Fruit, vegetables and pulses

Turchesa potato

Turchesa potato: purple skin, snow-white flesh, grown high in the Gran Sasso

Locals also call it turca or turchesca, names used since the 18th century for the potato of the Abruzzo mountains, which grows even above 1,600 metres. Pushed aside by higher-yielding varieties, it returned to the fields after a 2001 recovery project led by the national park of the Gran Sasso and Laga mountains. It is now a Slow Food Presidium and a traditional agri-food product (PAT) of Abruzzo.

• Deep purple skin around very white flesh that holds little water
• Irregular and knobbly, with deep-set eyes, as old varieties tend to be
• Seed tubers are reproduced under a protocol to keep the variety true and healthy

How to enjoy it. Dry, medium-textured flesh makes it adaptable to many cooking methods; leave the skin on and the purple-and-white contrast comes to the table.

Production areas

Abruzzo

Season

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