Lampredotto: The Florentine Holy Grail

Nothing says Florence like a Lampredotto sandwich, I mean it’s the original Florentine street food, and you know what? In this Florentine wintery season, nothing beats the warmth and energy a Lampredotto can give you. 

Let’s start off by saying that it’s a meat dish so if you’re a vegetarian/vegan don’t go out of your way to try it, but if you eat everything you need to partake in the panino al Lampredotto craze. Cause you can’t say you’ve been to Florence if you didn’t try a Lampredotto sandwich Florence.

What is it?

So what is a Panino con Lampredotto? You might not like what you hear, and most of the times I bring a friend to try it for the first time, I tend not to tell them what part of the cow it is, cause people are usually a bit disgusted by it. But I can’t do that now as I’m writing a blog post on it, and if I don’t tell you what’s the point of the post at all?

Get ready for this Lampredotto recipe but don’t be turn away by it. So, Lampredotto Tuscany is made from the fourth stomach of the cow, the abomasum (that’s usually where I lose everybody), and it’s slow-cooked for hours in a vegetable broth. After cooking the Lampredotto, it’s chopped into small pieces and served in a roll, and topped with peperoncini and/or salsa verde (parsley, vinegar, capers, garlic, onion, anchovies, and olive oil). When I get a Panino Lampredotto I tend to have it with all of the above, cause it’s really good, it’s really messy, and it has a really high nutritional value. Plus, make sure they dunk the top part of the bread roll in the broth cause that’s where you see how well they the Panino al Lampredotto.

Here it is the Lampredotto Sandwich

Now you’re thinking that I’m going to tell you where the best Lampredotto sandwich in Florence is, but no I can’t cause I don’t even know, and everybody, I mean everybody, here has their favorite place. You’ll recognize where you can buy these sandwiches by the food trucks you see in the city center because all of the food trucks you see in Florence sell it. It’s street food, so you’ll find it in a truck.

So when you get to Florence, or if you’re already here, find the best Lampredotto in Florence for you and let me know, cause this way I have an excuse to go try it out!

Also, check out some more Italian food info, cause Italian food is never enough.