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Monday, May 12, 2008

Sausage Virtuoso

By Juan-Carlos Rodriguez
Journal Staff Writer
      Joe S. Sausage’s culinary creations were inspired by a time and place that most of us can appreciate — afternoons and evenings spent hanging out by the grill with friends.
    Joseph C. Cucunato Jr., aka Joe S. Sausage, began making sausage at home a few years ago, occasionally bringing his experiments to barbecues. His pals started asking him for his mouth-watering food, and soon after that he began selling at farmers markets in Los Ranchos, Bernalillo and the East Mountains.
    In June 2006, Cucunato opened his gourmet sausage, pasta and ravioli shop on the southeast corner of Rio Grande and Griegos NW.
    “Things have been good,” Cucunato said. “My mission is to redefine what was previously known as sausage, and continuously redefine quality of sausage.”
    For example, Cucunato said he makes a traditional variety Italian sausage, but uses bay leaves instead of fennel as a spice, which gives it a unique taste.
    Cucunato grew up in Wisconsin in a large Italian family, surrounded by a raft of good cooks including his mother, aunts and great-grandmother. The cold Wisconsin winters eventually began to gnaw at him, and a conversation with his grandfather steered him westward.
    His small North Valley kitchen reflects his tastes; green, white and red walls like Italy’s flag, books by Cicero, Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli and Sun Tzu, a wooden rocking chair, a radio, an outdoor grill and one large, stainless steel tabletop.
    Cucunato makes a variety of ravioli, which run about $15 for a dozen. One ravioli measures about 4 inches by 4 inches, and Cucunato said two are enough for one serving. Some of the varieties contain fillings of feta, mozzarella, basil, tomato and olive oil; ricotta; ricotta, Gorgonzola and kalamata olive chunks; and squash.
    The sausages generally run about $8 per pound. Varieties include Jamaican jerk, bratwurst, sweet Italian, spicy southern Italian, chorizo, maple blueberry, andouille, Irish bangers and the North Valley garlic Polish.

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