Local people have long used two techniques to conserve meat: salting and smoking, with smoking being known from Gallo-Roman times. The area's numerous specialities include several types of sausage, such as diots, pormoniers de Tarentaise, pormonaises de Haute-Savoie, longeôles and saucisses de Magland, together with saucissons made from donkey and goat meat, and mutton ham from Valloire.

“Jambons et saucissons secs de Savoie”

The "Jambons et saucissons secs de Savoie" label can only be attributed to products that have applied for IGP and Label Rouge status (produced according to a strict specification and in a limited geographical area).

The meat used for making hams is rigorously selected. It is salted with soft salt for two to three weeks (depending on the size the joint), and then kiln-seasoned and left to rest at ambient temperature for a few days, allowing it to naturally obtain a nice pink colour. It is matured by hanging in a sort of ventilated attic in natural air for a period 5 to 6 months. During this long stage, a layer of lard is applied to the cut ends to prevent any loss of moisture and to let the ham's natural flavours develop.

Top quality ingredients are also needed for making saucisson. Coarsely chopped meat is taken as a sign of quality, as it prevents too much fat being added. The resulting mixture is seasoned and then stuffed into natural skins. The saucissons are then kiln-seasoned and dried.

Diots

These lightly-textured and tender sausages are one of Savoie’s great traditional dishes. They can be made entirely from pork or from a mixture of pork and beef. Diots de Valloire are unusual because they are made using offal.
Recipes : Diots with vine shoots, Diots with white wine

Attriaux

Atriaux are specialities of the Chablais and the Faucigny.
Recipe

Fricassée de caïon

In Savoie dialect, caïon means pig. This traditional dish has been revived by some Savoyard restaurants.
Recipe

Longeôles

Sausages made using cooked sausage casings, pork, bacon rind and fennel. A speciality of the Chablais.
Recipe

Pormonaises or pormoniers

Sausages made from pork, together with chopped cabbage, Swiss chard or leeks, depending on the region in which they are made.
Recipe

Saucisses de Magland

Saucisses de Magland are a speciality of the Arve Valley. Made from pork cheek, they are a type of saucisson but they are not dried and they are cooked in water. They are served as an accompaniment to a main dish.
Recipe