Cappero di Pantelleria

A flower bud of the Capparis spinosa plant species, the Inermis variety of the Nocellara cultivar, the Cappero di Pantelleria capers are grown on the volcanic island of Pantelleria, Salina, Ustica, Favignana and Lipari, north and south of Sicily. Because of its volcanic terrain and a climate with very little precipitation, the area has ideal conditions for growing capers.

Before capers became widely used in cooking, throughout centuries the ancient Greeks and Romans have cited the medicinal uses of the caper plant and its buds for their diuretic, invigorating and digestive properties. Today, capers are an essential ingredient in the Mediterranean cuisine and used in most traditional Sicilian dishes.

Green with bright yellow speckles, Cappero di Pantelleria buds are preserved and matured using only fresh sea salt. To keep their intense herbal aroma, Pantelleria capers are never cooked but simply used for finishing dishes, or chopped and added to different fish and meat tartar sauces.