| Gastronomia
Villasimius has managed to preserve its age-old gastronomic customs,
passing on to posterity a variety of traditional dishes. Besides
national favourites, one can sample its own simple, wholesome
cuisine, made from a selection of meat and fish products, served
with simple ingredients and enriched by aromatic herbs, of which
Sardinia has a precious inheritance.
Among first course possibilities we find the “malloreddus”,
small Sardinian gnocchi prepared with bran flour, “clurgionis”,
ravioli filled with ricotta, cheese or potatoes and flavoured
with fresh mint, “sa fregula sarda”, a dish considered
native, but clearly resembling the traditional Tunisian favourite
“couscous”, being made up of tiny grains of wheat
cooked in stock and served with different types of clams and mullet
roe.
Second courses are most often formed of meat roasted over the
spit and covered with mirto branches. Among the best examples
are suckling pig, young goat or lamb, placed on trays, in some
local taverns, served inside “su talleri”, chopping
boards made of cork bark.
Not to be forgotten are the classic mixed grills of fish, made
up of: gilthead, sea bass, white bream, mullet, king prawns, cuttlefish
and eel, freshly caught, of course, by local fishermen.
Naturally, to make a mouthwatering lunch, an excellent local wine
is also required. Among the most renowned we recommend a good
Cannonau from Castiadas for meat-based traditional Sardinian meals
and a top quality vermentino if the meal is entirely fish-based.
The wines are produced and distributed by the local wine consortium
of Castiadas and by a few local growers.
The side-dishes are very numerous: hams, salamis, olives and many
varieties of cheese.
Lunch is finished off with traditional sweets and cakes such as
ameretti biscuits, “foramgelle” (sweet cheese pastries),
and the classic “Sebadas” fritters, filled with cheese
and covered with honey.
Finally, no Sardinian lunch is complete without sampling a little
local eau-de-vie known as “filu e ferru” or the increasingly
famous red or white mirto liqueur. |
