Salone Del Gusto

Salone Del Gusto is the partner-in-crime to the previously mentioned, Terra Madre. It is an unbelivable event of food, wine, and beer. Vendors from all over the world bring their goods to showcase, share, and enjoy. If you play your cards right,  as in you carefully make your way through US Customs, you can even bring some of the fabulous food home. The Salone is special becuase you get to talk to the farmers themselves. And if you can't speak to them directly by some sort of language gap, you get to speak through the food, "Mmmmm" + a Great Big Smile is nearly the same all around the world-that food is GOOD.

The majority of the Salone Del Gusto are people from Italy who take the short trip to Torino. They bring with them Salumi, Buffalo Cheese, Crazy Turnips, Olives of all Kinds, and just about every kind of Italian food, wine and beer you can think of.

Not Just Your Mozzerella- All Different Kinds of Buffalo Cheese

Turnips-As Big As My Hand and DELICIOUS with Some Olive Oil Drizzled on Top!

Slicing Up the Salumi

Cheese, Cheese and More Cheese

Salumi with a Special Garlic-Aglio di Vassalico- from Imperia in Northern Italy

Salumi and Porcetta

Olives! My Favorite

The rest of the area is dedicated to other nations around the world. Just as in Terra Madre, native and indigenous people from all over the world bring their goods and hope to share their experiences with you.

Oysters and Game Poultry from the UK

Talo Tortillas from Mungia, Basque Country, Spain

Austrian Pigs- "Vooly" aka Woolly Pigs

A Woman From Pokot, Kenya Selling Jewelery and...

Ash Yogurt. Made from Goat or Cow's Milk it ferments in a Gourd for a Few Days. The Cow is for Men and the Goat's kind is for Women and Children as it is more Nutritious. The Ash is added after all the fermentation

Several Goods from Afghanistan, I tasted "Uvetta abjosh di Herat" or Raisin of the Herat

As mentioned, the event is about bringing and sharing knowledge to everyone. While this was important for all of the food exhibitors there, it was especially important for the Presidia Projects. The Presidia Projects are the ones that specifically target foods that are nearly extinct.  The Project funds and helps small Artisan producers get their food back to market. I tried some, but could not make it to all the booths that were there. Some interesting booths- the Talo and Yogurt listed above, Stracchino Cheese from Northern Italian that dates back to the 10th Century, Pit Cabbage from the mountainous Eastern Austria, Frentano Sausage from Central Italy, Slatko Plums from Goražde, Bosnia, and Pahmir Mulberries from Tajikistan. I could tell you special things about all of these wonderful products if I had the space to do so. This project though, keeps the biodiversity of our food system functioning, and is so very important for the generations to come. Loosing these breeds and these traditions is not worth the chance.

We didn't get to bring much home, except for this fabulous creature Dad squeezed into his luggage and home. He bought it from a nice Italian lady who answered our questions about what the heck it was.

Turns out, it is called a Zampone, or a stuffed pigs trotter. If you find one of these around here, you can find a recipe here. But we were told it is normally served around Christmas and New Years in Italy. Our taxi driver that night was also giving a ride home to his Mother. We should her this Zampone and she was more than thrilled about it, apparently it is quite the delicacy. So, who's coming to Christmas dinner? :)