Red Treviso Radish and Variegato of Castelfranco Veneto

The three radishes of the Province of Treviso – Rosso Tardivo, Rosso Precoce and Variegato di Castelfranco – are the bearers of an agricultural, social and economic history that makes them unique and that gave birth to the Strada del radicchio rosso di Treviso and variegated of Castelfranco. The true consecration of red radish is due to prof. Giuseppe Benzi, who had the idea of creating the first red flower exhibition, in December 1900. Today the Winter Flowers event gathers this important legacy in a calendar that combines the exhibitions linked to the red radish of Treviso and the variegated radish of Castelfranco Veneto. On the other hand, the prestigious CocoRadicchio exhibition brings creativity and tradition to the tables of seven restaurants, always in the name of this beloved winter vegetable. The Red Radicchio di Treviso PGI – Late presents itself with regular, uniform shoots, and with good compactness; The texture is crunchy and the taste pleasantly bitter. It can be tasted raw in salads, with different seasonings, and above all cooked: fried, grilled, stewed, in risottos. The Red Radicchio di Treviso PGI – Early stands out not only because it arrives on the market earlier than late (from September instead of December), but also because of the large elongated tufts with less fleshy leaves with a broad flap wrap-around in a dazzling pink color, with a white central rib that branches off onto the edge itself. The leaves have a medium crunchy texture and a slightly bitter taste. The gastronomic uses are identical to those of the late type, to which, however, a greater crunchiness and a less bitter intensity must be recognized. The Variegated Radicchio di Castelfranco PGI is a cross between the Radicchio di Treviso and the endive obtained in the late 1800s. Its shape resembles a large rose with mottled colors. The leaves have a jagged edge, of a white-cream color with distributed variegations, in a balanced way on the whole leaf of different colors from light purple to purplish red. The collection takes place after September 20th. The taste is very delicate and varies from sweet to pleasantly bitter. Compared to the red varieties it has a lower shelf life and is very sensitive to prolonged cooking. The “Radicio Verdòn da Cortèl” (Radicchio verdolin) is a vegetable passed into the background compared to its most famous “brothers”, however it has reappeared in recent years on the Treviso tables, which have recognized its quality organoleptic and identity aspects. It takes the dialectal name from the harvest, which takes place exclusively by hand using a short blade knife, between the end of February and the maximum until mid-April.