Eating in Matera

The proximity between Basilicata and Puglia make the costumes, traditions and the gastronomy of these two Italian regions very similar. Matera’s food has a lot of dishes in common with Puglia, for example the “orecchiette” (literally, “little ears”, it’s a kind of pasta) seasoned with tomato sauce, cabbage, turnip tops, soft part of the bread and raisins. From the 15th August in Matera people uses to prepare the “cotto di fichi” (literally: cooked figs): a sweet sauce like a jam, that can be done only when the fig are well ripened. An other typical product of this zone is the mushroom “cardoncello”, it can be eaten raw with ricotta, lemons and olive oil, or cooked in different ways. A lot of typical dishes are cooked in occasion of the religious events: on Easter Monday, for example, it is custom to cook cardoon with cheese and eggs, and pastries with fig and honey. Needless to say that the local gastronomy is tightly connected with the peasant and pastoral tradition; While, if you prefer seafood we suggest you to move to Metaponto’s zone.