THE TOP 10 FOODS IN SARDINIA

1 CULURGIONES DI PATATE

If you order Culurgiones you will get a ravioli type of durum wheat pasta filled with potatoes (patate) garlic and mint or with just fresh Pecorino cheese – Pecorino is a slightly salted Sardinian cheese made from sheep milk.

You can taste the original ones in the province of Ogliastra where they are considered a precious gift, a sign of respect and friendship.

By speaking with locals you could also find out that in some villages they are considered as amulets against death in the family, so much so that until the 1960s they were almost exclusively served on the Day of the Dead or 2 November.

If you are wondering about the typical closure in the shape of an ear of wheat, it’s called Sa Spighitta and it’s used to propitiate the next year’s harvest at the end of August.

Besides all that, if you like yummy pasta dishes, you got to try either the classical recipe with fresh tomato sauce and Pecorino cheese on top or the refreshing summer variant with orange and lemon peel.

2 SUPPA CUATTA or ZUPPA GALLURESE

If you order the Suppa Cuatta or Zuppa Gallurese you might be surprised when being served a dish that looks like a lasagna instead of a soup (suppa or zuppa). That’s because the chef used the broth to soak up the layers of bread before sprinkling each one of them with cheese and aromatic herbs and it’s now hidden (cuatta).

Don’t worry, out of the oven with the melted cheese crust on top you’ll recognise the delicious smell of homemade beef and sheep broth mixed with the fragrance of melted Pecorino cheese and parsley inside.

3 PANI FRATTAU

You may call it the Sardinian pizza even if it’s not oven baked. Instead, the thin crunchy Carasau bread – you can find it everywhere on the island – is submerged in hot sheep broth for a few seconds before being covered with fresh tomato sauce, thin cut onions, extra virgin olive oil, chicory, thyme or parsley and aged Pecorino cheese.

A few layers later it gets topped with a poached egg prepared in sheep’s broth.

Shepherds used to bring along with them Carasau bread in their bag to consume during the day in the fields. Once back home, the bread they did not consume was crushed (frattau) and could be used to prepare this lovely dish.

4 BOTTARGA

When eating bottarga you’ll be tasting a food invented by the Phoenicians (today’s Lebanon) thousands of years ago.

Its name, however, comes from the Arabic batarikh and means salted fish eggs. In fact, you’ll be tasting mullet eggs pressed, dried and aged in sea salt.

You can track down the best Caviar of the Mediterranean in Cabras while you can purchase other excellent qualities in Cagliari, Tortolì, Sant’Antioco or Marceddì – all places rich in salty lagoons where mullets abound.

On the other hand, in Carloforte you’ll be introduced to special tuna variant, darker in colour and of a more pronounced taste.

You’ll find the delicious amber-coloured bottarga shaved or grated in many starter dishes, on pizzas, or served on its own. However, you can order it off the menu everywhere on the island as Spaghetti alla Bottarga.

An Italian staple, you’ll notice that all chefs will tweak the original recipe – grated bottarga, parsley and olive oil – and give a personal signature to this tasty dish.

5 MALLOREDDUS ALLA CAMPIDANESE

You cannot leave Sardinia without having tasted the famous Malloreddus, a short pasta that is 100% Sardinian.

This savoury recipe comes from Campidano – the large plane behind Cagliari intensely cultivated since the ancient Roman Empire. Order this dish and you’ll be served Sardinian gnocchi pasta combined with a rich ragù of tasty Sardinian sausage, Pecorino cheese and another precious ingredient cultivated in Sardinia for centuries – saffron.

6 PORCETTO ARROSTO

Do you like meat? This roasted suckling pig is a staple of Sardinian cuisine. You might think it’s a fairly simple dish to prepare but that’s not the case.

You’ve got to know that the pig needs to be cleaned inside and out, cut in two and positioned at the perfectly right distance so that the rind becomes crunchy while the meat beneath stays tender and juicy.

As for the flavour, when the piglet is half done the cook will salt the meat and season it with local herbs. Right off the skewer, you’ll taste a delicious savoury meat that melts in your mouth.

7 PANADAS

If you know a thing or two about Latin you’ll have noticed already the origin of panada, i.e. from panem (bread). Panada or the Spanish Empanada means in bread.

So what will you find in this oven-cooked bread, a precursor of quiche and other crust recipes?

In its original variation from Oschiri and Assemini, you’ll get either eel or lamb meat usually seasoned with garlic and parsley, together with dried tomatoes and potatoes. In its giant version, you’ll also find tomato sauce. You can also find a vegetarian version with cauliflower or artichokes.

On the other hand, the bread can be prepared with either lard or olive oil and in the case of mini-panadas, you might notice that they get fried instead of baked. They might look small but beware, they are calory dense.

8 FREGULA

Can you see those round pasta balls measuring anything between 2 and 6 millimetres? That’s fregula. You obtain it by rolling durum wheat in a clay pot then baking it in the oven.

Its recipe is certainly centuries old and the first written document in which it is mentioned seems to be the 14th century’s Miller’s Statute of Tempio.

Among its thousand variations, you’ll find the one with shellfish most often. If you are a pasta lover, you’ll enjoy fregula in all its local adaptations.

9 SEADAS

Forget about tiramisù and pannacotta. If you are in Sardinia, you should have a Seada for dessert.

A thin crust is filled with the freshest ricotta or the youngest hard cheese, flavoured with lemon zest and then fried until golden before being covered in honey.

You won’t believe your taste buds when the hot melted cheese will mix with the crunchy crust and honey in your mouth.

Ask for thistle or eucalyptus honey and prepare to order a second one.

10 PARDULAS

If you enter any Pasticcieria (pastry shop) in Sardinia you’ll find them, usually two or three bites in size. Pardulas or Formaggelle (as they are called in the northern half of the island) are made of a thin sheet of wheat durum, lard and water and filled with either fresh ricotta cheese or harder varieties of cheese, raisins and lemon or orange zest.

You’ll find that Formaggelle with their denser cheese are flatter in shape and stronger in taste with raisins bringing a welcomed sweeter touch to the lemon scented filling.

On the other hand, Pardulas have a fluffier consistency and tend to bulk up, almost out of their base, like little balloons.

You’ll have a hard time deciding which one is better. Simply forget about the competition and enjoy both.