The cuisine of Lazio, in contrast to other regional culinary traditions, has maintained its characteristics over time, with only some slight influence of the Jewish community.
Specialties such as “spaghetti alla carbonara”, or the oxtail or even “gnocchi alla romana” are known throughout the world.

The cuisine of Lazio is characterized by the simplicity of the traditional dishes and the use of very poor ingredients, sometimes misunderstood in all those restaurants that try to imitate this cuisine: this is the case of the “gnocchi alla romana” which are made of semolina and not of potatoes.

Among the cheeses there’s the buffalo mozzarella, the Pecorino Romano DOP, a very tasty cheese that should be eaten with fava beans, fior di latte, a fresh cheese with a soft consistency, and Roman ricotta, which is used to prepare the typical Easter cakes.

Meat here is particularly tasty: the “coppiette” are obtained from horse meat, the “guanciale” is much sought to prepare the famous carbonara or bucatini Amatriciana; the “mortadella of Amatrice” is similar to that of Campotosto in Abruzzo; the “sausage Monte San Biagio” is seasoned with red pepper. Finally, the “Porchetta” is obtained by cooking a pig, and the most famous one is prepared according to the recipe of Ariccia.

Even the vegetables of Lazio offer really tasty dishes: the Roman artichoke or the giant green, black and white olives are considered very inviting. Lazio is also important for its fruit, such as the kiwi, the chestnuts of Vallerano, larger and heavier than normal chestnuts; the strawberries of Nemi, typical wild strawberries.

The production of oil is also to be mentioned: there is extra virgin olive oil “Canino” Dop, with its green color and fresh taste, and the extra virgin olive oil “Sabina” Dop.

The remarkable variety of wines offered by Lazio region, which counts over 25 DOC wines, allows us to name just a few: the dry Frascati, the white dry Marino, the white dry Colli Albani (which can be also sparkling) and the Aprilia, a garnet red wine.