• Food & Wine

Freshwater fish: a true Lombardian menu

 

The most exquisite is char, the noble relation to salmon and an "alpine fish". In fact this lake fish favours the mountains, rivers and lakes of the Alpine region. Its already delicious flesh is enhanced by marinating and it is perfect in fresh summer dishes. 

 

There is a wide range of freshwater fish in Lombardy, subdivided into native species and foreign species introduced by man. With flavours ranging from the delicate to the distinctive, oily, spiny, they are all excellent, but to get to know them best, you need to taste them in their own environment where they are the stars of local traditional cuisine. 

Today, "poor" recipes reinterpreted by chefs celebrate their nutritional value and flavours, and freshwater fish now compete strongly with saltwater fish. So, let's find out where to eat the best lake fish in Lombardy.

 

Freshwater fish in Lombardy
With its large lakes and smaller basins, Lombardy is paradise for lake tourism and offers up some delicious dishes for food lovers. Among the most popular native species on lake and river fish menus in our region is trout, most famously salmon trout, perfect en papillote or à la meunière. Delicious and common to all of Lombardy's large lakes, perch fillet is the king of risottos. 

Delicious, too, are shad, pre-alpine lake sardines which are at their best when dried; oily eels, char-grilled or marinated; and stewed, baked, fried or marinated tench.  Among the most prized lake fish are the expensive char, rare pike and sturgeon with its prized eggs, which is now farmed only. Less expensive is spiny chub, ideal for pâté; whitefish or lavarello, lean and perfect smoked; fried catfish; and carp... "in carpione", the process to which it lends its name, which is marination followed by frying. 

Where to eat the best freshwater fish dishes 
Freshwater fish have a milder flavour than saltwater fish. The recipes are rich in spices, aromas and herbs, or require marinating and drying. Every lake in Lombardy has its own cooking traditions. Let's discover them!

 

Pike with the flavours of Brescian Garda 
On the shores of Lake Garda, the largest of the Italian lakes, they fish pike, sardines, bleak, eel, carp and carpione, whitefish, perch, trout... One of most delicious dishes is pike alla Gardesana: the tender, flavoursome flesh of pike with chopped chad fillets. It is then all seasoned with lemon, capers and D.O.P. extra virgin olive oil from Brescian Garda. It is served with slices of crispy grilled polenta.

 

Lake Maggiore: a full fish menu 
The gastronomy of Lake Maggiore is abundant in flavourful fish dishes such as pike stuffed with rice, egg and prunes. Bleak are served lightly fried, char-grilled or marinated. Common whitefish is filleted, breaded, fried and served with an aromatic meat sauce. Chub is served in delicious fried meatballs. To taste them at their best, perch fillets should be dusted with flour, fried in butter and served with a delicate risotto.

 

Missoltini, a Lake Como delicacy
Among the homelands of perch is also Lake Como and Lecco. Here the typical dish is missoltini (shad). Fished in May, salted, sun dried and then canned, they can be enjoyed on the grill. Boneless, they dissolve during cooking, and can be served with grilled polenta. Also delicious is lavarello, the common whitefish, served with Como white potatoes, part of “Arca del Gusto” (Ark of Taste), a Slow Food project.

 

Sardines and tench on Lake Iseo
Lake Iseo - the smallest of Lombardy's great lakes, situated between Bergamo and Brescia - and its islands are famous for their gastronomy. One speciality is dried sardines, Slow Food Presidium. Fished between December and April, they are salted, dried and pressed into containers, then immersed in extra virgin Sebino oil for several months before being seared on the grill. The queen of local culinary tradition is tench stuffed with breadcrumbs, cheese and spices. A summer dish protected by the De.Co. designation, it is a symbol of Clusane d'Iseo, famous for its week dedicated to this flavourful gem. 

On the same topic

Le Palle di Agilulfo

A traditional dessert from Lomello
  • Food & Wine
Le Palle di Agilulfo

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

Lombard Mostarda Recipe

With a strong taste, the mostrada is prepared with fruit, sugar and mustard essence
  • Food & Wine
Lombard Mostarda recipe, an ancestral flavor

Panettone recipe

The secret of the preparation of the panettone: one of the typical sweets of the Milanese tradition
  • Food & Wine
Panettone recipe, a Milanese staple

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

Malfatti: a culinary delight from the Oltrepò Pavese

Piatto della tradizione contadina dell’Oltrepò Pavese
  • Food & Wine
Malfatti: a culinary delight from the Oltrepò Pavese

La schita dell’Oltrepò Pavese

A treasure of rural tradition
  • Food & Wine
La schita dell’Oltrepò Pavese

Lake Garda, olives and lemon houses

Calm waters and mountains landscapes, olives and lemon houses, an exceptional extra virgin olive oil
  • Food & Wine
Sirmione, Garda lake

The appetizers of the Lombardic tradition

We bring the traditional Lombardic gastronomic culture back to the table, starting with appetizers
  • Food & Wine
The appetizers of the Lombardic tradition

Pane di San Siro

I San Sirini: a typical sweet of the feast of the patron saint of Pavia
  • Food & Wine
Pane di San Siro

Wine and Flavor Tra il Garda

  • Food & Wine
Wine and Flavor Tra il Garda

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

Pizzoccheri Valtellinesi Recipe

They are the symbol of a tradition rich in flavors linked to the land and to the art of cheese making
  • Food & Wine
Pizzoccheri Valtellinesi recipe, traditional flavors

Eating in Lodi: starters to dessert

From cheese to amaretto biscuits, here's all you need to know to indulge in some delicious Lodi specialities
  • Food & Wine
Risotto_giallo_con_la_raspadura

Cipolla Rossa di Breme

The Breme Red Onion has been documented since the 10th century, dating back to the foundation of the famous abbey, which in the following centuries became one of the most important in Europe.
  • Food & Wine
Cipolla rossa di Breme

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,

Polenta and Misultin Recipe

Well-roasted polenta and salty missolitini to be skipped on the plate
  • Food & Wine
Polenta and Misultin Recipe, a winning combination

Andiamo a Tavola

33° Edition - Eating in Cremona and province
  • Food & Wine
Andiamo a Tavola

The road of Cremona's flavours

The best elements of Cremona's territory in a selection of products, places and itineraries proposed by The Road of Cremona'sFlavours.
  • Food & Wine
The road of Cremona's flavours