frico

Frico means it comes out of the frying pan, and it appears on nearly every Friulian menu. Made with shredded Montasio cheese, it can be frico croccante (crispy) or friabile (crumbly) fried into a thin wafer. Often it's used as a garnish, or it can be shaped into baskets to hold other foods.

The more substantial frico morbido, usually served with slices of fried polenta, uses cheese and potato, usually in equal amounts, and sometimes onion or leek, plus speck or other meat (a good recipe here).

In the isolated Val Resia, where they speak an archaic Slovenian, frico is also known as Sër Ponöw.