Did you know Italian capers used to grow on the Roman Aurelian walls and still do?
That’s right. These walls are almost 13k long, have protected “the eternal city” for centuries and, from spring till autumn, this plant grows and clings onto the walls adorning them with beautiful white flowers.
Caper is a wild plant, stunning and amazingly fragranced. What you eat is the bud, of that flower, a kind of green capsule that must be collected very quickly and then put in salt.
Every summer, even now, Romans gather to harvest its little and delicious buds: they are not the high quality PDO or IGP products like the one from Pantelleria or Salina, but still very good…and you for free!
Usually used to season fish and meat as a salt substitute, capers are local food and typically used to make the traditional “pasta alla puttanesca” which is an Italian, and moreover “Roman” recipe made of tomato sauce, olive oil, black olives, oregano and, of course, capers!
Italians go crazy or this type of dish…what about you? During the summer, but all year round really, families and friends love to spend time together and eat a nice portion of pasta alla puttanesca. Traditions are a staple in every Italian family…Just like capers.
Did you know that capers have many properties and benefits? Discover more about PDO and PGI Italian products, how to desalinate capers and how to cook in our dedicated Capers page.
