From “Pasticiotto” to “caffè in ghiaccio”, from “Rustico” to “Tajeddhra”: there are many typical dishes of Salento that tell a part of the history and traditions of this land. From recipes to local products, we trace a “road map of taste” through the villages of gastronomic excellence.
MAGLIE – The village hosts every year, in early August, “Mercatino del gusto“, a festival in which the flavors of the traditional cuisine of Salento are celebrated, but not only. In those days you can smell the scents and aromas of local products.
PRODUCTS – Maglie produces its renowned pecorino cheese. Whether fresh or aged, sheep’s cheese is obtained from a production process that has been handed down over the centuries. If aged for a few days, it has a soft, light yellow paste. After a long maturation, however, it has a wrinkled, leathery crust and a hard straw yellow interior: highly recommended on pasta with sauce!
LECCE – It is the main seat of the most precious architectural jewels of this land. But Lecce not only offers an artistic heritage, it is also the place where you can taste some typical dishes, which have now become famous beyond the borders of the Salento peninsula.
THE PRODUCTS – Pasticciotto is a sweet of shortcrust pastry that opens up all the sweetness of the custard inside; Cotognata is a kind of solid jam cut into blocks that comes from quince apples; Rustico is a rotisserie product made of puff pastry and stuffed with bechamel, mozzarella, tomato and a pinch of pepper that all the local people from Lecce prefer for a snack.
With the pasta di mandorla (almond pastry), at Christmas and at Easter, locals make the traditional sweets of fish shape (at Christmas) and lamb shape (at Easter). Sanguinaccio is a product of Salento gastronomic tradition based on seasoned, flavored pork blood, stuffed into the intestines of the same animal and cooked.
CANNOLE – Small town a few kilometers from the much more famous Otranto, Cànnole owes its fame mainly to the “municeddha” festival which takes place every year in August.
THE PRODUCTS – The tradition of eating snails has been celebrated since 1985 when the idea of a party dedicated to it was born. The idea is inspired by the “cuzzari“, the name by which the inhabitants of Cannole were called snail-gatherers. During the festival, the snail is prepared according to various recipes: fried, roasted and with sauce.
UGGIANO LA CHIESA – Framed by olive groves and countryside, Uggiano la Chiesa is the “Village of Bread and Oil”.
THE PRODUCTS – Every September, on the occasion of the Fair of the Village of Bread and Oil, it is possible to taste the fragrant loaves, accompanied by other typical culinary specialties.
To find out where to stay to visit these and other villages in Salento, take a look here:
Holiday houses –> https://www.villainpuglia.it/EN/Home
Holiday villas –> https://www.villesalento.it/index.html#/
For further information:
e-mail –> info@villesalento.it
phones –> (+39) 392/0202233 – (+39) 328/4617633
Leave a comment