Mantua is on the top step of the podium for quality of life in Italy. A few days ago the publication of the survey carried out by ItaliaOggi and the La Sapienza University of Rome on the 110 Italian provinces.
A golden year for Mantua also Capital of Culture 2016 and, together with Sabbioneta, already a world heritage site since 2008. It is fully considered one of the major centers of the Italian and European Renaissance and the Gonzagas -over the centuries- have made into a real court-city.
Alongside all this, it is natural to choose Mantua also to talk about traditional cuisine, in this beginning of December and holidays. His dishes speak of classicism, to which it is pleasant to return for the most familiar moment of the year.
Among the cornerstones of local food and wine are known - among the first courses - pumpkin tortelli and more generally fresh pasta as well as the famous pilot rice. Il Palato Italiano, a gourmet club that brings the best of Italian food and wine to the fore, counts among the reference farms those who produce certified Italian rice in the Castel d'Ario area, where rice cultivation began between 1500 and 1600 Ancient mills for cereals were transformed into piles for processing rice, hence the denomination of pilot rice.
Mantua is a city for every season, whether you arrive in September for the Literature Festival or at any other time, the menus of the best restaurants offer the most authentic products of a rich territory that offers second courses based on freshwater fish and meats cooked in stews, stews or cotechini. Lovers of the genre should therefore not fail to garnish a plate of boiled meats with the best Mantuan mustards. Also in this case Il Palato Italiano is passionate about the work of producers who - with mastery - treat the fruit respecting its flavour, aroma and colour, using only Italian raw materials and without using preservatives. Slow cooking allows you to work delicately with fruit and vegetables, thus preserving the organoleptic characteristics. Each producer then experiences an instant of alchemy in expertly dosing the mustard, to give it a hot and spicy scent.
mustard Mantovana from The Italian Palate on Vimeo.
It is necessary to include Grana Padano in the overview, considered a real pride of the province. If its origins date back to about 1000 years ago by the monks of the Chiaravalle Abbey, the Mantuan province is one of the most suitable provinces for production, regulated by the strict regulations of the Consortium.
This city and its surrounding area deserve a visit marked by a relaxed pace and which therefore can also include time for an excursion in the Mincio Park and in the Mantuan countryside, perhaps to visit one of the farms present. Seeing the mastery of the cheesemakers at work and hearing them talk about ancient processes will add further authenticity to such a pleasant travel experience.
With such important dishes it is natural to think of the accompaniment of an alcoholic note which – in the context of local production – ranges from the vivacity of Mantua Lambrusco to the wines of the morainic hills including Cabernet, Merlot, Chardonnay. The former is produced in the Oltrepò area of Mantua, between Viadana and Sermide, the area with the oldest winemaking tradition in the province; the latter refer to the territory of low hills in the northern part of Mantua, which encloses the Garda basin.
And if between lunches and dinners you are too full for a dessert, before leaving the city you can make up for it with a stop in some pastry shop in the center: returning home with a Sbrisolona cake - the Mantuan specialty with almonds - will keep alive the memory of this generous territory and will make you want to plan a new visit.
