APULICA / FRUIT, VEGETABLES AND PULSES
Patata della Sila (Sila potato)
PGI · Fruit, vegetables and pulses · Calabria
In brief
- It is grown in municipalities of the Sila plateau, in the provinces of Cosenza and Catanzaro. (Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP)
- Six varieties are allowed, including Agria, Desirée and Majestic, with yellow or red skin. (Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP)
- It is planted from mid-April to the end of June and harvested from the second half of August to 30 November. (Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP)
- The plateau's wide temperature swings slow growth and raise the tubers' dry matter. (Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP)
History and origin
The Sila potato is tied in every respect, agricultural, economic and social, to the great plateau at the heart of Calabria, with its vast forests and landscapes that are snowy in winter and green in spring and summer. For the Sila communities potato growing was long a vital resource: the villages of the plateau grew thanks to trade in this product.
In 1955 the Sila centre for the multiplication and selection of seed potatoes was founded, and by the 1980s the area was among the first in Italy for the number of packing plants. Its fame also grew through festivals devoted to the potato, including the Sagra della Patata della Sila in Camigliatello Silano, held every year since 1978.
In 2010 the European Union recognised the Patata della Sila as a Protected Geographical Indication, and that same year 23 companies founded the protection consortium. The Sila potato also carries the "mountain product" label.
Sources: ARSAC (Regione Calabria) — I prodotti DOP, IGP e PAT della Calabria · Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP · ARSAC — Patata della Sila IGP e Consorzio di tutela · eAmbrosia — Patata della Sila (PGI-IT-0643)
Area and method of production
The production area covers thirteen municipalities in Cosenza province, among them Acri, Longobucco, San Giovanni in Fiore and Spezzano della Sila, and thirteen in Catanzaro province, among them Taverna, Decollatura and Soveria Mannelli: together they ring the plateau. The soils are loose, mostly sandy and permeable, slightly acid and rich in organic matter.
The climate is very dry in summer and cold in winter. Wide swings between day and night, frost and snow keep many pests away, so treatments are kept to a minimum; growth is slow and steady, favouring the build-up of dry matter and good keeping quality. Irrigation uses spring water.
Seed tubers are certified, and rotation excludes nightshade crops for at least two years. Planting runs from mid-April to the end of June and harvesting, by hand or machine, from the second half of August to 30 November. The potatoes are stored in the dark for up to eight months, or in cold rooms for up to ten, without chemical sprout inhibitors.
Sources: ARSAC — Patata della Sila IGP e Consorzio di tutela · ARSAC (Regione Calabria) — I prodotti DOP, IGP e PAT della Calabria · Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP
How to recognise it
The Patata della Sila PGI covers six varieties: Agria, Desirée, Ditta, Majestic, Marabel and Nicola. The shape ranges from round to long oval and the size from 28 millimetres to over 76; skin and flesh are firm.
Colours help to tell them apart. Agria, Ditta, Marabel and Nicola have yellow skin and flesh; Majestic has yellow skin and white flesh; Desirée has red skin and yellow flesh.
The high dry-matter content gives flesh that stays firm even after cooking. The PGI potato is on sale from October to May, in net sacks, small bags or cardboard boxes.
Sources: Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP · ARSAC — Patata della Sila IGP e Consorzio di tutela
In the kitchen
Its texture makes the Sila potato ideal for frying, and each variety has its uses: Desirée is also excellent for gnocchi, Ditta for roasting and boiling, Majestic for mash, Nicola for steaming and baking.
It is the main ingredient of many traditional recipes: the famous patate "'mpacchiuse", with variants including pancetta or mushrooms; baked pasta and potatoes; potato omelette. With home-made bread and wine it can become a meal in itself.
At the table it goes with mushrooms, sausages, red and white meat and fish from sea and lake, and regional cooking also happily pairs it with pasta. Calabria's traditional products also include potato bread.
Sources: ARSAC (Regione Calabria) — I prodotti DOP, IGP e PAT della Calabria · Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP
Where to taste it
The potato is best discovered on the Sila plateau and in the towns around it, from San Giovanni in Fiore to Spezzano della Sila, from Longobucco to Taverna. Between late summer and autumn the fields are in full harvest, in a landscape of vast forests and wide views.
The best-known event is the Sagra della Patata della Sila at Camigliatello Silano, held every year since 1978 and drawing many visitors; ARSAC describes the Sila festivals as lively, crowded celebrations of the product.
A trip to the Sila combines the potato with other local flavours, such as porcini mushrooms and Caciocavallo Silano, and with walks in the National Park: a way to get to know one of Calabria's widest mountain landscapes.
Sources: Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP · ARSAC (Regione Calabria) — I prodotti DOP, IGP e PAT della Calabria · ARSAC — Patata della Sila IGP e Consorzio di tutela
Protection
- Protected geographical indication (PGI) — PGI-IT-0643 (eAmbrosia — Patata della Sila (PGI-IT-0643))
When
- Harvest: August–November (Qualigeo — Patata della Sila IGP)
- Summer
- Autumn
Where
Sila
Sila National Park: a plateau of forests, lakes and pastures between Cosenza, Catanzaro and Crotone, and a UNESCO biosphere reserve.
Read the guide →Photo: Ugo Leonetti / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Resized and converted to WebP.
Read more
Patata della Sila PGI
Six varieties, spring planting and autumn harvest on Europe's widest plateau: the Sila PGI with mushrooms, chestnuts, mpanata, the steam train and the Camigliatello festivals.
Read the guide →