• Food & Wine

Il Butalà

A dish from the Pavia Apennines featuring Deco Brallo potato gnocchi and Menconico black truffle.

Butalà: The Gnocchi of Alta Valle Staffora

Butalà is the dialect name for gnocchi in Alta Valle Staffora, a region of Oltrepò Pavese.

The term Butalà in Italian means "thrown there", an expression that reflects the simplicity of this dish. Yet, despite its humble origins, it embodies a sophisticated and innovative soul.

This gastronomic specialty perfectly represents the fusion of tradition and modernity, a balance that tells the story of Oltrepò Pavese—one eye on its roots, the other on the future.

The ingredients used are locally sourced and deeply rooted in tradition, but Oltrepò Pavese reinterprets them with an original touch, creating a new, exciting flavor capable of captivating an ever-growing and curious audience.

A Dish That Tells a Story

Butalà is a tribute to its land—to the rolling hills alternating with sunlit valleys, to the forests and cultivated fields that shape the landscape under the watchful eye of the mountains. From this generous land come the key ingredients of this dish:

  • Brallo De.Co. potatoes, carefully grown at high altitudes.
  • Menconico truffle, a true jewel of local gastronomy.

These two elements come together to create the Lombard Butalà—a unique ridged gnocchi filled with Brallo potatoes, eggs, flour, and Menconico truffle, then delicately coated in a fragrant blend of butter and truffle.

The Variants of Butalà

This distinctive dish can be enjoyed in two variations, both tied to the authentic flavors of the Pavia Apennines:

  • With Molana, a typical local cheese.
  • With Varzese cattle reduction, made from a rare autochthonous Lombard breed.

Thus, Butalà becomes a true symbol of local cuisine, encapsulating the finest regional ingredients and transforming them into an unforgettable culinary experience.

Oltrepò Pavese: A Land That Captivates

Oltrepò Pavese attracts visitors for two main reasons:

  1. Its historical and natural heritage, with vineyards, castles, historic residences, and breathtaking green landscapes.
  2. Its gastronomic excellence, because people always return to places where they have eaten well.

The Butalà fits perfectly within this philosophy, offering a new way to tell the story of Oltrepò Pavese—through the flavors that best represent its authentic soul.

Take me here: Il Butalà

On the same topic

Bike riding along San Colombano’s Wine Route

Vini e prodotti della Pianura Padana. La Strada del Vino San Colombano è un percorso di eccellenze dalla storia centenaria
  • Food & Wine
Bike riding along San Colombano’s Wine Route

The shop of Fattorie Cremona

  • Food & Wine
The shop of Fattorie Cremona

The cheese

Ben sei formaggi prodotti nel Cremonese hanno ottenuto il riconoscimento DOP (Denominazione di Origine Protetta): grana padano, provolone valpadana, taleggio, quartirolo lombardo, gorgonzola e salva cremasco.
  • Food & Wine
The cheese

Campagna Amica, the Sunday markets

In Stradivari Square in Cremona
  • Food & Wine
Campagna Amica, the Sunday markets

Red, rounded, robust. The wines of the Valtellina

Unique and unforgettable flavors obtained from the grapes of the terraces
  • Food & Wine
Sassella, Sforzato, Grumello, Valtellina Superiore, Inferno

Eating in Val Sabbia

The authentic taste of Val Sabbian cuisine
  • Food & Wine
Spiedo bresciano

Wine and Flavor Trail Valtellina

A scenic road through the terraced vineyards
  • Food & Wine
Strada vino e sapori Valtellina, percorriamola insieme

Bagnaria Cherries

The Cherry of Bagnaria is part of the important network of the National Association of "Cities of Cherries."
  • Food & Wine
Ciliege di Bagnaria

Delicious Bergamo!

  • Food & Wine
Tagliere di salumi bergamaschi

Eating Lombardy

Lombardy shows its excellence with the unique and traditional flavors of each single territory, but it is also international cuisine
  • Food & Wine
Suggestions for eating in Lombardy: restaurants, international and local dishes

Wine and Flavor Trail Varese Valleys

It extends in the northern part of the Province of Varese, to the north of the capital city up to the border with the Swiss territory offering the opportunity to learn about the typical products and to discover the beauties of the landscape of the valleys and lakes
  • Food & Wine
Wine and Flavor Trail of Varese Valleys, discover them

Gorgonzola

A DOP cheese from the Province of Milan
  • Food & Wine
Gorgonzola

Wine and Flavor Trail Franciacorta

Among rows of vines with perfect geometries that cross small villages rich in history, traditions, farms, cellars and signs of human activity: discover Franciacorta
  • Food & Wine
Wine and Flavor Trail Franciacorta,

Miccone

The *miccone* is a traditional bread from Oltrepò Pavese with a crispy crust and a dense yet soft crumb.
  • Food & Wine
Miccone di Stradella

For Wine Cellars in Lombardy

Rows of vineyards line the countryside, producing some of the finest wines in the world. Exploring Wine Cellars in Lombardy
  • Food & Wine
Vineyards in Sondrio in Valtellina

Culinary Ideas for Winter

Six gastronomic ideas to enjoy the typical traditional flavours of Lombardy, with convivial recipes and delicious tasting experiences
  • Food & Wine
Culinary Ideas for Winter

Grana padano

Typical Italian DOP cheese
  • Food & Wine
Grana Padano

Wine and Flavor Trail Oltrepò Pavese

Oltrepo Pavese has always been recognized for its wines and most of those who have had the pleasure of going to this part of the province of Pavia, will remember above all its hills and stretches of vine rows
  • Food & Wine
Wine and Flavor Trail in Oltrepò Pavese, history taste and traditions

Flavors and Products from Garda

Lake Garda is an ideal place for gourmets and wine lovers
  • Food & Wine
Discover the flavors and products from Garda

Cotoletta a la Milanese Recipe

His secret? Cutlet, breadcrumbs and... fry in a frying pan with bubbling butter
  • Food & Wine
Cotoletta a la Milanese recipe, a world famous delicacy