Alheira: Mirandela's ex-libris

It is said that the origin of "alheira” (smoked sausage) dates to the end of the 15th century and beginning of the 16th century and is associated with the presence of Jews in “Trás-os-Montes” (Behind-the-Hills).Because they did not eat pork, the Jews did not make or smoke the usual sausages, thus being easily identifiable by the Inquisition.So, they decided to take other types of meat and wrap them in bread dough to create “alheira” (smoked sausage).The recipe ended up becoming popular among Christians, who added pork to it.