=1041518889}}</ref>

==Preparation==

Disease can be spread by chitterlings not cleaned properly and undercooked. Pathogens include ''[[Escherichia coli]]'', ''[[Yersinia enterocolitica]]'', and ''[[Salmonella]]''.<ref name="foodsafety"/> Chitterlings are often soaked and rinsed thoroughly in several different cycles of cool water, and repeatedly picked clean by hand. They may then be turned inside out, cleaned and boiled, sometimes in baking soda or salt, and the water discarded.

==Regional traditions==
As pigs are a common source of meat in many parts of the world, the dish known as chitterlings can be found in most pork-eating cultures. Chitterlings made from pig intestines are popular in many parts of Europe, and are also eaten in the southern United States.<ref name="AO">{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Adrian |title=Inside the 'Chitlin Circuit,' a Jim Crow-Era Safe Space for Black Performers |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/chitlin-circuit |website=Gastro Obscura |publisher=Atlas Obscura |access-date=6 July 2022 |date=28 June 2022}}</ref>

===Europe===
====Balkans, Greece, and Turkey====
[[Kokoretsi]], {{Lang|sq|kukurec}}, or {{Lang|tr|kokoreç}} are usually prepared and stuffed, then grilled on a spit. In several countries such as Turkey, Greece, Albania, and Bulgaria, lamb intestines are widely used. In [[Turkish cuisine]], the intestines are often chopped and cooked with [[oregano]], peppers, and other spices.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.grouprecipes.com/98490/kokorec.html |title=Kokorec Recipe |publisher=grouprecipes.com |access-date=2011-04-27}}</ref>

====France====
{{Lang|fr|Tricandilles}} are a traditional dish in [[Gironde]]. They are made of pigs' small intestines, boiled in bouillon, then grilled on a fire of grapevine cane. This is considered an expensive delicacy.

[[Andouillette]] is a type of sausage, found especially in [[Troyes]], which is made predominantly of pig chitterlings.

[[Andouille]] is another kind of French chitterlings sausage found especially in [[Brittany]] and [[Normandy]].

[[Saucisson]] is a type of sausage, which traditionally uses chitterlings both as a packaging and as an ingredient.

====Spain====
{{Lang|es|Gallinejas}} are a traditional dish in [[Autonomous Community of Madrid|Madrid]]. The dish consists of [[sheep]]'s small intestines, spleen, and pancreas, fried in their own fat in such a manner that they form small spirals. The dish is served hot, often with [[French fries]]. Few establishments today serve {{Lang|es|gallinejas}}, as this is considered to be more of a speciality than a common dish. It is most commonly served during festivals.

{{Lang|es|Zarajo}}: A traditional dish from [[Cuenca, Spain|Cuenca]] is {{Lang|es|zarajo}}, braided sheep's intestines rolled on a vine branch and usually broiled, but also sometimes fried, and sometimes smoked, usually served hot as an appetizer or [[tapas|tapa]]. A similar dish from La Rioja is {{Lang|es|embuchados}}, and from the province of Aragon, {{Lang|es|madejas}}, all made with sheep's intestines and served as tapas.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://lema.rae.es/drae/?val=zarajo | title=Zarajo and other Spanish terms| publisher=Real Academia Española | work=Dictionary of the Spanish language | access-date=8 September 2013|language=es}}</ref>

====United Kingdom====
Chitterlings were common peasant food in medieval England, and remained a staple of the diet of low-income families right up until the late nineteenth century and not uncommon into the mid-twentieth century. [[Thomas Hardy]] wrote of chitterlings in his novel ''[[Tess of the D'Urbervilles]]'', when the father of a poor family, John Durbeyfield, talks of what he would like to eat:
<blockquote>Tell 'em at home that I should like for supper—well, [[lamb's fry]] if they can get it; and if they can't, [[black pudding|black-pot]]; and if they can't get that, well, chitterlings will do.</blockquote>
It illustrates that chitterlings were the poorest choice of poor food. George Sturt, writing in 1919 details the food eaten by his farming family in [[Farnborough, Hampshire|Farnborough]] when he was a child (probably around 1830):
<blockquote>During the winter they had chance to weary of almost every form and kind of pig-meat: hog's puddings, [[Gammon (meat)|gammons]], chitterlings, [[Head cheese|souse]], salted spareribs—they knew all the varieties and welcomed any change. Mutton they almost never tasted: but sometimes they had a calf's head; sometimes even, though less often, a joint of veal.<ref>Sturt G, William Smith, Potter and Farmer 1790-1858</ref></blockquote>
Chitterlings are the subject of a song by 1970s [[Scrumpy and Western]] comedy folk band, [[The Wurzels]], who come from the southwest of England.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Wurzels—Chitterling | date=25 October 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qj84xPamXak |publisher=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>

[[Haggis]], made with sheep intestine, is still a common traditional food in [[Scotland]].

