Production Regulations
Carmignano dried figs - Slow Food Presidium
To produce Carmignano dried figs, fruit mainly of the “Dottato” variety are used which constitute about 90 percent of the figs cultivated in Carmignano.
The harvest is done taking care to pick the fruit with the stem (zéccolo) intact during the ripening phase which is characterised by its scalability through 2-3 passages per week for 3-4 weeks during the ripening period, towards the end of summer.
The fruit for drying are those with the finest aesthetic and organoleptic properties (those resulting from one year suckers and branches).
The fruits (siconi), freshly picked, are opened (cleaved) with a sharp knife in the longitudinal direction, from the stalk (zéccolo) towards the flower (ostiolo) with a cut of not more than 2/3 (proceeding towards the stalk from the point of greatest diameter).
The siconi, partially opened, are placed upright on mats made of canes (canniccioni) generally 1 × 2 m, placed in a confined place and subjected to the action of sulfur vapour to cause whitening of the skin. Then, subsequently, they are put in full sunlight. In the evening the mats with the figs put out to dry are stored indoors to keep moist to avoid undoing the effect of exposure to sunlight. A variant can be either forced drying in a confined space or artificial drying at a controlled temperature in order not to cause changes in organoleptic characteristics. Thus a temperature must not exceed 35 °C in the dryer.
After drying, which usually lasts 4-5 days, the dried figs are stored in special containers, trays for fruit or cannicci (special artisanal containers made up of (Vitalba) which is peeled and braided on chestnut poles bent in the shape of a fig) in a cool and dry place for 30-45 days, to ease the formation of sugar on the surface: the so-called “gruma.”
Once the drying is complete the figs, at this point, opened and “sugared”, are stacked two by two to form the typical “picce” of Carmignano which have the characteristic “eight” shape, with the addition of some anise seeds in the middle of each pair of figs and placed in the final packaging (wicker baskets, cases or reed). Vacuum packaging may be acceptable.
Except for the mineral sulfur, burnt in the special earthenware containers no other natural or artificial substance for the production, storage or packaging. of dried figs are used
The colour varies from grey to beige to brown, depending on the duration of exposure to sulfur vapours in the first stage of drying.
The production area is represented by the territories of the municipalities of Carmignano and Poggio a Caiano in the province of Prato.
Click here to discover the producers of dried figs of Carmignano