Gerrei cuisine: soups, snails and goat meat

Malloreddus: gnochetti (dumplings) of semolina (hard seed corn), generally handmade. This is one of the typical Sardinian “primi piatti” (first dishes). Malloreddus are usually served with tomato sauce and grated cheese (Fiore Sardo, Pecorino Sardo or Romano, and Caprino).

Fregola: thick semolina usually handmade (with water and salt) made into small balls: tried in the hot oven for few minutes. The Fregola can be combined with meat 's stock or with clams and garlic or fresh tomatoes, garlic and chopped onion. In Gerrei, as in other mountain areas, a soup with fregola is made with wild herbs, pork and casu axedu (sour cheese), and seasoned (goat or sheep) cheese grated on the top.

Minestra con casu axedu (suer cheese soup ): meat's stock and pastina (tiny type of pasta, for example “stelline”, little stars). After the boiling, add pieces of casu axedu (suer cheese) melting in tasty strings.

Culurgiones: the Sardinian ravioli, called Culingionis in other zones of Sardegna, are prepared with a dough of seed corn or flour, eggs, salt and olive oil and a filling of soft cheese or ricotta, chard or spinach, eggs, butter and saffron. All dressed in tomato sauce and grated Sardinian cheese. Very tasty is also the variation filled with potatoes, lard, fresh mint, chopped onion and garlic.

Lumache (snails): Different types of snail exist, and many are the traditional Sardinian recipes that have snails as the main ingredient. These vary according to the area. Sizigorrus are small snails similar in dimension to a small nut, with a grey shell. Before being boiled in salted water, they have to be let purge and washed carefully. Then, pour them into an other pan, with a sauce of fresh tomato sauce, onions, salt, and basil. This is one of the typical recipes of San Nicolò Gerrei.

Còrdula: lamb intestine, carefully washed in both internal and interior side, it is then left in water and vinegar. Once dried, it is tied with a string and it is put on a grill over the flame.

Porchetto arrosto (roast suckling pig): spit-roast suckling pig is one of the typical Sardinian dishes, but it is not easy to prepare. The cooking procedure is long and lot of attention is required to obtain savory meat not dried with a crunchy rind. The pork has to be turned over at the right distance from the flame, and it has to be oiled with the shortening of the fused lard. Su porceddu (this pork) is usually served in every farm-house, trattoria, restaurant, according to the culinary tradition of Sardinia.

Arrosto di capra (roasted goat): the cooking procedure, it is exactly the same use for preparing the “Porchetto arrosto” (look at it).

Interiora allo spiedo (spit-roast offal): intestines, liver and heart of kid or lamb, washed carefully and immersed in water and vinegar, then entrenched with little juniper branches and broiled.