Fusillo con Pata Negra, Burro di Normandia e Timo

Fusillo con Pata Negra, Burro di Normandia e Timo is a contemporary pasta dish that exemplifies the modern Italian tendency to blend premium European ingredients across regional boundaries. The dish features *fusillo*, a spiral-shaped pasta from Campania and southern Italy, traditionally made by twisting dough around a thin rod. Its key components are *Pata Negra*—the prized acorn-fed Iberian ham from Spain’s black-footed pigs—and *Burro di Normandia*, a high-fat, AOC-protected butter from Normandy, France, finished with fresh *timo* (thyme). This combination of salty, cured pork with rich, creamy butter and herbal brightness creates a deceptively simple but luxurious plate.

A great version is distinguished by the quality of its ingredients: the ham should be 100% *bellota* grade, sliced thin to melt on contact with the warm pasta; the butter must be used generously to coat each spiral without greasiness; and the pasta itself should be handmade or extruded bronze-die for proper texture, cooked al dente and emulsified with pasta water and butter to form a silky sauce. Thyme should be added fresh at the last moment to preserve its aroma. The dish is notably featured at **Favis Salumeria Moderna** in San Ferdinando di Puglia, where chef *Braciamiancora* highlights the interplay of these three star ingredients, letting their inherent flavors speak without heavy saucing.

Regional variations may substitute other cured meats such as *guanciale* or *pancetta* where Pata Negra is unavailable, or replace Normandy butter with a high-quality local cultured butter. Some interpretations add a dusting of aged Parmigiano-Reggiano or a squeeze of lemon to cut the richness. While the dish is Italian in its pasta foundation, its spirit is unabashedly pan-European, reflecting the modern salumeria’s approach of sourcing the finest ingredients from across the continent.