• 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.

 

DISCOVER WHERE TO TASTE BUTALÀ!

MAIN INGREDIENTS:

  • Brallo De.C.O. potatoes: give Butalà its unique texture and authentic flavor.
  • Soft wheat flour: a binding element that ensures the gnocchi's structure.
  • Menconico black truffle: the star ingredient, enriching the dough with its unmistakable aroma.
  • Eggs and salt: sourced from local farms, contributing to the dough's cohesion.

THE PREPARATION:

The Butalà-making process is a celebration of craftsmanship and culinary mastery, passed down through generations.

  1. Cooking the potatoes until they become soft and easy to work with.
  2. The potatoes are then mashed and mixed with flour, grated truffle, eggs, and salt to form a smooth dough.
  3. The dough is rolled into long ropes and cut into walnut-sized pieces.
  4. Each piece is pressed against a grater, a traditional step that gives Butalà its distinctive irregular shape.
  5. The gnocchi are then boiled in salted water with a drizzle of oil and removed as soon as they float to the surface.
  6. Finally, they are coated in melted truffle butter and garnished with generous truffle shavings or a Molana cheese fondue for a richer version.
Take me here: Il Butalà

On the same topic

Cencerate Potatoes

Questa patata di ottima qualità è prodotta ancora in piccole quantità nella frazione del comune di Brallo di Pregola
  • Food & Wine
Cencerate Potatoes

Il Butalà

A dish from the Pavia Apennines featuring Deco Brallo potato gnocchi and Menconico black truffle.
  • Food & Wine
Il Butalà

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

Voghera Golden Onions

The golden onion was already cultivated in the 19th century in the countryside around Voghera.
  • Food & Wine
Voghera Golden Onions

Bata Lavar

A traditional pasta dish from the town of Canneto Pavese
  • Food & Wine
Bata Lavar

Pizzocorno

Il formaggio Pizzocorno, dalla forma quadrata e dall’aroma intenso e deciso, prende il nome dal piccolo borgo – frazione di Ponte Nizza – nel cuore della Valle Staffora
  • Food & Wine
Pizzocorno

Fagiolo Borlotto di Gambolò

The Borlotto bean has been cultivated for centuries in the agricultural area of Gambolò and its immediate surroundings.
  • Food & Wine
Fagiolo Borlotto di Gambolò

Zucca Berrettina di Lungavilla

A Lungavilla viene coltivata una zucca chiamata ‘Capé da prèvi’, cappello da prete, per la forma che richiama il copricapo dei sacerdoti
  • Food & Wine
Zucca Berrettina di Lungavilla

Le Palle di Agilulfo

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

Torta Paradiso

The iconic dessert of Pavia's tradition
  • Food & Wine
Torta Paradiso

Flavours of the Oltrepò Pavese: Autumnal weekends away within a stone’s throw of Milan

Discover Pavese – Enjoy an autumn weekend of tradition, culture and flavour among the most charming villages of the Oltrepò Pavese. Take a look at this list of ideas and get inspired.
  • Food & Wine
 Flavours of the Oltrepò Pavese:  Autumnal weekends away within a stone’s throw of Milan

Bagnaria Cherries

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

Oltrepò Pavese, le Vie del Gusto

The tranquil Oltrepò is the home of 36 DOC-certified wines, which accompany a traditional cuisine with its roots in Italy’s remote history
  • Food & Wine
Salame di Varzi

Oltrepò Pavese

Good food, excellent wine, medieval villages. The Oltrepò Pavese surprises and conquers with its charm.
  • Food & Wine
Oltrepò Pavese, a borderland triangle

Zucca Bertagnina di Dorno

In Dorno, pumpkin cultivation has an ancient tradition. In particular, a variety of pumpkin called "Bertagnina" was historically grown.
  • Food & Wine
Zucca Bertagnina di Dorno

Peperone di Voghera

The Voghera pepper is a native and valuable variety that deserves special attention for its unique organoleptic characteristics.
  • Food & Wine
Peperone di Voghera

Risotto e rane

Risotto with frogs, a symbolic dish of the Lomellina tradition
  • Food & Wine
Risotto e rane

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

Varzese Breed Meat

The Varzese is the only native cattle breed of Lombardy
  • Food & Wine
Varzese Breed Meat

Zuppa Pavese Recipe

The pavese soup, taste of old dishes, those that were born from the few ingredients available
  • Food & Wine
Zuppa Pavese recipe, a soup fit for a king