Calabrias gastronomic specialties are mainly based on piquancy, which shows the influence of the different cultural groups in the last centuries. Usually Pasta is homemade and the sauces are generally made of  beef, pork, lamb or veal mixed with a kind of tomato puree. It´s inserted in olive oil, refind with red peppers. There is lots of different Pasta: filatelle, fileja, scialatelle, lagane and cavatelli. Fileja for example are made by rolling the dough around a knitting needle.

Especially in the mountainous interior culinary traditions survived. One should really try the mushrooms of Pollino-Nationalpark, which are either inserted or sauted.

The meat is usually fried or cooked in its own juice; we recommend you to try kidneys with potatoes, pies and artichokes, which are made in the oven. Vegetables are used as side dishes, like aubergine either fresh or canned.

No matter where you are in Calabria, you can always get to the sea very easily. There are hundreds of recipes to serve two of the typical fish dishes, the tuna and the sword fish. It is served fried, in soups, in sauces or in a casserole.

Ciró is known for its wines. For more than two millenia a red wine has been produced out of the gaglioppo - grape. The Greeks loved this wine so much, that it was offered to the olympic winners. Other famous wines are produced near Cosenza and Reggio Calabria.

<<back