Typical dishes of Basilicata

Basilicata is a land rich of culinary traditions so it offers a lot in terms of food and wine. The traditional cuisine turns the humble ingredients of our rural world into works of art that delight both the sight and the palate.

Rafanata

Rafanata is a typical dish of our region usually prepared at carnival time.

Ingredients:

• Horseradish• Eggs• Pecorino cheese• Salami• Potatoes• Parsley• Oil

Beat the eggs in a bowl. Add chopped salami, pecorino cheese, mashed potatoes, parsley and horseradish, then mix thoroughly. Pour the omelette into a greased baking pan. Bake at 150 ° for 20 minutes.

Procedure

Fried Crispy Peppers

A typical Lucan recipe are Crispy Peppers. It consists of peppers dried in the sun and then fried in plenty of olive oil.

Home-made Pasta

On Sundays our grandmothers usually prepare the home-made pasta. The dough is made by adding lukewarm water and sometimes eggs to white flour . Then the dough is divided into small pieces moulded with two or three fingers. Usually the home-made pasta is seasoned with meat sauce.

Zeppole

 They are a typical dessert for Saint Joseph’s Day and Father’s Day, which are celebrated the same day, on March 19th. The main ingredients for the dough are flour, sugar, eggs, butter and olive oil. They are usually stuffed with custard and topped with cherries put in syrup and a sprinkle of icing sugar. Zeppole can be fried or baked in the oven.

Pastizzo

At Easter it is tradition to prepare the pastizzo. It is a calzone stuffed with:

• Salami• Boiled eggs• Toma cheese• Parsley

This recipe is deliciously prepared in Sant’Arcangelo, the village of Agri Valley we are from.

Cucina Maritata

It is a typical dish of the rural tradition of Lucania. It is a soup made with several types of legumes, such as:

• Beans• Chickpeas• Peas• Lentils• Broad beans• Wheat

Ciambotta

Ciambotta is a dish of very old origins. It is made with a great variety of stewed vegetables and it is usually served in a loaf of bread, like farmers used to do in ancient times.

Piccillato

Piccillato is a bun made with eggs differently shaped according to the place where it is prepared. For example, in Teana, a village in the mountains of Lucania, it resembles a doll .

Biscotti ai Finocchi

Ingredients

• Flour• Lukewarm water• Wild fennel• Salt• Oil

Make a soft and elastic dough with flour, oil, salt, warm

water and fennel seeds. Break the dough into small pieces and form cylinders

about 1cm thick. Mold them into the shape and size preferred.

Put the biscotti in boiling water and remove them as they emerge on the surface.

Arrange them on a cotton towel and let them dry. Align them in a baking dish and cook for about 20 minutes at 170 ° C, until they have acquired a beautiful golden color.

Procedure

Cicirata

Cicirata is typical sweet of Carnival. It is so called because it looks like chickpeas. Cicirata consists of small balls of dough fried in olive oil and covered with honey and colored coriandoli.

Calzoncelli

At Christmas on the table of every Lucanian family, we can find calzoncelli, small dumplings stuffed with chestnut custard, fried and then sprinkled with icing sugar. In some villages in Basilicata, you can eat them stuffed with a custard of chickpeas.