Traditional Istrian cuisine

Traditional Istrian cuisine

Istria abounds in natural, cultural and gastronomic beauties. Considering that you always eat well after sightseeing and swimming on trips, you are in the right place for recommendations of Istrian dishes. If you have booked one of the holiday villas in Istria with the HomeRent agency, we definitely recommend that you try some of the local, traditional Istrian dishes listed below during your stay.

Meat of Istrian cattle (Boskarin) – the symbol of the Istrian pastures is the autochthonous type of cattle that Istrians call boskarin. The largest number of cattle are bred in Buje, and the species is endangered. Boskarin meat is the star of Istrian menus, and it is most often prepared as a carpaccio or as a steak with the addition of pasta. It is also used as a filling in ravioli, pâtés are made from it, and it is combined with vegetables and herbs. As the meat is of excellent quality, you can learn about its preparation at culinary workshops, and catering facilities that offer Boskarin meat dishes also carry a label, which is a plate with the image of a Boskarin as a guarantee of authenticity.

Istria truffles – In the dense forests of the hinterland of Istria, the kingdom of truffles, mushrooms that grow underground, was discovered 80 years ago. Since then, the truffle has not stopped being a gastronomic hit in Istria. From a gastronomic point of view, truffles, due to their specific smell and taste, are foods that are either loved or not. Immediately after extraction, the fresh truffle is used directly as a food supplement or using modern processing methods to create top quality products (oils, cheeses, spreads, sauces, etc.). This culinary delicacy has been used in Istrian cuisine for years, and one of the most famous ways of preparing it is with traditional Istrian pasta fuji or spit. The cult of the truffle fuels the popular belief about its aphrodisiac powers.

Manestra – is a traditional Istrian thick soup. The most important ingredient of every manestra is pest, a sauce made from dried pancetta, garlic, parsley leaves and celery so that all of them are finely chopped or ground together. Beans, potatoes and dried meat go with pesto in manestra. With the addition of the main food, the name of manestra also changes, so there is manestra made of berries (with corn), iota (with sauerkraut), beans with pickled turnips, white maneštra made of barley, manestra made of fennel and many more versions. If you want something warm and on a spoon, manestra is an ideal choice.

Istrian fritaja - is an omelet made from domestic eggs with seasonal ingredients such as asparagus, truffles, prosciutto, sausages, mushrooms, etc. The most popular fritaja is the one with wild asparagus. It is especially popular for breakfast or as a quick lunch while sightseeing the city.

Brodet – is a traditional fish dish that has been eaten since ancient times. Every place on the coast has its own version of brodet, but the original brodet is prepared from at least 7 types of fish with the addition of shellfish, wine, tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves, parsley and sage.

Buzara - is an ancient way of preparing seafood (fish, crabs or shellfish) which tries to preserve the original fresh taste of seafood. Garlic, parsley, olive oil and wine are added to the buzara, and everything together gives a very aromatic and specific and fresh taste. The most famous are crab, shrimp and mussel dumplings.

Savudrijska svoja (Leaf) – is a superb white fish and one of the symbols of northwestern Istria. You can taste it on Svoja Days in various forms – carpaccio, soup, with white truffle, with homemade pasta.

Fuzi - traditional Istrian pasta made of thinly rolled dough, tube-shaped, 3-5 cm in size. It is most often served with truffle sauce, game stew or domestic chicken and with asparagus.

Pljukanci - traditional Istrian spindle-shaped pasta made of flour and eggs. It is prepared quickly and easily by rubbing between the palms. You can taste it in various variants - with asparagus, porcini mushrooms, truffles, goulash or just with olive oil and sheep's cheese.

Along with all these dishes, don't forget to try the top quality local Istrian wines, just like you don't forget to visit the Home Rent website and reserve one of the villas in Croatia for your perfect vacation. Find more information about Croatian gastronomy, destinations and useful tips on our blog page Croatia in style.