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Guanciale

Guanciale is cured pork jowl or cheek, commonly rendered to flavor pasta, sauces, and other savory dishes.

Guanciale — illustrative ingredient image

About Guanciale

Guanciale is cured pork jowl or cheek, commonly cut into cubes or strips and rendered to flavor pasta sauces, beans, vegetables, soups, and other savory dishes. It is a compact cut with firm fat and a smaller amount of lean meat.

Before cooking, it has a dense texture and savory pork flavor. As it cooks, the fat renders and the flavor becomes more pronounced; the remaining meat may become crisp or tender depending on the dish and cooking method.

It is usually sold as a thick slab or piece, with curing, seasoning, thickness, rind, and drying varying among producers. Cutting it into strips or cubes increases the surface exposed during rendering, and the rendered fat and meat may both remain in the finished preparation.

Ingredient type
whole food

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Where guanciale appears

5 linked foods

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Noodle dishes

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for guanciale

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

Guanciale

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Guanciale nutrition & diet

Guanciale nutritional value

Product example: GUANCIALE (Maestri D'Italia Inc)

Per 100 g of this specific product as recorded by USDA, per 100 g.

Calories
607kcal
Protein
10.7g
Carbs
0.0g
Fat
64.3g

A product-specific label example, not a generic average. Formulations can change; use the nutrition label on the product being eaten.

Portions & preparation

Use cured pork jowl or cheek in the same state as the reference: sliced, diced, raw-cured, or cooked and rendered. Trimmed and untrimmed portions differ in edible fat and lean. Record whether rendered fat is retained in the finished dish, since it contributes to the consumed ingredient.

Compare the right form: Match references to cured pork jowl or cheek, specifying raw-cured versus cooked, trimmed versus untrimmed, and whether rendered fat remains.

Diet considerations

Animal-derived pork, traditionally a cured jowl or cheek preparation. Compatibility changes with curing ingredients, smoke, spice blends, coatings, or recipe additions, and it is not interchangeable with pancetta or bacon. The plain meat contains no cereal ingredient unless introduced during processing or cooking; carbohydrate patterns depend mainly on additions and portion.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Typically incompatible
  • Vegetarian
    Typically incompatible
  • Pescatarian
    Typically incompatible
  • Keto
    May be compatible
  • Paleo
    May be compatible
  • Low-carb
    May be compatible
  • Halal
    Typically incompatible
  • Kosher
    Typically incompatible
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Typically incompatible
The ingredient profile identifies an animal-derived food or derivative.
Vegetarian · Typically incompatible
The profile identifies animal flesh, seafood or a derivative excluded by a vegetarian diet.
Pescatarian · Typically incompatible
The profile identifies land-animal meat or a derivative, which is excluded by this pescatarian definition.
Keto · May be compatible
The plain form may fit a carbohydrate-restricted diet. Check the portion, added sugar, coatings and sauces against the nutrition values above.
Paleo · May be compatible
May fit a paleo pattern, depending on the cut or form, processing and added ingredients.
Low-carb · May be compatible
The plain form may fit a carbohydrate-restricted diet. Check the portion, added sugar, coatings and sauces against the nutrition values above.
Halal · Typically incompatible
This profile identifies pork or a pork-derived ingredient.
Kosher · Typically incompatible
This profile identifies pork or a pork-derived ingredient.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: USDA FoodData Central branded product — GUANCIALE ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .