This month, grocer Waitrose is launching two new private brand chilled continental meats from Italy – Guanciale and ‘Nduja. Waitrose is the only UK supermarket to offer these private brand Italian meats, which have been developed to meet increased demand over the summer for authentic, specialty ingredients and continental meats in particular.

Guanciale, deriving from the Italian word Guanci, meaning cheek – is an Italian cured meat made from pork cheeks which are rubbed with spices and salt before being cured and has a slightly stronger flavor than pancetta. ‘Nduja is a spreadable spicy salami from the Italian region of Calabria. The spicy peppers used in the Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients ‘Nduja are grown only a few hundred meters from where it is made with the meat produced by a prized native breed of Calabrian black pig which are bred in the wild.

Simona Cohen-Vida, Waitrose product developer says “Our customers love seeking out new ingredients and recipes from places they’ve visited on their travels. With holidays this year scaled back, or taken at home, we’ve seen a huge appetite for food from the Continent as customers look for a taste of their favorite places at home in their own kitchens.”

“We have worked with our expert producers to offer these delicious meats to our customers, making sure they are expertly sourced and made using traditional methods. Our Cooks’ Ingredients range has been incredibly popular this year with sales up 23% as shoppers use the selection of ingredients, blends, pastes, sauces and kits in the Waitrose Cooks Ingredients range to make cooking a range of cuisines as simple as possible.

The Guanciale and ‘Nduja meats will join the Cooks’ Ingredients range at Waitrose. The range, which was developed to make cooking a range of cuisines as simple as possible, has seen demand for its Continental meats shoot up by nearly 35% this year. The fresh ‘Nduja joins Cooks’ Ingredients ‘Nduja paste, which Waitrose first stocked in 2018.

Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients chilled ‘Nduja and Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Guanciale are available now in Waitrose shops and on Waitrose.com mid-October.

• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients ‘Nduja 2x40g £2.99
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Guanciale 2x 60g £2.99
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Diced Pancetta  2x 77g £2.69
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Chorizo Crumb 2x 60g  £2.75
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Diced Smoked Pancetta  2x 77g £2.69
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Diced Iberico Chorizo 2x 60g  £2.75
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Sliced Pancetta 95g £3.00
• Waitrose Cooks’ Ingredients Chorizo 190g £2.85