What to Eat in Puglia – The Ultimate Food and Restaurants Guide

If you are a lover of Italian food in general you must seriously consider a trip to beautiful Puglia. What to eat in Puglia? What are its typical dishes? Best restaurants? You’ll find all this information and more in this ultimate food and restaurants guide of Puglia. This southern Italian region is famous for its beautiful beaches, monuments and picturesque towns. However, an interesting fact many people love above all its absolutely delicious food and dishes!

Puglia is a Nirvana for lovers of pasta and Orecchiette are the typical Apulian pasta par excellence. This pasta is made from water, salt and durum wheat flour. Moreover, their name literally means “little ears”. Usually, the orecchiette are served with turnips or ragu.

When you visit Salento, you can’t miss this delicious pastry. pasticciotto is a pastry filled with custard baked in the oven. As well as it’s possible to taste it in the black chocolate version. Definitely, pasticciotto is one of the best Apulian foods.

This recipe is very popular in the area near the city of Bari. Due to its perfect combination of rice, potatoes and mussels, this dish is considered a real treat for tourists and locals alike. Additionally, it’s cooked in the traditional tiella, a large bowl with a clay bottom.

Puglia is also a perfect place for cheese lovers. In fact, in this Italian region, different types of cheeses are produced every day. Burrata is a ball filled with shreds of cheese and cream typical of the area north of Bari. Furthermore, in the Gargano area, caciocavallo podolico, another typical cheese with a unique flavor, is produced.

How not to love focaccia? Focaccia is made from potatoes, durum wheat semolina flour, waters, oil, yeast, tomatoes and oregano is pleasing to the tongue. Usually, focaccia is sold in bakeries but is often served as an appetizer by locals. Try it with mortadella salami and provolone cheese, an explosion of flavors!

Taralli are a tasty snack that is always found on the tables in restaurants. They have the classic ring shape, made with a dough based on flour, water, white wine and extra virgin olive oil. To achieve the typical crumbly and slightly crunchy consistency, taralli are first boiled and finally baked in the oven.

Panzerotti should not be confused with calzoni. Both are made from pizza dough but while the former are fried, the latter are oven-baked. In the traditional recipe, the panzerotti are filled with mozzarella and sauce. However, they can easily be found with different fillings such as ricotta, ham, mushrooms, turnips, sausage and more.

Bombette is rolls made of pork meat, filled with a small piece of cheese, salami, salt and parsley. Fixed by a toothpick, they are strung on a skewer and roasted on a barbeque. At the end of cooking, they are delicious, crispy and juicy at the same time.

Also known as acquasale, it’s a typical dish of the Apulian peasant tradition. Moreover, cialledda is a summer dish also served in appetizers and buffets. It’s prepared with fresh ingredients such as tomatoes, rogues, red onion and then enriched with pieces of stale bread or with chopped friselle.

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