Raw minced horse meat seasoned with oil, salt and lemon, eaten cold with bread or torta fritta. Parma's frankest dish, still a lunchtime staple the city refuses to give up.

Horse butchery took root in Parma's Oltretorrente in the 19th century as cheap protein for the working quarter, and pesto di cavallo, hand-minced and simply dressed, became its signature. The dialect name caval pisst means pressed horse. Where much of Italy dropped the tradition, Parma kept dedicated butchers and put the dish on modern menus, from sandwich counters to bistrot reinterpretations.

Where to eat Pesto di cavallo in Parma

3 editor picks for Pesto di cavallo in Parma, ranked by editorial score. All Parma signature dishes · Pesto di cavallo across every city.

  • Pepen

    Order The Spaccaballe at 6 euro, plus a Carciofa at 2.50 euro.

    Pepen has been Parma's sandwich institution on Borgo Sant'Ambrogio since its dopoteatro days, from the Spaccaballe roast pork to the artichoke Carciofa.

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  • Borgo 20

    Order Risotto alla parmigiana with caramelised onion.

    Borgo 20 is Parma's contemporary bistrot near Piazza Duomo, pairing 30-month prosciutto with risotto alla parmigiana and a serious pastry counter.

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  • Osteria Virgilio

    Order The cured-meat board with 36-month prosciutto, then anolini.

    Osteria Virgilio is Oltretorrente Parma at its most honest: 36-month prosciutto, anolini in brodo and horse tartare in a small room with natural wines.

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Book food experiences in Parma

Tasting and Biking Parma★ 5.0 (239)

Viator · 4 h

Tasting and Biking Parma

Enjoy a easy bike tour to visit a Parmigiano Reggiano cheesefactory and see all production chain, to know the secrets of this great cheese and the huge storage with th...

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Make it at home

Serves Serves 420 minEasy

Ingredients

  • 400g very fresh horse meat from a trusted butcher, or beef fillet as a substitute
  • 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • Salt and black pepper
  • Bread, grissini or torta fritta to serve

Method

  1. Have the butcher mince the meat twice the same day you serve it, and keep it cold.
  2. Season with oil, lemon, salt and pepper, working lightly with a fork.
  3. Taste and adjust; the dressing should sharpen the meat, not mask it.
  4. Mound onto plates or press between bread as the Parma sandwich counters do.
  5. Serve immediately, cold, with a young Lambrusco.

Editor tip. This is a raw dish: buy from an equine butcher the morning you eat it, or make the beef version with the same respect for freshness.