===Latin America and the Caribbean===
People in the [[Caribbean]] and in [[Latin America]] eat chitterlings. {{Lang|es|Chinchulín}} (in [[Argentina]], [[Paraguay]] and [[Uruguay]]) or {{Lang|es|chunchule}} (in [[Chile]]) (from the [[Quechua languages|Quechua]] {{Lang|qu|ch'unchul}}, meaning 'intestine') is the cow's small intestine used as a foodstuff. Other name variations from country to country are {{Lang|es|caldo avá}} ([[Paraguay]]), {{Lang|es|tripas}} or {{Lang|es|mondongo}} ([[Dominican Republic]] and [[Puerto Rico]]), {{Lang|pt-br|mondongo}} ([[Brazil]], [[Peru]], [[Panama]]), {{Lang|es|chunchullo}}, {{Lang|es|chinchurria}} or {{Lang|es|chunchurria}} ([[Colombia]]), {{Lang|es|chinchurria}} ([[Venezuela]]), {{Lang|es|tripa mishqui}} ([[Ecuador]]), {{Lang|es|tripe}} ([[Jamaica]]), and {{Lang|es|tripa}} ([[Mexico]]).<ref>{{cite web | url=http://lema.rae.es/drae/?val=chinchulin | title=Chinchulín, chunchules, and other Spanish terms| publisher=Real Academia Española | work=Dictionary of the Spanish language | access-date=8 September 2013|language=es}}</ref>

====Jamaica====
In Jamaica, chitterlings are usually prepared in a number of ways. Usually the intestines of a goat are used as part of the ingredients of [[Mannish water]] or goat belly soup. Sometimes goat head may be included and may simply be called goat head soup, even though most of the ingredients do not constitute goat head alone. The intestines of a cow are usually prepared as a stew in one of three ways. The most popular would be curried tripe and beans where the intestines are cooked down with [[Lima beans|butter beans]] and [[curry powder]]. A similar stew is also made with butter beans but without the curry powder. Less common is a stew that is prepared with red kidney beans instead of butter beans and with no curry powder. In this latter case the stew has a very dark red colour and usually has a thick consistency. In most cases, chitterlings are commonly eaten with white rice, though [[Rice and peas#Anglo-Caribbean|rice and peas]] may be preferred.

====Mexico====
In [[Mexico]], {{Lang|es|tripas}} are very popular served as a {{Lang|es|guisado}} in tacos. They are cleaned, boiled, sliced, and then fried until crispy. They are often served with a spicy, tangy tomatillo-based salsa. In [[Guadalajara]], along with the traditional preparation for tacos, they are often prepared as a dish, served with a specialized sauce in a bowl and accompanied by a stack of tortillas, additional complementary sauces, limes, and salt.

=====See also=====
* [[Chunchullo]]

===United States===
Though no longer commonly consumed, chitterlings, commonly called "chitlins", are a traditional food of the [[Southern United States]] that spread nationwide with the [[Black Migration]].  They are carefully cleaned and rinsed several times before they are boiled or stewed for several hours. A common practice is to place a halved onion in the pot to mitigate the very unpleasant odor that can be particularly strong when the chitterlings begin to cook. Chitterlings sometimes are [[batter (cooking)|battered]] and fried after the stewing process and commonly are served with apple cider vinegar and hot sauce as condiments.  Attempts have been made to modernize the dish with microwaveable chitterling snacks developed in the 2010s.<ref name="Carlisle"/>

Chitterlings have a strong connection with African-American [[soul food]] in the U.S.  A common assumption is that the Southern consumption of chitterlings arose in the pre–[[American Civil War|Civil War]] era of slavery when less desirable parts of the pig, like pigs feet and hog jowls, were given to slaves, while the better cuts went to the slave masters, who were thus said to be "[[:wikt:living high on the hog|living high on the hog]]".<ref name="Carlisle">{{cite news |first=John |last=Carlisle |title=How a Detroit couple founded a chitlin-cleaning empire|work=Detroit Free Press|url=https://www.freep.com/story/news/columnists/john-carlisle/2019/03/08/chitlins-chitterlings-food-detroit/2995979002/|date=8 March 2019|access-date=20 June 2024}}</ref>  However, culinary historian Adrian Miller points out that, "Enslaved people did eat chitlins, but white people were eating them as well. In fact, if you look at slave narratives and oral histories of the era, there were quite a few references of making chitlins for the master, and eating intestines was something that was in white culture for centuries before we get to the American South. People that went on hunts would eat the intestines as prized delicacies."<ref name="Carlisle"/>

