Stigghiola

Stigghiola refers to the roasted or grilled intestines of sheep or goat over fire until crispy. It is regarded and listed as one of the street foods of Italy, particulary in Sicily. Stigghiola is cooked on a skewer sometimes braided with a strand of Scallions to add more flavor, seasoned with salt, and eaten in bite-size chunks. Like Pane con la Milza (or Vastedda) which makes used of organ meat (spleen), it is said that Stigghiola made of intestines is far tastier In Sicily and the whole of Italy, there are other recipes existing using offals or organ meats. In Sicily, though Stigghiola is the most common, perhaps because it is sold as one of the street foods and consumed by many. A popular theory holds that Stigghiola, like chitlins or chitterlings (a similar dish once popular in the American South), was originally a food of the poor. It might be true in earlier times, but nowadays, in Sicily, Stigghiola has become an almost "stylish" cultural symbol of culinary tradition in recent years. The truth is that until the twentieth century, offal was more popular generally, not only in Italy but in many countries. It has been suggested that Stigghiola, like spleen meat, was popular among Sicily's medieval Jewish and Muslim populations, which did not consume pork.