The experiences that the Slow Food Association offers tourists are diverse and for all ages. So, whether you choose a rafting trip on the Buz\u0103u River or hiking with stops for tastings, you will learn both the story of the places and the story of the dishes. Buz\u0103u County is recognized for its tourist attractions, and also for its wineries. Slow Food Travel is a new tourism model, consisting of meetings with farmers, cheese producers, shepherds, bakers and winegrowers who, together with the chefs, will narrate the history of the local areas and will be unique guides to traditions.<\/p>\n
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On our journey, we stop on the territory of the “\u0162inutul Buz\u0103ului” (Buz\u0103u Land) Geopark, a UNESCO site since 2022. It includes 18 communes with a population of 40 thousand inhabitants and many unique tourist attractions in this part of the world. And visiting the tourist attractions can be combined with culinary experiences. For example, let\u2019s say tourists come to the commune of Berca and reach the tourist information center. There they find out what can be seen in the \u0162inutul Buz\u0103ului. They go to the Muddy Volcanoes or the cave settlements in Bozioru, and after that they can stop at a guesthouse, restaurant or producer, where they can have a tasting. And this tasting will by all means include the Babicul de Buz\u0103u, a local produce which we learn about from Cristina Partal, a gastronomic ambassador.<\/p>\n
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Cristina Partal: “Babicul de Buz\u0103u is a raw-dried product made from pork. The recipe was created by the Serbian gardener community, who have Bulgarian origins. We preserve the tradition of this nation and prepare babic in several ways. The product can be consumed raw or cooked in various dishes, such as Tigaia Picant\u0103 Buzoian\u0103 (Buz\u0103u Spicy Fry). Another variant is the “pitu\u0219ca”, a type of local burger made from babic meat on the stove or on the grill. We also offer the famous babic soup. Although tourists were reluctant at first, now many come specifically for this dish.”<\/p>\n
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Dairy products are also in high demand, continues Cristina Partal: \u201cFoile cu lapte\u201d is a traditional mountain soup. People often cook it with sour milk and fresh herbs from the garden. In winter, bacon or fat-preserved meat is added to this soup. For centuries, Buz\u0103u was a place of passage for shepherds who went to Balta Br\u0103ilei (Great Br\u0103ila Island). Transhumance, included in the UNESCO heritage, has deeply influenced the local cuisine. The influence of Transylvania is felt in the mountainous areas Nehoiu and Siriu. There are numerous products with milk: pumpkin, potatoes or milk pods. Penteleu cheese is a unique matured product, for which we want to obtain European certification. Before 1989, it was produced for export at the Nehoiu factory. Its quality depends on the mountain flora. Experts have noticed that mountain milk tastes better because the plants are free of dust, unlike those from the plain. Today, this cheese is made by a small producer in the Slow Food network.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The Muddy Volcanoes of Buz\u0103u are a unique place in Romania. They have created a landscape that specialists have likened to the lunar landscape, where an extraordinary natural phenomenon takes place. The volcanoes are actually gas pockets somewhere at an estimated depth of 3,000 meters. Under the pressure of the earth’s crust, they come to the surface, and on their way up they draw several layers of groundwater, different types of clay and rock. They bring them to the surface in the form of volcanoes that may or may not have cones. That is why they are of several types. It is a landscape that extends over several thousand square meters, divided into two areas: P\u00e2clele Mari and P\u00e2clele Mici. Also in Buz\u0103u County, you will find a unique museum in Romania. The Amber Museum from Col\u021bi is dedicated to this resin that is 40-60 million years old. And, you will certainly notice another unique phenomenon, a salt mountain. It also influences local cuisine, as we learn from Cristina Partal, a gastronomic ambassador.<\/p>\n
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Cristina Partal: \u201cIn Buz\u0103u, there is a rare geological phenomenon: the Diapir or Salt Mountain of Lop\u0103tari. This is a huge mountain of salt that rises to the surface, probably unique in Europe. In the morning, the dew that settles on the grass forms fine salt crystals. Sheep graze this grass, and the natural process gives the meat a special taste. And that’s how we get to Ple\u0219coi Sausages. They have a simple and natural recipe. The essential ingredients are mutton or goat meat, thyme and hot pepper. According to legend, the outlaws who crossed the mountains invented this dish. They would kill the sheep and cook them into pastrami and sausages to hide their loot from the authorities. Currently, these sausages have the European IGP certification. They are sold throughout the country and are appreciated in famous restaurants.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Thorsten Kirschner is a founding member of the Slow Food Community Buz\u0103u, an area he calls the land of legends and flavors. He arrived in Romania 16 years ago. After two years in Bucharest, he retired to Buz\u0103u, where he bought a mansion and founded an association that promotes traditional, artisanal products: “Slow food is a global movement, present in over 160 countries, for access to healthy food. It is an alternative to fast food, created in Italy in the 1980s. It is currently very active in the Transylvania area, in Bra\u0219ov, Sibiu, Cluj and Buz\u0103u. We are a kind of NGO and we bring together farmers, food producers, agrotourism guesthouses, restaurants and lovers of healthy and sustainable food. Our idea is to create a platform to promote especially artisanal products, quality food from Buz\u0103u County. To give you an example, we have a honey producer with innovative technology. He mixes honey with raw fruit and creates a new product, which can be eaten for breakfast. Tourists can also find the product in the souvenir shop and can go home with something new. Moreover, we also have craft beer. We have a young entrepreneur who started with mead. This is a low-alcohol honey-based product.”<\/p>\n
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Tourists can call on accredited guides for groups of any size. On the official website of Buz\u0103u County or on the Geopark website, you can find options for routes and accommodation. Also, the Slow Food Buz\u0103u website proposes attractive experiences for visitors. (LS)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The experiences that the Slow Food Association offers tourists are diverse and for all ages. So, whether you choose a rafting trip on the Buz\u0103u River or hiking with stops for tastings, you will learn both the story of the places and the story of the dishes. Buz\u0103u County is recognized for its tourist attractions, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":128,"featured_media":970733,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43423],"tags":[184140,36664,36663,184141,46019,29883],"coauthors":[113280],"class_list":["post-973213","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travellers-guide","tag-babic-en","tag-buzau","tag-geopark","tag-plescoi-en","tag-sausages","tag-unesco"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n