I trenta piatti italiani tradizionali da mangiare almeno una volta nella vita secondo gli americani

Pubblicato in: Curiosità
Pizzeria Oro Bianco - pizza margherita di Carlo De Luca

Pizzeria Oro Bianco - pizza margherita di Carlo De Luca

“Pensa all’Italia, scrive Cnn Travel,  e probabilmente penserai prima al cibo e poi a tutte le altre cose belle che offre. La cucina italiana – o qualche sua variante  – ha colonizzato il resto del mondo così tanto che probabilmente ci sono angoli inesplorati della foresta pluviale amazzonica dove puoi sederti a una tovaglia a quadretti rossi e bianchi e ordinare un piatto di pasta al pomodoro. C’è una ragione per cui è così buono. In realtà, ci sono centinaia di ragioni sparse ovunque le diverse regioni Italia”.

Proprio la diversità è al tempo stesso la debolezza politica dell’Italia ma la sua grande forza in cucina. Ma ecco le trenta ricette selezionate.

Sette sono riconducibili alla Campania, 5 al Lazio, 4 al Piemonte, tre a Emilia Romagna, Sicilia, Sardegna, due ad Abruzzo, Lombardia e Veneto, una a Friuli, Marche. Gelato e Polenta su tutto il territorio nazionale. Qualcuna a più di una regione.
Ci colpisce l’assenza dello spaghetto al pomodoro, icona italica. Ma anche l’assenza delle orecchietti pugliesi, dei cannoli e delle cassate siciliane e del panettone milanese sono poco giustificate in questo contesto. Ma le liste, si sa, sono stilate per far discutere.

Pizza Napoletana
Campania

Tagliatelle al Ragù
Emilia Romagna

Rigatoni alla Carbonara
Lazio

Trofie al Pesto
Liguria

Lasagne
Emilia Romagna, Abruzzo, Campania

Brodetto
Abruzzo, Marche

Tortellini
Emilia Romagna

Handmade pasta shaped like knots are stuffed with pork loin, ham, Mortadella salami, Parmigiano cheese, eggs and nutmeg, and thrown in a thick capon broth.
Spurious legend has it that a voyeuristic innkeeper in Bologna was peeking through a keyhole to spy on Venus, Mars and Bacchus in the middle of a hot and heavy threesome. He caught just a glimpse of the goddess’s perfect belly button and tried to reproduce it in pasta form.
Voila! Tortellino was born.
The original recipe is protected by the Confraternity of Tortellino, die-hard purists who don’t tolerate creative twists.
Many towns in the Emilia Romagna region claim to be the originators of this staple dish, but there’s staunch rivalry between three: Modena, Bologna and Castelfranco Emilia, a small town halfway between them.

Gelato
Italia

Baccalà alla Vicentina
Veneto

This one’s made from dried fish.
No, stay with us! This isn’t the gelatinous reconstituted fish of Scandinavian nightmares, this is a far more delicious proposition.
The secret is in the preparation — a recipe invented by merchants from Vicenza in the 1500s and protected by a brotherhood of chefs. Dried cod is softened by beating and then placed under running water for two days. Then extra virgin olive oil, milk, Parmigiano, onions and anchovies are added and cooked slowly so that the ingredients penetrate into each other.
It’s said that while savoring it, your mouth should feel the living fish still swimming in the ocean, a scenario which, we admit, is slightly nightmarish.

Polenta
Italia

Carciofo alla Giudia
Lazio

This fried, crispy golden globe artichoke, which makes a crunchy sound with each bite, is a delicacy of Rome’s Jewish ghetto.
The criteria for selection is strict. Only the best variety are chosen. They’re 15 centimeters wide, twice the normal size, and grow on the uppermost part of the plant that’s absorbed the most sunlight.
Once the rough leaves are delicately trimmed with a cobbler’s knife, the artichoke is dipped twice in frying oil at different temperatures. Served as an appetizer, sometimes upside down with the stem in the air, overspilling the plate like a blooming flower.
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The 2,000-year history of Italy’s favorite dish

Cjarsòns
Friuli Venezia Giulia

Risotto alla Milanese
Lombardia

Porceddu
Sardegna

Bombolotti all’Amatriciana
Lazio

Caponata
Sicilia

Tiramisù
Veneto-Italia

Insalata Caprese
Campania

Bollito alla Piemontese
Piemonte

Meat addicts will love this dish originating from the northern region of Piedmont. Bollito simply means “the boil” and is a feast of various meats. One single dish holds boiled pieces of seven different beef cuts plus parts of other animals: calf’s head, chuck steak, ox tongue, ox tail, flank; one whole capon and one cotechino pork rind sausage.
Carrots, onions, fresh rosemary, celery, garlic, salt and pepper are added to spice up this butcher’s platter. The meat can then be dipped in a variety of bittersweet sauces.
The trick is all in the timing and temperature. The longer the meats are boiled, the tastier they get but there’s a risk of destroying the flavor through overboiling.

Linguine allo Scoglio
Campania

Parmigiana
Campania, Sicilia

Coda alla Vaccinara
Lazio

Vitello Tonnato
Piemonte

Italians don’t usually like to mix meat and fish, but there are a few exceptions. One is Vitello Tonnato, aka veal covered in tuna cream.
This unusual concoction sees boiled veal fillets sliced into circles and covered in a dense layer of mayonnaise mixed with shredded tuna, anchovies and capers. The concoction is typically served cold as an appetizer.
It’s a specialty of the Piedmont region, which bears the influence of past French conquerors.

Malloreddus alla Campidanese
Sardegna

Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe
Lazio

Sfogliatella
Campania

Culurgiones
Sardegna

Agnolotti del Plin
Piemonte

Risotto al Gorgonzola
Lombardia, Piemonte

Timballo
Abruzzo, Campania, Sicilia

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