Still Miller calls chitterlings "an iconic dish in African American food traditions, [with] a working-class vibe, even though the dish has shown up at high-class affairs".<ref name="AO"/>  When plantations held early winter hog-killings, they preserved all parts of the animal that could be preserved by pickling, salting or smoking.<ref name="AO"/> Chitterlings, which could not be preserved, were cooked immediately as part of a post-slaughter celebration and served mainly (although not exclusively) to slaves.<ref name="AO"/> Because of this tie to special occasions, chitterlings have retained a role as a holiday delicacy,<ref name="AO"/><ref name="Carlisle"/> but gained a mixed reputation among African Americans, with some rejecting them as a relic of oppression and others embracing them as a delicacy.<ref name="AO"/>

In 1952's ''[[Invisible Man]]'', novelist [[Ralph Ellison]] touched on this mixed cultural role of chitterlings among African Americans.<ref name="McDearman">{{cite book|first1=Karen M. |last1=McDearman |first2=Frances |last2=Abbott |entry=Chitterlings |title=The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture|volume=7: Foodways|editor-last=Edge |editor-first=John T. |edition=Revised |publisher=University of North Carolina Press |location=Chapel Hill, NC |date=2007 |page=144 |section-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s-qnAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA144 |isbn=9781469616520 }}</ref>  By the 1960s the dish had become politicized among black people as a symbol both good and bad.<ref name="Carlisle"/>  Prominent activists from [[Eldridge Cleaver]] to [[Elijah Muhammad]] to [[Dick Gregory]] criticized chitterlings (and often soul food in general<ref name="McDearman"/>), but the dish was also seen as "a way of celebrating the resistance and spirit of survival and creativity that emerged despite the horrific history of racism in this country" in Miller's words.<ref name="Carlisle"/>

In 2003, the [[Smithsonian Institution]]'s [[Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History and Culture]] accepted the papers of [[Shauna Anderson]] and her restaurant, The Chitlin Market, as part of its emerging collection of materials about African American celebrations, foods and [[foodways]].<ref>Trescott.</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=May 2025}} In 2007, the Prince Georges County, Maryland government shut down The Chitlin Market when the restaurant's location was rezoned from commercial to residential.<ref>The Hill Newspaper 2-28-07</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=May 2025}}

White Southerners, especially of rural origin, have sometimes celebrated the eating of chitterlings.<ref name="McDearman"/>  In the 20th century, eating clubs devoted to the dish arose in cities from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Nashville, Tennessee.<ref name="McDearman"/>  The town of [[Salley, South Carolina]], has held an annual Chitlin' Strut Festival since 1966 on the Saturday after Thanksgiving and includes a fried chitterling–eating contest.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shepherd |first=Gracie |title=Chitlin' Strut showcase Southern delicacy |work=Augusta Chronicle |date=29 November 2009 |access-date=20 June 2024 |url=https://www.augustachronicle.com/story/news/2009/11/29/met-557452-shtml/14323818007/}}</ref>

The [[Chitlin' Circuit]], a collection of performance venues for African Americans, is named for this "potent symbol of resilience in African American creative culture".<ref name="AO"/>  In 1965, blues harmonica player and vocalist [[Junior Wells]] recorded a song, "Chitlin Con Carne" on his acclaimed [[Delmark Records]] album, ''[[Hoodoo Man Blues]]''. Jazz guitarist [[Kenny Burrell]] recorded the unrelated [[jazz blues]] "[[Chitlins con Carne]]" on 1963's ''[[Midnight Blue (Kenny Burrell album)|Midnight Blue]]'' (covered by others including [[Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble]] on ''[[The Sky Is Crying (album)|The Sky Is Crying]]''.) Other notable blues songs with references to chitlins were recorded in 1929 by [[Peg Leg Howell]] ("Chittlin' Supper"), and in 1934 by the [[Memphis Jug Band]] ("[[:wikt:ruckus juice|Rukus Juice]] and Chittlin'"). [[Gus Jenkins]], [[Johnny Otis]], and Arthur Williams have also recorded songs with a reference to chitlins in their title.  The [[bluegrass music|bluegrass]] standard  "It's Chitlin Cooking Time In Cheatham County" takes its name from the dish and [[Cheatham County, Tennessee]].<ref name="McDearman"/>

===Asia and Australasia===
Chitterlings are also eaten as a dish in many [[East Asia]]n cuisines.

