The Food of Emilia-Romagna: A Guide to Bologna, Modena and Parma

Emilia-Romagna has been called the bread-basket of Italy, but that undersells it. The region that runs from Piacenza in the west to Rimini on the Adriatic coast is the origin of Parma ham, Parmigiano Reggiano, traditional balsamic vinegar, mortadella, tagliatelle al ragù and tortellini — not regional variations of those products, but the originals on which all others are modelled. The fertile Po Valley behind the Apennines, the pig-farming tradition stretching back a thousand years, and the obsessive local pride in craft production combine to make the region one of the great food destinations in Europe.

Antipasti: Cold Cuts and Cheese

A meal in Parma, Modena or Bologna typically begins with a board of local cured meats. Prosciutto di Parma is air-cured for a minimum of 12 months in the hills south of the city, emerging with a delicate sweetness that distinguishes it from all imitations. Culatello di Zibello is the premium cut, from the heart of the leg, cured in natural casings in the foggy lowlands of the Po — richer and more complex, with a long finish. Salame di Felino, from a village outside Parma, is softer and more finely ground than most salami, seasoned with white wine and whole peppercorns. All three arrive at the table with shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano aged at least 24 months, whose depth and crystalline texture serve as both accompaniment and palate cleanser. For street food in Parma, Pepèn on Borgo Sant’Ambrogio is a local institution serving bold panini — including artichoke tarts and raw horse meat — for over 50 years.

First Courses: Pasta

Fresh egg pasta made with soft-wheat flour and eggs from free-range chickens — the local sfoglia — is the medium for Emilia-Romagna’s most famous first courses.

Tortellini are small rings of pasta filled with a mixture of prosciutto, mortadella and ground pork. The classic preparation is in capon broth (in brodo di cappone), a clear golden consommé that lets the filling speak. A cream version (alla panna) is common in restaurants but considered a concession to tourism by older cooks. Tradition places their invention in Castelfranco Emilia, with several competing legends about their origin.

Tortelloni are larger, filled with ricotta and spinach or Swiss chard, folded into a triangular hat shape and served with butter and sage or a simple tomato sauce.

Passatelli are not pasta but breadcrumb dumplings — breadcrumbs, egg and Parmigiano pressed through a die into short thick strands and served in capon broth. They are a winter dish and a cold-season staple in Bologna.

Zuppa reale is rarer and less known outside the region: a savoury egg-and-flour cake baked firm, cut into cubes and served in broth. Richer than passatelli, more archaic in character, and well worth seeking out.

Main Courses: Pork and Boiled Meats

Emilia-Romagna has raised pigs for over a thousand years, and pork remains the region’s defining meat. Zampone di Modena — ground pork and rind stuffed into a boned pig’s trotter, then boiled — is a winter dish eaten traditionally at Christmas with lentils and Lambrusco. Its invention is documented to 1510, when Modena was under siege and the townspeople needed to preserve food in whatever casing was available.

Cotoletta alla bolognese is a breaded veal cutlet topped with shaved Parmigiano and sometimes prosciutto, finished in the oven. The top version adds a shaving of white truffle.

Bollito misto — mixed boiled meats — is the grand Emilian main course. In Bologna’s classic restaurants a trolley (il carrello dei bolliti) arrives at the table laden with capon, boiling chicken, beef brisket and tongue, all sliced to order. Served with salsa verde (parsley, cooked carrot, boiled egg, olive oil and vinegar) and mostarda (fruit preserved in mustard-oil syrup, more common in the northern areas), it is the Emilian equivalent of a French pot-au-feu.

See where the food actually comes from.
The Emilia Delizia food tour takes you inside working Parmigiano, balsamic, and ham producers — rated 4.9 stars on TripAdvisor.

Desserts

Tagliatelle dolci are strands of sweet pasta dough deep-fried and coated in honey — a Bolognese Carnival treat, sometimes finished with cinnamon or lemon zest.

Zuppa inglese — “English soup” — is the Emilian take on English trifle, introduced after 16th-century diplomatic contact between Ferrara and Elizabethan England. The local version layers sponge cake or savoiardi biscuits with thick custard and Alchermes, a bright-red aromatic herb liqueur that gives the dessert its vivid pink layer.

Digestivi and Wines

No Emilian meal ends without a digestivo. Nocino from Modena is made from unripe green walnuts steeped in pure alcohol with sugar and spices, then aged in oak for a minimum of six years — dark, aromatic and bitter-sweet. Bargnolino from Parma uses the berries of the wild hawthorn (bargnol), producing a lighter liqueur with strawberry and cherry notes and a pleasant bitterness.

The wines of Emilia-Romagna are characteristically sparkling and often red — a combination unique to this region. Lambrusco from Modena is a dry, lightly sparkling red with evanescent violet froth and flavours of dark berry; it is made to be drunk young and is the natural partner for rich pork dishes. The best Lambrusco is labelled Grasparossa, Sorbara or Salamino by grape variety. Gutturnio from Piacenza is a Barbera-Croatina blend, also available in both still and sparkling versions, fuller-bodied and better suited to braised meats. To experience these wines and dishes in context, the guided food tour from Bologna to the Parmigiano dairies, balsamic acetaie and prosciutto cellars covers the full production story behind the Emilian table.