In Polish cuisine, baleron is a cold cut from cured and smoked of boneless pork neck [1] After ham, baleron is the second most valued cold cut in Poland.[2]
The Encyclopedia of Meat Sciences summarizes its preparation as follows. It is dry-cured, then immersed in the brine for 8–10 days, then drained, stuffed in a casing, smoked in warm smoke, cooked, and cooled. The cross-section of the final product is marbled meat.[1] Polish sources describe a more complicated process.[3]
Older Polish dictionaries derived the word from the French word paleron for chuck steak.[4] Newer dictionaries derive it from German Ballen-rolle.[5][6]
Several balerons are registered as protected traditional food by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development:
