Chorizo (Spanish) or chouriço (Portuguese) is a type of pork sausage. Traditionally, it uses natural casings made from intestines, a method used since Roman times. Chorizo may be cooked before eating. In Europe, it is more frequently a fermented, cured, smoked sausage, in which case it is often sliced and eaten without cooking, and can be added as an ingredient to add flavor to other dishes. Spanish chorizo and Portuguese chouriço get their distinctive smokiness and deep red color from dried smoked red peppers (pimentón/pimentão).