Šporki Makaruli: Dubrovnik’s Traditional Pasta Dish

If you want to understand Dubrovnik through its food, look beyond the seafood.

One of the city's most distinctive traditional dishes is šporki makaruli — thick pasta dressed with a richly seasoned meat sauce. Simple in appearance but deeply connected to Dubrovnik's customs, family tables and celebrations, this dish has remained part of the city's culinary identity for generations.

And its name tells a story of its own.

What are šporki makaruli?

Šporki makaruli are a traditional Dubrovnik pasta dish made with thick pasta and a rich meat sauce, traditionally based on beef or veal.

The sauce is slowly cooked with onion, herbs and spices, allowing the meat and aromatics to develop a deep flavour. Older preparations could also use ingredients such as varenik, a concentrated grape must, while modern recipes often include tomato.

The dish belongs to the traditional cuisine of the wider Dubrovnik area. An ethnographic dictionary published by the Linđo Folklore Ensemble Museum defines špòrki makarúli as cooked pasta covered with meat sauce and identifies the expression as a traditional culinary term of the Dubrovnik region.

But the most interesting part may be the name.

Why are they called “šporki” makaruli?

The Dubrovnik word šporko comes from the Italian/Venetian sporco, meaning dirty.

But “dirty macaroni” is not a reference to poor hygiene. It describes what happened to the pasta when it was covered — or simply stained — with the dark meat sauce.

There are several local explanations for the name, and they share the same basic idea.

Historically, šporki makaruli were prepared in large quantities for family celebrations and important occasions. Meat was expensive and was not necessarily available in abundance. The sauce was therefore the valuable part of the dish, while the pasta could be stretched to feed a large number of people.

One traditional account describes how, after the guests had been served, there might not be enough meat left for everyone. The remaining pasta would be coated with the sauce — enough to “šporkati”, or dirty/stain, the makaruli with its flavour.

A particularly vivid local account recalls Festa preparations in which the amount of pasta was adjusted according to the number of people who actually returned home from the procession. If more guests arrived than expected, more pasta was cooked and the makaruli were simply “šporkani” with the available toć — the rich meat sauce.

Another account by Dubrovnik culinary historian Jadranka Ničetić describes the same tradition: the sauce was prepared in advance, and the cooked makaruli were poured over with enough toć to “šporkaju” them. She notes that meat was historically not plentiful, so the pasta was flavoured primarily by the sauce and traditionally finished with sheep's cheese.

This is probably the most useful way to understand the name:

the makaruli were not “dirty” because of what was in them, but because they were deliberately stained with the rich sauce.

Šporki makaruli and the Festa of Saint Blaise

There is perhaps no stronger connection between a Dubrovnik dish and a local celebration than the relationship between šporki makaruli and the Festa of Saint Blaise (Festa sv. Vlaha).

Saint Blaise, or Sveti Vlaho, is Dubrovnik's patron saint, and his feast day is celebrated on February 3.

The Dubrovnik Tourist Board identifies šporki makaruli as an indigenous local dish traditionally prepared around the feast of Saint Blaise. The tradition has continued for generations.

Historically, the dish was prepared in advance because the day of the Festa was devoted to the religious celebrations.

A description of older Dubrovnik customs explains that the toć for the šporki makaruli was prepared the day before, on Candlemas (Kandelora), February 2. On the day of Saint Blaise, families went to Mass and the procession, while the prepared sauce waited at home. After the religious ceremonies, relatives and friends gathered for the festive meal.

That detail is important.

The dish was not simply something people happened to eat in February. It was part of a whole ritual of Festa: preparation beforehand, Mass and procession, the return home, gathering of family and guests, and finally the shared meal.

A meal made for a house full of guests

The story of šporki makaruli also reveals something about how people actually ate in Dubrovnik.

Festa days brought relatives, friends and visitors together. A household could not always know exactly how many people would sit down to lunch.

The solution was wonderfully practical.

If there was more sauce, the dish could be richer. If there were more guests, more pasta could be cooked.

The makaruli could be “stained” with the sauce so that its flavour reached everyone at the table.

This helps explain why the dish became such an effective festive meal. It could feed a crowd without requiring a large piece of meat for every person.

A traditional account of Festa life describes precisely this situation: when there were more guests than expected, additional pasta was cooked and the available toć was used to “šporkati” the makaruli.

What was traditionally used to make them?

The exact recipe varied between households, as is common with traditional Dubrovnik cuisine.

Traditional versions were based on beef or veal, particularly cuts suitable for long cooking. Onion was important, as were herbs and spices.

Older recipes could differ considerably from contemporary restaurant versions.

Jadranka Ničetić notes that traditional preparations did not necessarily contain the tomato or tomato concentrate commonly added today. Meat could be cooked in lard, while varenik — concentrated grape must — could be used instead of wine. Spices such as cinnamon and cloves were important in the traditional flavour profile.

