Crispy Rice con Tartare e Bagnacauda

Crispy Rice con Tartare e Bagnacauda is a contemporary Italian dish that marries Japanese-inspired textures with the bold, umami-rich flavors of Piedmont. The dish typically features a base of crisped or fried rice, often shaped into a compact cake or nest, which provides a crunchy counterpoint to a raw beef or tuna tartare. The defining element is the bagnacauda—a warm, garlicky anchovy and olive oil dip from the Piedmont region—used here as a savory sauce that ties the components together.

A great version of this dish achieves a precise balance: the rice must be shatteringly crisp without being greasy, the tartare impeccably fresh and seasoned, and the bagnacauda emulsified to a silky, punchy consistency. At Royal Beef in Casoria, Italy, the dish is presented as a refined starter, with the tartare’s cool, clean flavor contrasting the warm, pungent bagnacauda. Food creator Jana Food Porn praised the venue’s execution, noting how the anchovy-forward sauce “elevates the entire composition without overwhelming the beef.”

Regional variations exist: some chefs substitute tuna tartare for a lighter profile, while others add a sprinkle of crushed hazelnuts or a drizzle of aged balsamic to echo Piedmontese traditions. The dish exemplifies the modern Italian tendency to reinterpret classic regional ingredients—like bagnacauda—in unexpected, cross-cultural formats.