If you are on a trip to Tuscany and don’t want to waste too much precious time between trattorias and restaurants, street food is the ideal choice.
It is well known that Tuscany is the home of Florentine steak and of the ribollita, all dishes to be enjoyed in the company of a glass of Chianti.
But what are the 10 most traditional street foods in Tuscany? Let’s take a look.
Porchetta
The undisputed queen of street food is certainly porchetta, the most classic and characteristic product of Tuscan cuisine.
Perfect in sandwiches, sliced roast pork is served hot, seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic and various herbs.
Tripe or lampredotto
When it comes to street food in Florence, the first culinary thought is lampredotto, which is a sandwich with offal that is obtained from the various stomachs of cattle, cooked in a broth with herbs and tomatoes and seasoned with spicy sauce, green sauce, salt and pepper.
Queuing up in some kiosk or truck parked in some corner of Florence, you can find any category of people, from lawyers in ties to workers, from tourists to Florentines who know the best spots to savor lampredotto, the cult of Florentine street food.
Ice cream
The most touristy of street foods is ice cream, in cones or in cups to be carried around the Tuscan streets.
It is said that ice cream was invented in Tuscany in about 1600 by Bernardo Buontalenti on the occasion of the wedding banquet between Maria de’ Medici and the French King Henry IV.
Now, in the streets of Tuscany, you can find it everywhere, whether it is handmade or packaged, ice cream is always the best street food on hot summer days, and any time of the year.
The sandwich with Tuscan cold cuts
The best Tuscan hams and cheeses combine perfectly with salt-free sandwiches or schiacciata (focaccia bread). It is the quickest snack to move easily through the streets of a Tuscan market or through the lines waiting to enter a museum.
Torta di ceci (Chickpea flatbread)
For those who want something more refined and Tuscan, torta di ceci is the typical street food of the Tuscan Riviera.
It is a well-known dish that takes a different name depending on the Tuscan city: in Livorno it is called “la farinata”, on the Pisan coast it is called “la cecina” while in Massa Carrara it is called “la calda calda”.
The savory dish does not exceed one centimeter in height and is made with humble ingredients such as chickpea flour, water, salt and oil.
Necci and Ciaffagnoni
Necci are thin crêpes made with chestnut or chocolate flour and cooked on hot plates. The necci are rolled up in the shape of a cannolo and stuffed while still warm with fresh ricotta.
In Tuscany they are also found under the name of ciaffagnoni, in which the recipe is the same but without the variant of chestnuts.
The brigidini of Lamporecchio
From the province of Pistoia, brigidini are thin, crunchy and fragrant wafers with a curved surface, very crumbly, with a coarsely circular shape and about 10 centimeters in diameter.
They are made with simple ingredients such as eggs, sugar, anise or fennel seeds, water and flour.
They are traditionally sold at fairs and festivals, packaged in transparent, long and narrow bags.
Rice fritters
With the arrival of Mardi gras, in any local bakery or pastry shop, you will find these sweets that are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
Rice fritters are a dessert similar to meatballs, preparing rice with orange and lemon zest, all then enriched with raisins.
There are several variations with flour in the dough while others involve rice cooked only in milk.
The bombolone (donut)
Another irresistible street food is the bombolone, which is fried and is filled with custard or chocolate and sprinkled with sugar.
In Tuscany, they are found in different shape variations, such as the donuts of Livorno, but the taste and delicacy are always the same.
The schiacciata
Very famous for having become a cult on social media, the Tuscan schiacciata is baked and seasoned with olive oil and salt.
It can be of various types, that is, crispy or soft, stuffed or simply leavened or pressed.
It can also be seasoned with onions, potatoes, tomatoes or simple olives.
In recent years, it has been rediscovered by young people in the version stuffed with cured meats or cheeses.
And you, which Tuscan street food do you prefer?