This is one reason why an authentic šporki makaruli should not simply be treated as Dubrovnik's version of spaghetti Bolognese.

Its flavour belongs to a different culinary tradition.

Homemade makaruli

The pasta itself was once made by hand.

One account of Dubrovnik culinary tradition describes homemade makaruli being formed around a knitting needle, producing the characteristic thick, tubular shape.

Historical descriptions also associate handmade makaruli with the Franciscan monastery in Pridvorje in Konavle, although the surviving historical record is incomplete because the monastery and its archives suffered repeated destruction.

Today, restaurants generally use commercially produced pasta, but the traditional form remains recognizable.

The important element is not simply the shape of the pasta. It is the way the pasta works with the sauce: the makaruli are meant to carry the rich toć, absorbing its flavour rather than being served with a thin sauce on the side.

More than a Dubrovnik pasta dish

Dubrovnik is often associated with seafood.

Visitors come looking for black risotto, Ston oysters, grilled fish and shellfish prepared alla buzara.

But the city's culinary heritage is equally interesting when you look inland and toward its festive traditions.

Šporki makaruli belong to that side of Dubrovnik's food culture.

Together with dishes such as zelena menestra and pašticada, they show that traditional Dubrovnik cuisine was not exclusively based on the sea.

It was shaped by celebrations, seasons, available ingredients, household traditions and the practical need to feed families and guests.

Are šporki makaruli still eaten for Saint Blaise?

Absolutely.

The connection remains alive today.

For the 2025 Festa of Saint Blaise, the Dubrovnik Tourist Board organized a dedicated gastronomic event in which šporki makaruli were offered by 17 Dubrovnik restaurants. In 2026, the event expanded to 19 restaurants, demonstrating that the dish remains part of the city's contemporary gastronomic calendar rather than simply a historical recipe.

That makes the dish particularly interesting for visitors.

You do not have to reconstruct Dubrovnik's culinary past from a museum description. During the Festa period, you can still sit down in a Dubrovnik restaurant and eat a dish that remains directly connected to the city's traditional celebration.

What do šporki makaruli taste like?

The defining flavour comes from the toć.

Expect a rich, deeply savoury meat sauce with aromatic spices and a long-cooked character.

Depending on the recipe, you may notice onion, beef or veal, wine or varenik, garlic, parsley, cinnamon, cloves and other seasonings.

The flavour should be substantial but balanced, with the pasta carrying the sauce.

Traditional versions can also be finished with grated sheep's cheese, another detail recorded in descriptions of older Dubrovnik preparations.

Šporki makaruli today

Like many traditional dishes, today's restaurant versions are not identical to the meals prepared in Dubrovnik households generations ago.

Some restaurants follow traditional recipes closely. Others adapt the dish to contemporary tastes, ingredients and restaurant techniques.

That is not necessarily a contradiction.

Traditional cuisine survives precisely because it is cooked.

The important thing is that the dish remains recognizable: makaruli, a deeply flavoured meat sauce and the culinary tradition of Dubrovnik behind them.

Where to try šporki makaruli in Dubrovnik

Šporki makaruli are still available in Dubrovnik restaurants, particularly around the Festa of Saint Blaise, although availability outside the festive period depends on the restaurant.

On Dubrovnik Gastro, you can discover restaurants that serve traditional Dubrovnik dishes and check their current offerings.

If you see šporki makaruli on the menu, order them.

Especially if you are visiting Dubrovnik during the Festa of Saint Blaise, you are not simply ordering a pasta dish.

You are eating a piece of Dubrovnik's living food tradition.

A dish with a story

The name šporki makaruli sounds almost humorous until you understand the story behind it.

A household prepared a rich meat sauce.

Guests arrived.

The sauce had to stretch.

More pasta was cooked.

And what remained was enough to “šporkati” the makaruli — to coat them with the flavour of the precious toć.

That practical solution became a dish.

The dish became a tradition.

And the tradition became inseparable from one of Dubrovnik's most important celebrations.

That is why šporki makaruli deserve a place among the essential dishes of traditional Dubrovnik cuisine.

Not because they are elaborate.

Not because they are luxurious.

But because they tell a very Dubrovnik story: a feast, a full house, a pot of sauce, a lot of makaruli — and enough food for everyone.

Discover more Dubrovnik food

• Black Risotto — Dubrovnik's famous squid-ink seafood classic
• Zelena Menestra — a traditional meat and cabbage dish from Dubrovnik and Konavle
• Dubrovačka Pašticada — slow-cooked meat with deep local roots
• Rožata — Dubrovnik's traditional caramel custard dessert
• Ston Oysters — one of the defining gastronomic products of the Dubrovnik region

Explore traditional dishes and restaurants on Dubrovnik Gastro.