Tripe and Lampredotto are two very special Italian culinary specialties as they come from bovine offal. Both are part of the Tuscan gastronomic tradition but Lampredotto, a true institution, is the master in Florence. Let’s see together what Tripe and Lampredotto are and what are the best recipes for cooking them.

What are Tripe and Lampredotto?

Tripe is a traditional food from many regions of Italy, in particular from Venetian, Roman and Milanese cuisine, but also from Tuscan cuisine.

But what exactly is Tripe? Tripe is a bovine offal, that is part of the animal’s entrails. Tripe is nothing but the stomach of cattle, which to be precise is made up of various parts, each of which has specific names.

Ruminants, for example, have 3 prestomaches and a real stomach. The common tripe is obtained from one of the prestomaches called the “rumen”.

Lampredotto is one of the most famous popular dishes in Florence, so much so that even today it can be tasted in the numerous stand scattered throughout the city.

The lampredotto is an institution for the Florentines, a popular rite that already in the fifteenth century a few steps from the Arno was consumed for a few cents. A cheap protein lunch.

It is the most common Florentine street food, a delicacy based on one of the four sections of the stomach of cattle, the abomasum.

The Florentine Tripe Recipe

In Tuscany the best known preparation of this dish is undoubtedly the Florentine tripe.

Florentines are always great tripe eaters which was already prepared in taverns since the 1400s. This food was so popular that it often occurs in popular poems.

The recipe for real Florentine tripe does not include the use of wine, broth, or long cooking, but at the end of the preparation, if successful, it must be soft and tasty.

Here is the recipe for Florentine Tripe for all gourmets.

1. Cut 500 grams of tripe into strips of about one centimeter.

2. In a pan, brown 8 tablespoons of oil and chopped onion. When it wilts, add the tripe and let it brown slowly with the pan uncovered, turning often so that it does not stick.

3. After about 15 minutes add 500 grams of fresh or peeled tomatoes, salt, pepper and cook covered for about 40 minutes, until the liquid withdraws leave the tripe in a creamy sauce.

4. Remove from the heat and add 2-3 tablespoons of parmesan.

5. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

The Recipe of Boiled Lampredotto

1. Preapres a broth by boiling a celery, a carrot in three liters of salted water, an onion, a couple of tomatoes and a sprig of parsley.

2. Let it boil then add about 500 g of whole lampredotto and cook over low heat, covered, for about an hour.

3. Once the flame is out, pull up the lampredotto and cut it into strips: serve it on a plate or in a sandwich.

4. Add salt and pepper and accompany it with green sauce.

Come and enjoy Tuscan cuisine in Mugello

If you are a gourmet palate and you like to taste typical regional cuisine then Tuscany is the right destination for you. We are waiting for you at Villa Campestri Olive Oil Resort, in the heart of Mugello and a few kilometers from Florence, where our Chef will delight you with fragrant Tuscan recipes!