====China====
Both large and small intestine (typically pig) is eaten throughout China. Large intestine is called {{Lang|zh-latn|feichang}}, literally 'fat intestine' because it is fatty. Small intestine is called {{Lang|zh-latn|zhufenchang}}, literally 'pig powder intestine' because it contains a white, pasty or powdery substance called chyme. The character {{Lang|zh-latn|zhu}} or 'pig' is added at the beginning to disambiguate. This is because in [[Cantonese cuisine]], there is a dish called ''[[cheong fun]]'' which uses intestine-shaped noodles.

Large intestine is typically chopped into rings and has a stronger odor than small intestine. It is added to stir-fry dishes and soups. It is also slow-cooked or boiled and served as a standalone dish. It releases oil that may be visible in the dish. Small intestine is normally chopped into tubes and may be simply boiled and served with a dipping sauce. Preparation techniques and serving presentations for both small and large intestine vary greatly within the country.

====Japan====
In Japan, chitterlings or {{Nihongo3||もつ|motsu}} are often fried and sold on skewers or {{Nihongo3||串|kushi}} in ''[[kushikatsu]]'' ({{Lang|ja|串カツ}}) or {{Nihongo3||串揚げ|kushiage}} restaurants and street vendor pushcarts. When grilled, it is usually called {{Nihongo3||ホルモン|horumon}}, as in [[Horumonyaki]]. It is also served as a soup called {{Nihongo3||もつ煮|motsuni}} with miso, ginger, and finely chopped green onions to cut the smell, as well as other ingredients and internal organs such as the stomach, depending on the preparer. In Okinawa, the soup is called {{Nihongo3||中身汁|nakamijiru}} and served without miso as the chitterlings are put through a long cleaning process to get rid of the smell so the miso is not needed. In Nagoya it is called {{Nihongo3||どて焼き|doteyaki}} and is served with red miso and without the soup. In Fukuoka, it is called ''[[motsunabe]]'' ({{Lang|ja|もつ鍋}}) and is served as a [[Nabemono|nabe]] stew along with cabbage, chives, mungbean sprout, and tofu.

====Korea====
In Korea, chitterlings ({{Lang|ko-latn|gopchang}}) are grilled or used for stews ({{Lang|ko-latn|jeongol}}) in Korea. When they are grilled, they are often accompanied by various seasonings and lettuce leaves (to wrap). Stew is cooked with various vegetables and seasonings.

====Philippines====
In the Philippines, pig intestines ({{Langx|fil|bituka ng baboy}}) are used in dishes such as ''[[dinuguan]]'' (pig blood stew). Grilled intestines are known as ''[[isaw]]'' and eaten as [[street food]]. Chicken intestines ({{Lang|fil|isaw ng manok}}, compared to {{Lang|fil|isaw ng baboy}}) are also used. Pig intestines are also prepared in a similar manner to [[pork rinds]], known locally as ''[[chicharon]]''. Two distinct types of these are called {{Lang|fil|chicharon bituka}} and {{Lang|fil|chicharon bulaklak}}, differing in the part of the intestine used.

====New Zealand====
In New Zealand, sheep and lamb intestine is used, and sometimes pig, and is usually prepared very simply. First, moments after slaughter, a hose is run through the intestine to expel any intestinal matter; the intestine is then usually braided and boiled with cabbage and potato. The dish is called {{Lang|mi|terotero}} in Maori culture.

==See also==

{{portal|Food}}
* [[Chitlin' Circuit]]
* [[Chunchullo]] ''(in Latin America)''
* [[Flaki]]
* ''[[Gopchang]]''
* [[Haggis]]
* [[Kishka (food)]]
* [[Khash (dish)|Pacha]]
* [[Sausage casing]]
* [[Tripe]]

==References==

{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/chemists-kill-chitlin-stink-10-11-15/ "Chemists Kill Chitlin Stink"] 

[[Category:Soul food]]
[[Category:Cuisine of the Southern United States]]
[[Category:African-American cuisine]]
[[Category:Peasant food]]
[[Category:Intestine dishes]]
[[Category:American pork dishes]]