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Austria Meets Italy
Even though they are joined into a single region, Trentino and Alto Adige are like two separate countries from a culinary standpoint. The food of Alto Adige (also called
is essentially Austrian with Italian influences, while the cooking of Trentino is similar to that of neighboring Veneto. In Alto Adige, the main meat is pork, which is cooked, smoked, or cured to make salumi, such as speck. Brown rye bread, sauerkraut, goulash, and strudel are other typical Tyrolean specialties served here. In Trentino, polenta made from corn or buckwheat is a dietary mainstay and is often topped with wild mushrooms, which grow abundantly in the Dolomites. Trentino is also known for its apples, wild strawberries, and cow's milk cheeses.
Culinary Signature: Speck
Speck is the German word for bacon, but the speck of Alto Adige isn't bacon at ali. It
is made from pork leg, not pork belly, and is brined with herbs and garlic and then cold smoked and aged, resulting in a texture reminiscent of prosciutto and a flavor that recalls pancetta. Speck is eaten thinly sliced as an antipasto with figs or melon, and is also used in cooking to flavor everything from pasta sauces to pizza and dumplings.
Regional Specialties
Wild mushrooms porcini, chanterelles, and other mushrooms grow in profusion in the region
Ravioli alla pusterese wheat-and-rye pasta stuffed with cabbage or sauerkraut
Spatzle flour and egg dumplings, often served with Gorgonzola
Canederli bread dumplings made with speck or liver, known as knddel in Alto Adige Gulasch di manzo a beef stew, similar to Hungarian goulash
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