Caciucco Pride 2019

Food tastings in restaurants and streets, shows, concerts and guided tours

From 14 June 2019 to 16 June 2019

Bookable services

Tours & Activities

From June 14th to June 16th Livorno is ready to host the 2019 edition of Cacciucco Pride once again: this event is dedicated entirely to the famous and super tasty Livornese fish soup. You can already feel your mouth watering, can’t you? We’re here to tell you everything there is to know about this succulent event in Livorno.

The event started in 2016 with the aim of celebrating the iconic dish of the Tuscan city of Livorno: cacciucco, a true emblem of the city’s rich gastronomic tradition. The event is also the perfect chance to discover Livorno through many side events such as shows in Tuscan dialect, concerts and guided tours. Everything will revolve around the typical cacciucco livornese: all the restaurants that take part in the event will prepare it, following a series of guidelines established by a regulation which guarantee the recipes are similar to the original cacciucco recipe and that authentic products are used. If you were looking for information on where to eat cacciucco in Livorno here’s your answer: at the Cacciucco Pride 2019! You'll be spoiled for choice with restaurants, kiosks, food trucks and even 'cacciuccate' in the main square and under the stars!

• CACCIUCCO: HISTORY
  The typical Tuscan fish soup actually comes from Turkey. According to the story of cacciucco, seasoned with a generous pinch of fiction, it was created by a young fisherman from Smyrna who had prepared it following his mother’s soup recipe using the waste from the sale of fish. He moved to Livorno and set up his tavern where he prepared the delicious dish that was even tastier when cooked with smaller fish. So every time he went to the market he would repeat the word "küçük", which means "small" in Turkish. That Turkish word was later Italianized and became 'cacciucco': the very symbol of Livorno! Just imagine, cacciucco has also earned the attention of the prestigious Accademia della Crusca, which established that although in some areas of Tuscany it is called 'caciucco', the correct spelling of the king of Livorno food is exclusively the spelling with five 'C's!
  
  

• CACCIUCCO ALLA LIVORNESE RECIPE
  Finding out how to make cacciucco is not difficult since it is a very simple dish to prepare, but what makes the difference are obviously the ingredients. It is prepared preferably with locally caught fish: rock fish, octopus, cuttlefish, octopus, squid, cicadas and toasted Tuscan bread. Everything must be seasoned with Olio Toscano IGP or DOP, garlic, fresh or peeled tomatoes and red wine. The procedure is the classic one used to prepare homemade soups: prepare the fish broth, whilst frying some oil, garlic, sage, carrot, celery, onion and chilli in a pan, then adding octopus, cuttlefish, baby octopus etc. Next, the tomato and some ladles of fish broth, fish steaks and small fish are added and mussels will be added only at the end of cooking. According to the traditional recipe, the Livorno-style cacciucco is served in a terracotta holster with toasted and garlic-flavored Tuscan bread and a drizzle of raw olive oil… yum!
  
  

• CACCIUCCO PRIDE PROGRAM 2019
  During the three days of its 4th edition, Cacciucco Pride offers a vast list of events ranging from them more 'edible' ones to musical and theatrical ones, even including a series of guided tours and experiences that will help you discover some jewels of the city of Livorno. As mentioned above, many restaurants will be serving the original recipe using strictly local products. You can find the complete list of Livorno restaurants for Caciucco on the event website so you can pick your favourite activities for the three days. In addition to restaurants, the Cacciucco Pride in Livorno will open many places where to taste this delicious Tuscan delicacy. At the Birra Amiata House Pub you can taste a more relaxed version in the form of a toasted beer crust, and at San Jacopo you can enjoy a sandwich filled with succulent fish soup. In the splendid Terrazza Mascagni a food-truck will be available serving cacciucco inside a tasty rosette, for some modern street-food! The most unusual version of the typical Livorno dish remains the cacciucco ice cream. You can taste it at the Yogurteria Cremeria Fiori Rosa. Cacciucco was born as a poor, popular dish, so much so that it must be rigorously cooked with low-quality fish. Streets and squares will therefore be full of places where you can taste it. Visit Piazza Mazzini and Via Salviano where in addition to cacciucco you can taste many other dishes and drink good wine! Since the sea is one of the elements that most characterizes this city, the chance to taste the famous Tuscan cacciucco right in front of the open blue sea couldn’t be missing: this is what you can do thanks to "Cacciucco, stornelli e mare". If you are looking for another special way to taste it, we recommend touring the canals by boat with cacciucco, wine and Tuscan dialect: excellent cacciucco alla livornese, strictly Tuscan red wine and hilarious jokes in Livorno dialect! Also at the Chalet della Rotonda in Viale Italia a fun show in vernacular will be offered entitled ‘La combriccola Livornese’. Music at the central market will feature songs from the 60s up to the 90s, and in Via del Testaio you can expect lively entertainment from Resto della Ciurma, a Vasco Rossi cover band. Among the events of Cacciucco Pride 2019 there will also be some that will allow you to discover the city: the boat tour of the canals of Quartiere Venizia, the Jewish museum Yeshiva Marini, the Church of San Benedetto, the Mastio of the Ancient Fortress, the birthplace of Amedeo Modigliani and also the fish market. The Cacciucco Pride programme also includes a series of workshops, cooking shows and meetings focused on the preparation and characteristics of various fish products. What about kids? No need to worry, they too will be able to find dishes they will enjoy alongside lots of fun activities and stimulating workshops.

Have you saved the cacciucco Pride 2019 dates? Great, then all you need to do now is not eat too much in the days before you arrive so you can enjoy as much cacciucco as possible. And please don't forget to download the PDF with an octopus moustache, cut it out and wear it once you arrive in Livorno using some double-sided tape. Join in the fun! As a break between one tasting and another, you can go for a nice walk, but if you’re too stuffed, then you can join a city tour on the fun hop on hop off double-decker bus. Sound good?

CACCIUCCO PRIDE 2019 DATES:  14-16 June 2019

PROGRAM, INFO: www.cacciuccopridelivorno.it