The 10 Typical Dishes of Trentino-Alto Adige

Our journey in search of Italy’s culinary specialties continues: today it’s the turn of Trentino-Alto Adige, a region whose cultural history is born from the merging of Austrian, German and Hungarian traditions, which have naturally influenced its cuisine as well. Because of this cross-border “contamination”, it’s often difficult to understand exactly where and how a typical Trentino dish was born.

To fully grasp the history and essence of this territory, here is a selection of typical dishes from Trentino-Alto Adige, starting with the first courses and ending with desserts for those with a sweet tooth.

Here are the typical first courses of Trentino-Alto Adige:

Spätzle

Spätzle are small, elongated, slightly curved and irregular dumplings that originate from Germany. The term Spätzle comes from the Swabian dialect and means “little sparrows,” referring both to their shape and to the fact that, in German cuisine, they often accompany game birds, replacing the classic bread side.

The dough is extremely simple to prepare and is made from flour, eggs and water (sometimes replaced by milk or beer). In addition to the plain white version, typical of Germany, in Alto Adige the green version is very common, where spinach or chard is added to the dough, as well as a more rustic version using buckwheat flour. They are usually served with butter or cream and speck.

Canederli

We now move into the Trentino area, where the most emblematic dish is canederli (also known as knödel): large dumplings made from stale bread, milk and eggs, usually flavored with speck, ham, cheese and parsley. They can be served with melted butter, in their cooking broth, or topped with tomato sauce.

There are many variations: canederli with spinach, porcini mushrooms or calf’s liver, and even sweet versions with strawberries. This is a very old recipe (it is thought that canederli spread as early as the 12th century) and it represents an excellent comfort food against the harsh winter temperatures.

The typical second courses of Trentino-Alto Adige

Carne salada

Carne salada is one of the traditional dishes of Trentino-Alto Adige, a land rich in mountains and green pastures ideal for cattle raised for tender, flavorful beef.

It is a cured beef, generally made from the topside, the most prized cut, which is first trimmed of all fat. The meat is initially dry-marinated with salt, black pepper and garlic, then left to rest in brine for about a month, which gives it a delicate, lightly spiced flavor.

Traditionally it is served raw, thinly sliced like carpaccio, dressed simply with olive oil and shavings of grana cheese, but it can also be briefly seared and served, often with boiled beans.

Speck

Speck is the quintessential cured meat of Alto Adige, born from the encounter between Italian and northern European food traditions. In fact, it is essentially a dry-cured ham that is also smoked, following the customs of northern European cuisine.

Traditional speck from Trentino-Alto Adige is obtained from the hind leg of pork. The subsequent curing and smoking process gives it an intense yet delicate flavor, making it the star of any charcuterie board and a very common ingredient for enriching and accompanying many dishes.

Polenta

Polenta is certainly one of the symbolic foods of northern Italy, but in Trentino one must mention the polenta di Storo (from the town of Storo, about 50 km from Trento), made with a yellow flour obtained from a special variety of corn.

It can be cooked in the traditional way, baked in the oven, grilled, or used as a base for a savory pie with red meat. It reaches its peak, however, when served with a rich venison ragù, creating an intense, hearty dish that’s a staple in mountain restaurants.

Formaggio di malga

Have you ever heard of “Trentino di malga”? This refers to one of the most important dairy labels that identifies cheeses produced in alpine huts (malghe) with summer mountain milk and a minimum aging of 9 months.

This cheese is made at high altitudes using raw milk — that is, fresh from milking and not pasteurized. After the rigors of winter, from June to September the cattle are free to graze in alpine pastures, feeding on forage rich in nutrients and completely natural. The herds then return to the traditional shelters in the mountains, the malghe, where the cheeses are produced.

Thanks to the pristine environment of these pastures, the milk is of exceptionally high quality, giving the cheeses unique aromas and flavors.

Puzzone di Moena

Puzzone di Moena is a highly prized PDO cheese produced in Moena, a small town in the province of Trento. Its curious name (“stinky cheese of Moena”) comes from the strong, pungent smell that characterizes it, due to the rind being constantly washed during the aging process. Despite its intense aroma, Puzzone di Moena is a real delicacy for the palate: in Ladin it’s called Spretz Tzaorì, meaning “tasty cheese.”

It is a semi-cooked cheese made from whole cow’s milk and aged from at least three months up to about 150 days. The rind is smooth and slightly greasy, and its texture changes depending on the length of aging.

Puzzone is typically paired with red wines or served alongside polenta, but it’s also widely used for dishes like gnocchi di Puzzone, made by combining the cheese with stale bread and onion, shaping into dumplings, and boiling them in salted water.

Brezel

Also known as pretzel or bretzel, brezel are a particular type of baked bread with a golden crust, shaped into a characteristic knot of three interlocking loops. They are typical of northern Italy as well as northern Europe, although their exact origins are uncertain.

The traditional recipe uses only flour and water for the dough which, once risen, is twisted into the classic shape, then briefly dipped into boiling water with baking soda. This process gives it its distinctive chewy crumb and shiny, slightly crunchy surface. Finally, they are sprinkled with coarse salt.

Today there are countless versions of brezel — with cheese, seeds, or even sweet varieties — making them perfect for any occasion.

Typical desserts of Trentino-Alto Adige

Strudel

We now move on to the sweeter part of our selection, and we can’t fail to mention strudel, the region’s signature dessert. The main ingredient is the apple which, together with walnuts, raisins, pine nuts and cinnamon, is wrapped in a very thin pastry sheet, dusted with powdered sugar and usually served with ice cream or whipped cream.

The origins of strudel, however, are not Italian but Turkish. In the 17th century, the Turks in Hungary created baklava, a layered dessert that was later adapted by the Hungarians and transformed into what we now know as strudel. The recipe then spread throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire, eventually reaching the Alpine valleys of northern Italy, where it became the most famous dessert in the region, loved by adults and children alike.

Zelten

We conclude our list with another characteristic Trentino dessert: Zelten, a fruit bread made with flour, eggs, butter, dried figs, pine nuts, almonds, raisins and walnuts.

Its name comes from the German selten, meaning “sometimes”, because this is a Christmas dessert traditionally prepared only during a specific period of the year.

There are several stories about its origin: according to some, Zelten was made on December 13th, the feast of Saint Lucy, to be eaten throughout the Christmas holidays. Others claim that families would gather on December 21st to prepare it together, making one large Zelten for the family to enjoy on Christmas Eve, and several smaller loaves to give as gifts.

Whatever its original occasion, today Zelten is a true symbol of the Christmas season, a family tradition lovingly passed down from generation to generation.

Now that this little journey has come to an end, there are no more excuses: Trentino-Alto Adige is waiting for you!