The small village of Sauris is also a treasure chest of food and wine, where you will find a variety of high-quality food and wine products, true gastronomic excellences that are known and appreciated far beyond the borders of Friuli Venezia Giulia. Are you ready to embark on a sensory journey and discover what to eat in Sauris?
PGI prosciutto of Sauris
From the heart of Carnia, the prosciutto of Sauris has now conquered palates around the world, Its unmistakable fragrance comes from a precious secret: smoking with beech wood.
Smoking is a fundamental tradition throughout mountain areas, but here in Sauris it has become, over time, a true form of art. Since 2009 it has also been recognized by the Protected Geographical indication (PGI) label: a label that guarantees the origin and inimitable quality of our prosciutto, linking its exquisite flavor to the forests and crystal-clear air of Sauris.
In addition to prosciutto, you will find other excellent cured meats and sausages in Sauris, such as speck, which result from expert processing and carefully selected raw materials of the Zahre cured meat and Wolf prosciutto factories in Sauris.
Craft beer of Sauris
The world of beer, with its many different styles, is receiving more and more attention, and not only from enthusiasts and experts! Might you be curious to discover new flavors that blend centuries-old traditions with bold innovations? Then you won’t want to miss out on Zahre Beer, the craft beer from Sauris that captures this combination in every sip!
Starting with malt from its own production process, the Zahre brewery produces a whole-grain, unpasteurized and unfiltered beer, free of preservatives. Purity and tradition, drawn from selected ingredients and unique recipes, pave the way for a surprising taste experience. You can try: the Pilsen, red ale or hemp beer, and don’t miss out on the smoked beer, the perfect complement to Sauris’ PGI prosciutto!
Strawberries and other berries
Sauris is nestled in lush forests with fertile undergrowth, where during the summer it produces lots of small delights like blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. Just take a simple walk along our trails (and a few small ventures into the bushes) to pick and enjoy them au naturel!
Or, drop by the farm Azienda Agricola Domini in Lateis, where you can buy fresh organic strawberries and other berries along with many other processed products such as jams, preserves, juices and syrups, directly from the producer!
Alpine and goat cheeses
At an altitude of more than 1,500 m, beyond the edge of trees, lie pastures, stables and the so-called “casere,” alpine huts where cheese is still made and stored. Come and discover Sauris’ malghe (mountain huts) in the summer, from June to September, and relive the passion of a traditional activity still intact, which in the past represented the heart of the village’s economy.
In the past, the mountain huts around Sauris were numerous, as the pastures possess a superior organoleptic richness, due to a particular conformation in the valley. Milk has therefore an exceptional flavor, and raw milk is used to preserve all its enzymatic properties. This is the reason why Sauris malga cheeses, like those aged and matured by the cheese refiners of Malga Alta Carnia at 1,200 meters above sea level, are so popular!
Sauris’ production of dairy excellence also includes products from Azienda Bianco Sauris, made from goat’s milk: ranging from cheeses, enriched with ingredients such as fresh herbs gathered at high altitudes, kummel, and nuts, to stewed ricotta, yogurt, cottage cheese and kefir, concluding with a very sweet treat: the “Ambradolce” spreadable cream, made only with local goat’s milk, honey and sugar.
Smoked trout of Sauris
On our list of local gastronomic excellences, you cannot miss Zea, the smoked trout of Sauris! They are raised in a natural and sustainable way and hand-fed in pure spring waters, which give its flesh a refined quality and peculiar organoleptic and nutritional properties; Zea is 100% Friulian trout.
The word “Zea,” in the Sauris language, sounds like “lake”, and it is right in front of Lake Sauris, in the area of La Maina, that our trout is smoked according to ancient local tradition.
You can try the smoked trout of Sauris in three versions: baked hot-smoked fillet, cold-smoked fillet or hot fillet delicately smoked, all ready to be consumed as they are or prepared with recipes that will surprise you. Come and taste it in one of our restaurants in Sauris!
Herbs and aromatic and medicinal plants
Nature always provides us with the essentials for living, and in Sauris we know that well! Given its location, in the past, the Sauris community could remain isolated for long periods of time and therefore had to be self-sufficient.
Ancient herbal wisdom, once fundamental mainly for medical therapy, today gives us the opportunity to draw from aromatic and medicinal plants by using them in the kitchen as spices or in the preparation of syrups and liqueurs, but also to pamper our bodies with herbal teas, supplements and cosmetic products.
In Sauris, medicinal and aromatic herbs grow in the context of a pristine and pure environment, cultivated or hand-picked from wild herbs that perfume our forests and high-altitude pastures.
Come and discover many different ways to enjoy all their properties, with the natural proposals of Naturpreiths and Pa’ Mairlan farms!
Come and discover many different ways to enjoy all their properties, with the natural proposals of Naturpreiths and Pa’ Mairlan farms!
Zahrar Poan, the Sauris fava bean
A product typically associated with south-central Italy are fava beans that in the past were also successfully grown in some mountain areas, such as Carnia. During the long winters in the mountains, it was a valuable source of nourishment, thanks in part to its versatility, as it was used not only for nutritious soups and stews, but also for flour in making bread and polenta and was even a coffee substitute!
The first evidence of this legume in Sauris dates way back to 1683 and it never completely disappeared from local gardens, but was cultivated in an increasingly residual way. It became a Slow Food Presidium a few years ago by returning to prominence in the gastronomic traditions of the Sauris community, thanks to various projects aimed at their recovery and increased value.
Fava beans are considered a “meager” dish, but they are actually rich in taste, as well as nutrients. Come and find all about zahrar poan at the Sauris Ethnographic Center and don’t miss the chance to taste it as a special ingredient in many local dishes!
Has our journey through the flavors of Sauris cuisine intrigued you?
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