When you hear Valtellina, the first thing that comes to mind is pizzoccheri, the main local dish. It has ancient origins, like the cultivation of buckwheat, which is extremely popular in the valley, especially in Teglio. This “black flour” is also used for other traditional dishes, such as sciatt, polenta taragna and chisciöi. However, pizzoccheri is the most popular dish, perhaps because for Valtellina’s skilful women they have always been easy to be cooked and usually served on the family table. How are pizzoccheri made? Mix buckwheat flour and white flour to make an elastic dough. Once it’s ready, roll out a sheet of pasta to obtain coarse strips (similar to tagliatelle). Cook them with chopped potatoes and cabbage (in winter) or chard (in summer).

Drain with a large, perforated ladle and stir with a mix of fresh soft cheese and a more aged and tastier one. Sprinkle with melted butter, even better if it’s alpine butter, and garlic. The latter can be replaced with onion or sage, as you can commonly find at private houses’ table). The high quality wheat, the particular way it is milled, the expertise of the cook, excellent local cheese and butter are what you need to make this rich and inviting dish. Pair pizzoccheri with local wine to achieve perfection.