Calabrian Podolica beef, Slow Food Presidium

If you are passionate about authentic meat, raised with respect for animals and the land, you absolutely must try the prized Calabrian Podolica beef.

One of Slow Food's regional Presidia, the Calabrian Podolica breed grazes semi-wild in the woods of the Sila National Park, where it feeds on fresh grass and drinks from uncontaminated springs.

These are the elements that make it so unique and flavourful, so let's go and taste it!

The Calabrian Podolica breed is a bovine breed of ancient origins, raised throughout the Southern Apennines (including the regions of Campania and Puglia). The Calabrian breed is distinguished by certain characteristics: it is a rustic animal, capable of easily adapting to steep terrain, feeding where other breeds would have difficulty. In the past, it was mainly used as a working animal and secondarily for meat and milk production. The latter, scarce in quantity (about 15 quintals per year), is of very high quality, often used to produce a superior Caciocavallo Silano DPO cheese. How can the Calabrian Podolica breed be distinguished from other Silane cattle? By its grey coat, tending towards a dark shade (lighter in females), and by the thin, light, crescent-shaped horns in males (lyre-shaped in females). The Calabrian Podolica breed grazes outdoors all year round because it suffers in the confined space of stables.

This is why Calabrian Podolica meat is particularly tasty, rich in vitamins and minerals, and tougher on the palate if not properly matured. The high carotene content gives the fatty parts a slightly yellowish colour, and its growth rate is slower than that of intensively farmed breeds. In short, it is meat for connoisseurs! The high quality of Calabrian Podolica meat is the result of this combination: the genetics of the breed, healthy nutrition, free-range rearing and proper management of the slaughtering stages. This is why Calabrian Podolica meat is so lean and healthy, low in cholesterol and rich in essential fatty acids (Omega 3 and Omega 6).

Due to its characteristics, the Calabrian Podolica breed grazes mainly in the Mediterranean scrubland: among the bushes, stubble and undergrowth of the Silane forest, which is its natural habitat, in the provinces of Cosenza, Catanzaro and Crotone. When properly managed, the Calabrian Podolica breed represents a valuable asset for the entire regional livestock industry: both in the recovery of marginal areas and difficult pastures, which would otherwise be unused, and in the production of superior quality meat. To enjoy it at its best, i.e. locally sourced, it is best to go directly to the farmers and those who work all year round with the prized Calabrian Podolica meat: livestock farms and educational farms, which also teach children about slow, fair and supportive management and new extensive farming techniques.

To enjoy an excellent Calabrian Podolica steak, either on its own or accompanied by other meats in a delicious mixed grill, simply visit one of the many agritourism establishments and restaurants in the Sila area (although Calabrian Podolica meat is now available throughout the region). Would you like to taste and purchase the delicious Caciocavallo di Podolica cheese? Visit one of the many dairies nestled in the park, where the sweetness of the flavour meets the charm of an ancient Calabrian craft.