'Ndremmappi and Pan-Fried Pizza Festival

A pasta born between the sea and the mountains

The 'ndremmappi of Jenne are no ordinary recipe: they are the mark left by transhumance on a mountain village in Lazio. Shepherds returning from the winter pastures of the Roman countryside and the coast brought back what the sea offered in its simplest and most affordable form: salted anchovies. In Jenne, these anchovies met the grain ground at the local mill. This encounter created a dark pasta made only of whole-wheat flour, water, and salt, hand-rolled and cut, dressed with a sauce of tomato, anchovies, garlic, parsley, and a dusting of pecorino cheese. It is a humble dish in the noblest sense of the word, and the festival dedicated to it is its annual celebration.

The festival in Jenne, near Rome

The municipality of Jenne, with just over three hundred inhabitants perched between Subiaco and the Aniene Valley, belongs to the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital in Lazio and is located within the Monti Simbruini Regional Natural Park. For over thirty years, the Pro Loco Jenne has organized the 'Ndremmappi and Pan-Fried Pizza Festival here in early September: an event that has long surpassed its thirtieth edition and attracts far more visitors to the small town than there are residents.

Two evenings, two protagonists

The established format features two distinct evenings, both in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele III, with food stands typically opening around 8:00 PM:

• Friday evening is dedicated to pan-fried pizzas, dough cooked on the spot in iron pans according to old domestic customs, with simple toppings.
• Saturday evening is the time for 'ndremmappi, served in the town square in portions prepared by the cooks and volunteers of the Pro Loco.

Tastings are usually accompanied by local wine, traditional desserts, and live folk music, with local groups enlivening the square after dinner. The setting is that of a medieval village that stays lively late into the night during these evenings.

A recognized product

The 'ndremmappi of Jenne are listed among the Traditional Agri-food Products (PAT) of the Lazio Region. In December 2024, the dish also received trademark recognition from the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy: an important step to protect the name and permanently link it to the territory that created it. The festival is thus the tool through which the community defends and passes on this gastronomic identity.

What to see around the festival

Those arriving in Jenne for the festival will find a territory that deserves at least an extra day. The Sorgenti delle Tartare, reachable via a trail suitable for hikers of medium experience, offer a series of small waterfalls and pools that feed the Aniene river. Not far away are the Benedictine Monasteries of Subiaco, the Sacro Speco and Santa Scolastica, and the trails of the Monti Simbruini Park, among beech forests and plateaus. The festival thus becomes the perfect occasion for a weekend of hiking and fine dining.

Why it is worth visiting

It is a small festival, managed entirely by volunteers, without any scenery built for tourism: those serving in the square are the same people who cook the dish all year round. For those arriving from Rome, just over an hour away, it is one of the most direct ways to understand how the mountain cuisine of Lazio was built along the paths of the shepherds.