Symbolic Festive Customs
Based on the presented quotations, there is no direct mention of cutting pork fat (salo) into exactly five pieces. However, one can try to interpret possible symbolic and cultural nuances by relying on the overall atmosphere and the descriptions of customs provided in the sources.For example, the first source describes a festive chaos in which creative freedom in food selection and presentation reigns in the household: "In the house, a delightful festive disorder takes hold... Dad, who generally defended our right to untidiness—at least when it came to food—became our unconditional protector. We gladly heard him say many times a day, 'laisse-le' or 'laisse-la' to Mom or Aunt when they began picking apart the paschal feast in pursuit of raisins or almonds, cutting a piece of lamb from the entire dough, futilely attempting to chew the tempting skin from the ham, or indulging in mustard. In the house, a delightful festive disorder prevailed, where one could opt not to sit through a boring lunch but rather nibble throughout the day on anything that caught one’s fancy, in any combinations." (source: link txt)This picture of celebration emphasizes that, within familial and cultural traditions, great value is placed not on strict rules but on a creative approach to food and its distribution. Transferring this idea to the process of slicing pork fat suggests that choosing exactly five pieces might serve as a symbolic act, reflecting, for example, a notion of wholeness, balanced distribution among the feast participants, or an embodiment of culturally significant numbers.In the second source, the focus is on the careful adherence to each step in the food preparation ritual for the celebration: "Cut the potatoes into slices, dice the onions, place them in a roasting pan with the meat, add the dry wine, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover with a lid, and put in a moderately hot oven for about 1 hour. Then, sprinkle the pork with a mixture of breadcrumbs and grated cheese and, without covering with a lid, bake for another 20–30 minutes. This is one of the many rituals in holiday food preparation, where every step receives special attention." (source: link txt)Here, each stage in preparation is perceived as an important ritual that creates a unique festive atmosphere. Hypothetically, then, dividing the pork fat into five parts might symbolize a strict adherence to traditions, careful observance of recipe protocols, a harmonious distribution of flavors, or even represent a number that holds special significance in certain cultural contexts (for example, as the number of elements, participants, or stages).In conclusion, despite the absence of a direct mention of slicing pork fat in the sources, one can surmise that such a ritual gesture might be viewed as an expression of respect for tradition, a symbolic means of distributing blessings, and a creative approach to organizing the festive table.Supporting citation(s):"In the house, a delightful festive disorder takes hold... Dad, who generally defended our right to untidiness—at least when it came to food—became our unconditional protector..." (source: link txt)"Cut the potatoes into slices, dice the onions, place them in a roasting pan with the meat, add the dry wine, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover with a lid, and put in a moderately hot oven for about 1 hour..." (source: link txt)