anatra

With all their lakes and corn, Northern Italians tend to eat more duck than southerners. Among the most popular dishes are:

anatra all'arancia: the Tuscans say they invented duck with orange.

anatra con la peverada: a classic duck dish from Treviso

anatra all'ananas: with pineapple.

anatroccolo: duckling

bigoli con l'anatra: Venetians like to put it on pasta.

sugo di anatra: in the Marche and Tuscany, they like to cook up the whole duck and put it over pappardelle or polenta (here's a good recipe adapted from these—they're all a bit like bolognese sauce, with the essential trito of carrot, onion and celery).

arna: the Venetian word for duck

Duck breast is also a common main course:

petto d'anatra all'aceto balsamico: with balsamic vinegar

petto d'anatra alle mele: with apples