Bronte pistachio: the real Sicilian green gold
Would you have ever thought that the green gold of Sicily could be a small fruit that grows in just over 3500 hectares of land and in just three municipalities in the province of Catania in Sicily?
Even if today most of the pistachios on the market are passed off as Bronte pistachios, in reality the very precious PDO Bronte pistachios can boast this name only if they come from certified companies that produce them in the Bronte, Adrano and Biancavilla areas. , on the slopes of the Etna volcano. They are unique territories, in fact, which are characterized by the volcanic soil combined with limestone rocks, by the exposure to the sun and the altitude. Consider that this pistachio is only grown in an altitude range between 400 and 900 meters and is very resistant to drought, typical of a sunny area like Sicily.
The harvest of this fruit generally takes place at the end of summer, towards September, and in fact it is precisely between the end of September and the beginning of October that the pistachio festivals take place throughout the Catania hinterland, where the population, travelers and enthusiasts can taste the pistachio in many preparations, from sweet to savory variants.
In fact, this small treasure chest of flavor is one of the noblest and most valued ingredients of Sicilian cuisine. Being very versatile, like many other types of dried fruit, it lends itself very well to both sweets and savory dishes. The Sicilians have in fact been masters not only in its cultivation, but also in salting, drying and roasting, all processes that help to preserve this product in the best possible way, to be able to use it all year round in many areas of Sicilian cuisine.
This expertise derives from centuries of exchanges with the Arab peoples, themselves great experts in the use, conservation and enhancement of dried fruit and pistachios in particular.
Insideat Pistachio experience
Insideat loves to enhance the typical local products and give voice to the local people who each day carry on millenary traditions that are part of the food and wine culture of a country.
In fact, the enhancement of the territory and the local people is one of the values on which we base the authentic and highly immersive experiences. We create them for travelers who love to get to know a place by discovering its soul.
Insideat has thus decided to include among its experiences the one based on the Bronte pistachio, which consists of an immersive journey into the world of the Sicilian pistachio, which will lead curious travelers and connoisseurs of this fruit to taste it in many different forms.
The food tour starts from the Bronte pistachio groves, where its cultivation takes place, in a historic farm on the slopes of the Etna Volcano, where you will be able to learn about the ancient methods of cultivation and the tools used for the collection, processing and the cleaning.
Immersed in the setting of the Simeto Valley, you can then taste the pistachio in a sweet and a savory recipe. Find out more about the Insideat pistachio experience!
