Eating Like an Italian

Basically, there are two different Italian cuisines. The authentic, traditional cooking one finds in Italy is one, and what is called Italian food in the rest of the world is the other. Each can be tasty and worthwhile but they are different. There are, of course, many regional variations on cooking within Italy. But here I'm comparing basic cooking on and beyond the Italian peninsula. 

As I write this, I'm not sure what I'm about to say regarding traditional Italian cooking is still as true as it was in the past. This blog is my own observations. I do not troll the Web for information and then regurgitate it for my readers. So I'm not sure how much things have changed since I was last in Italy, the fall of 2008. 

Traditional meals in Italy involve a number of courses, four or sometimes five. To begin there's antipasto. Pasta, soup, or maybe risotto or polenta follows. The main dish is meat or fish with one vegetable, and then maybe a salad. To finish, there's cheese and/or a dessert. If that sounds like too much food, it's really not. It's not because each course is smaller and simpler than what you'll find at Italian restaurants in New York, London, Berlin, or Beijing, or anywhere outside of Italy. I've given up on looking for traditional Italian cooking outside of Italy. It's a thankless task. 

A Caprese Salad is usually served as an antipasto. Here, a New York restaurant 

added sundried tomatoes and olives which totally ruined the subtlety of the dish.

Outside of Italy, fast food and one-dish meals have become the norm, so portions are larger and extra items are added to the mix. 

Around the globe, pizza and pasta are the most popular Italian dishes. Internationally, Spaghetti Bolognese is number one in pasta popularity. This puts a small, snobbish smile on my face because to order Spaghetti Bolognese in Bologna, the city of origin, is a no-no; they insist that the proper pasta to go with their famous ragù is tagliatelli. 

Bolognese is yummy regardless of the pasta type. 

Pizza? When I lived in Rome in the '60s, the city had just three pizzerias. Now, every Roman restaurant serves pizza. Tourists 
demand it. 

The modern pizza was created in Naples. At the end of the 19th century, Neapolitan immigrants brought pizza to New York, and then in the '50s, it spread like a doughy fungus across America. It would be hard today to find any place in the world that does not do pizza.  

Tiramisu (lift me up) is a newish dessert in Italy. Most Italians
finish their meal with an espresso. Cappuccino is for mornings.

Buon appetito!