Puntarelle alla romana is a signature dish of Italy; we have verified places to eat it in Rome. Curly white shoots of catalogna chicory, soaked in iced water to crisp and curl, dressed with anchovy, garlic, vinegar and olive oil. Start with where to eat Puntarelle alla romana in Rome.

Puntarelle alla romana · Rome

Curly white shoots of catalogna chicory, soaked in iced water to crisp and curl, dressed with anchovy, garlic, vinegar and olive oil. The Roman winter salad.

Puntarelle (Cichorium intybus var. catalogna) ripen in the Lazio countryside from November through February and are a Roman winter staple, cleaned at the table by a specialised dressing-trimmer at trattorias like Felice a Testaccio. The cleaning is the work: each stem is split with a knife or a wire grid into long thin curls, then plunged into iced water until they curl and crisp. The anchovy dressing is the only correct dressing.

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