Short production lines with all
stages performed “in house”
Manually prepared and 100% Italian
Vegetables dried in the sun
Produced without preservatives
Flavours are authentic, not
“standardised”
Excellent value
Like our vegetables need time, sun, water and great care to grow and to come to the right grade of maturation, in the same way our farm has budded and flourished year after year in the last 30 years. Our grandfathers, our fathers, the women of our family have given body and soul to the care of our land and its fruits. Their hardworking hands and their devotion have permitted us to grow up loving our sun and our red land, learning that is important to improve ourselves and the surrounding landscape.
To produce as we do, let us say it, it is necessary to be a little bit agriculturist, a little bit artisan and a little bit artist. Every time we create a new product, we stop to imagine which sensation we want to offer to our clients, which surprise we want to give them and, which is the best taste to use in order to leave a long memory of our wonderful place.
Our farm is always opened to the public. With us people can discover and learn the art of cultivation, of the picking and the conservation of the vegetables. Touristic destination and meeting-place, “iContadini“ is not only a brand but a way to choose a daily quality.
The cultivation
Our farm is situated in Apulia, in one of the most fertile area in fact of cultivation of vegetables. We are exactly in Salento, the so-called “ land of the sun, of the sea, of the wind”. The particular weather condition of this strip of land, kissed by the sun nearly all year round, the composition of the soil and the benevolent influence of the sea make it possible to get unique products. The cultivation is directly put into practice by our farm. We follow all the phases, using the integrated production technique, on more than twenty-five hectares of greens in open field.
The picking
That of the picking is a very important moment because, it rewards all the work done during the cultivation and gives great satisfaction in seeing the plants given their fruits. Our skilled staff picks the vegetables by hand selecting them on the field. After that, greens are put in cases of maximum 23 Kg to avoid damages and immediately transported to the factory to be processed fresh.
The working process
Our vegetables are naturally dried under the strong sun of Salento, preserving in them all the organoleptic and nourishing qualities. The sun-drying technique is an ancient art that, even though it is delicate and difficult, allows to obtain an absolute unique result: softness of the pulp, preservation of vitamins, proteins and minerals, and a special harmonic flavour which is far more recognizable. The salting determines the good end result of the desiccation, that’s why we still do it manually. All the processing phases regarding tomatoes, artichokes, cime di rapa, lampascioni and other greens are followed by the diligent and experienced hands of our southern country-women.
The packaging
The last phase is the bottling of the greens, where no preservatives are added to the food. The confection is directly done in our factory. It is still effected with masterly skill and great care by the hands of our country-women, who follow step by step the good result of our traditional recipes. Our grandmothers used to lay in stores for the winter many of the home-made food prepared during the summer time. The safety rules and the protection of the quality of our products are always respected. We do our best in order to bring on your table all the care and the love we put in making our products.
There are 29 products.
Wherever you go, the landscape of Salento is graced with
Cellina-olive trees. Their fruits are not only used to obtain
an excellent Apulian oil but are also a great tit-bit. We use
them (unstoned) in this tomato sauce.
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The "Puntarelle" are the heart of the CATALONIAN CHICORY, a typical salad of our territory. We sow in October and harvest the vegetable between January and February. Our women defoliate the plant and manually cut the "scatuni", ie the shoots.
The cherry-peppers have a round shape. They are cultivated
in the month of May and are picked by hand in the end of
August, when they are completely red.
A native Apulian variety cultivated in particular in the areas of Bitetto, Bitonto, Bitritto, Grumo Appula, Modugno, Palo del Colle, Sannicandro di Bari, Toritto. Natural fermentation for six months with salt. PRODUCT WITHOUT VINEGAR
The hot peppers are cultivated in open field between the
end of May and the beginning of June. The picking, between
August and October, requires more steps because of the
peculiarities of this plant.
These olives are typical of our area and are picked between
October and November through hand-harvesting. Farmers
bring the olives in our farm where they are washed, selected
according to the size and put into water and salt for about
6 months in order to neutralize their bitter taste.
The sweet red peppers are cultivated in open field in our farm
in the month of May and are picked by hand in August and
September. After the picking, they are washed, selected, cut
into large slices, salted and laid in the sun on desiccation
frames for 3-4 days.
It just needs to be warmed up for 5 minutes et voilà: a
ready hot chili pepper sauce.
sale
The "Puntarelle" are the heart of the CATALONIAN CHICORY, a typical salad of our territory. We sow in October and harvest the vegetable between January and February. Our women defoliate the plant and manually cut the "scatuni", ie the shoots.
sale
Confit cherry tomatoes preserved in extra virgin olive oil (49%), sugar and whole salt has a unique taste. Try it out, at the moment at a great price!
The zucchini are cultivated in open field in our farm starting
from April and are picked by hand in June and July. Once in our
factory, they are washed, selected, cut into slices with their
peel, salted and laid in the sun on desiccation frames for 3-4
days.
The aubergines are cultivated in open field in our farm in the
month of April and are picked by hand in July and August.
After the picking, they are washed, selected, cut into slices
with all their peel, salted and laid in the sun on desiccation
frames for 3-4 days.
The long tomatoes are cultivated in open field in our farm
starting from April and May. They are picked by hand in July
and August. Once in our factory, they are washed, selected,
cut, salted and laid in the sun on desiccation frames for
4-5 days.
The sweet red peppers are cultivated in open field in May and
are picked by hand in August and September inside our farm.
They are washed, selected, cut in large slices and let to mature
under salt for a short period.
The Cherry tomatoes are cultivated in April and are picked
by hand in the month of July. All the phases are processed
inside our factory. The tomatoes are picked, washed, selected,
manually cut, salted and desiccated in the sun for 4-5 days on
wood frames.
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The fennel carpaccio is a unique product, it is crunchy, fresh and fragrant.
