The traditional May dish of Teramo (Abruzzo)
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Italy is renowned for its diverse regional traditions, with each region boasting unique celebrations, foods, and customs. Italy offers a rich tapestry of regional traditions that reflect the country’s diverse history, cultural heritage. The vibrant dish of Le Virtu is no exception.
In Teramo, “Le Virtù” is a traditional dish, a rich minestra (soup) prepared on May 1st, that holds both culinary and cultural significance. It represents the culmination of winter produce and a celebration of spring, often seen as a farewell to winter and a welcome to the new season.
This ancient dish, originating from peasant traditions, is closely tied to the natural rhythms of the seasons and represents a way to use kitchen leftovers. Before May 1, housewives would clean their cupboards of vegetables and legumes harvested from the previous season because nothing should go to waste. They would add herbs, along with the first fruits of the fields, and include scraps from the pig, such as ears, feet, nose, and bones. Everything is then cooked together for three days!
Religious Connection
As with many traditions in Italy, there are religious connotations. Le virtù translates as “the virtues” and derives its name from the Seven Virtues of the Catholic catechism. Traditionally, the preparation of this dish necessitates the inclusion of 7 distinct legumes and 7 different vegetables. For those adhering to strict traditional practices, the recipe may also feature 7 varieties of meat, 7 herbs, and 7 types of pasta, both dry and fresh. Furthermore, certain recipes extend the concept by recommending a cooking time of 7 hours, humorously suggesting that the dish be prepared by 7 virgins.
And so, how to make this delicious and hearty dish!
- First, you need to prepare each ingredient on its own. Start by rehydrating the dried legumes or pulses —this means soaking them for at least 12 hours before giving them a good boil. To make them extra tasty, add some sage, bay leaves, and garlic while they cook.
- Next up, let’s introduce some lovely pork! You can add pork rinds, ears, feet, snouts, and other tasty cuts to the beans for that rich flavour. Now, let’s talk about veggies! We’ll be using a colourful assortment, including onions, celery, carrots, scrippigni (that’s a type of thistle), borage, marjoram, dill, chard, pipirella (which is like thyme), and fennel. These will be added gradually to the vegetable as you go along.
- Chop up all your vegetables, which should all be fresh. Then, boil and sauté them in a pan, mixing in things like chicory, spinach, lettuce, wild herbs, asparagus, leeks, wild fennel, zucchini, carrots, and potatoes for a delightful combination.
- To create the tasty meat sauce! Lightly fry the meat and make some small minced meatballs called pallottine. Don’t forget to cook your peas and broad beans separately before adding them to the mix. For a balanced meal, you should have more veggies and legumes in your dish than meat.
- Once everything is just right, assemble it all in a large saucepan over low heat. At the very end, add the pasta of your choice—whether dried or fresh, with or without eggs—cut into fun shapes like tagliolini, rhombi, quadrucci, or maltagliati. It may seem like a lot of work, but trust me, the end result will be absolutely worth it! Enjoy your cooking adventure!
The dish can be a little heavy on the digestion, so pair it with a light, table wine, typical of Abruzzo, called Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo (“cirasce” in Abruzzese means cherry), obtained from Montepulciano grapes vinified as white. It’s ideal for freshening the mouth.
So, got your 50 ingredients at the ready? I think we need a nonna to show us
Buon Appetito!
This was adapted from my original article published on Italy Writers.
