A master class from the tripe
The Queen of "poor food"
Tripe, a traditional dish that smells of grandparents’ cooking, must be honoured in Reggio Calabria. There are many recipes around, but the most common thread that unites them all starts from Calabrian tomatoes grown under the sun, to very slow cooking, which gives it its flavour, and the essential chili pepper. You can cook it, of course, but it is also worth tasting the versions prepared by the best traditional cooks, combining it with a fragrant local red wine.
A renowned speciality
The tripe recipe comes from the ancient rural tradition that produces aromas and flavours that you thought were dormant.
If you want to try to cook it yourself in the kitchen: cut the tripe into strips, letting it dry in a pan with olive oil and letting it blend with the white wine until it evaporates. Then add chopped celery, onion, carrot, and parsley—sauté them to add the peeled tomatoes. Add salt and simmer until the sauce is reduced and the tripe is cooked. Once the burner is turned off, let it rest for a few minutes, adding chilli and a generous sprinkling of pecorino cheese.
If you don’t want to try your hand at cooking: choose one of the many restaurants that includes the exquisite dish on the menu so you can taste it already beautifully prepared. Let us recommend a local red wine to enjoy this specialty from Reggio.
DID YOU KNOW THAT …?
In Reggio Calabria, there is a saying: “A trippa è di peddicchia, cchiù mangi e cchiù stendicchia”.
(“The belly is made of skin, the more you eat, the more it expands”)
