First-time travelers to Italy may be surprised to find such a culinary diversity from region to region.
Unlike your typical Italian restaurant in the States, Italian food has much more variety than spaghetti and meatballs or eggplant parmesan. Even though you can find Italian specialties like pizza and tortellini all over Italy, it is well worth sampling the local dishes for a bit of authenticity. Every region has its own cheeses, wines and sometimes even vegetables.
When eating foods grown or raised in the surrounding countryside and complemented with the local wine, both your traveling and eating experiences听are taken to a whole new level. The pride Italians have in their locally-grown produce, regional specialties and exceptional wines is something you cannot find in a supermarket.
Italian Regional Specialties: The North
Northern Italian cuisine is characterized by a lesser use听of olive oil, pasta and tomato sauce and a heavier reliance听on听butter (or lard), rice, corn (for polenta) and cheeses for cream sauces. Of course, there are exceptions to these rules such as the renowned olive oils of听Liguria and the Lakes region, which figure greatly in the cuisines of these areas.
Pasta in the north is by no means non-existent, but it does have to share time with delicious risotto and polenta. Northern Italian main courses often reflect people’s pride in their unspoiled countryside, and are likely to include some sort of game or wild fowl such as rabbit, quail or grouse.
Seafood and shellfish are very popular on the coast,听and rivers and streams provide carp and trout. Of course, the overall rule is “if it grows or lives well in the area, then it can make it onto the table”.
Val d’Aosta
The region produces fontina cheese, which is used in local specialties like Cotoletta alla Valdostana – a veal chop covered in fontina听and ham. Capriolo alla Valdostana is a hearty venison stew made with wine, vegetables and grappa.
The rocky crags of the Alps help make Aostan wines unique and the region is home to the DOC recognized Reds Donnas, Chambave Rosso and Nus Rosso. Whites include the simply named and crisp Bianco and the Blanc de Morgex with its hints of alpine meadows. Val d’Aosta is also home to the dessert wine Nus-Malvoisie Fletri as well as locally made Grappa.
Piemonte
Piemonte is the home of听fonduta, a melted cheese dip made of milk, eggs and white truffles (tartufi bianchi). Fine cheeses include robiola, sheep cheese (tuma, in dialect) and tumin,听a white mountain cheese soaked in red pepper听and olive oil sauce. Cardi alla Bagna Cauda is a dish of locally grown chard served with a warm听sauce of听anchovies, garlic and olive oil.听听Other regional dishes include local game such as rabbit, and boiled meat dishes like Vitello tonnato (thinly sliced veal with a sauce of boiled egg yolk, tuna and capers) and ox tail.听Grissini are thin and crispy breadsticks that have become popular throughout the country and the world.听Piemonte is also听home to two types of wild mushrooms听prized the world over: porcini mushrooms and white truffles.
When it comes to wines, Piemonte is second to none: it is the home of Asti white wines, including Moscato and sparkling Asti Spumante. The region is also home to full-bodied reds such as Barbera, Barolo, Barberesco and Dolcetto.
尝辞尘产补谤诲颈补听
This region is known for its rice dishes including Minestrone alla Milanese, made with vegetables, rice and bacon. Risotto alla Milanese is a creamy dish of braised short-grain rice blended with meat stock, saffron and cheese. Other favorites include ravioli with a pumpkin filling from Mantova,听and听small quails with polenta from Bergamo. Osso buco is a traditional main course of veal听knuckle 鈥撎齱ith the marrowbone intact 鈥� braised with rosemary and sage. The excellent cheeses of the region include the rich blue听gorgonzola, grana padano听(a rival of parmigiano-reggiano), the alpine bitto, 迟丑别听肠谤别补尘测 crescenza and the gluttonous听尘补蝉肠补谤辫辞苍别.
尝辞尘产补谤诲颈补听wines mostly听hail from the Valtellina area, known for its well-aged reds that include Valtellina Superiore, Lombardy’s听best. Franciacorta is home to sparkling white wines in the tradition of the champagnes of France, but with a truly 听Italian character.
Veneto
Veneto cuisine incorporates polenta and rice in its听dishes, along with wild fowl, mushrooms, or seafood. Traditional courses include Risi e Bisi (rice and peas), and fegato alla Veneziana (calf’s liver fried with onions). Seafood ranging from prawns, shrimp and clams to fresh fish and eels, play an important part in听the local diet,听and is听proudly displayed in听markets and restaurants. Wild game such as rabbit, duck, pigeon and guinea fowl are found in the protected marshes of the Venetian Lagoon and are a favorite element of Veneto’s cooking.听Radicchio di Treviso is a bitter red chicory served as a salad, but more often grilled and served with salt and olive oil. Asparagi di Bassano are white asparagus, usually听boiled and served with vinaigrette or eggs. Asiago is the best and most popular cheese that comes from Veneto. Pandoro, a star-shaped cake delicately flavored with orange-flower is a specialty of Verona and it is typical of Christmas, when it is consumed throughout the country.
The region is known for some of Italy’s most famous听reds such as Valpolicella and Bardolino. Whites include Soave, Gambellara, Bianco di Custoza and Vigne Alte.
Trentino-Alto Adige
This region shares culinary traditions of听Italian and German origins.听Canederli听made with bread, milk and butter听and served in a broth, is just one of several types of gnocchi (dumplings) popular in Trentino-Alto Adige. Polenta is very popular around Trentino along with wild fowl, river trout and Germanic sauerkraut. Speck is a salumi style cured meat that is similar to prosciutto, 听but is smoked, and has become available throughout Italy. The most popular cheeses include 听fresh Tosela, Spressa delle Giudicarie (DOP) and Puzzone di Moena.
Red wines include the full-bodied Marzemino and the fruity Teroldego. White wines excel in this pre-alpine climate and include Nosiola, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay,听the Spumante Talento Trento and the traditional sweet dessert wine Vin Santo.
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
The region is known for its vast cornfields, which feed the areas demand for polenta. Prosciutto di San Daniele is a sweet cured ham that is hung to absorb fresh mountain air and is considered one of the best prosciuttos of Italy.听Montasio is an aged, hard cheese听sold at different levels of maturity. The cuisine of the Venezia Giulia portion or the region,听especially around Trieste,听reflects German/Slavic traditions, too.听Jota is a soup made of beans, potatoes and white cabbage;听Porcina is a mix of boiled pork with sauerkraut, mustard and horseradish. Slavic goulash and dumplings are also local favorites. The coastal areas love their seafood including cuttlefish (seppia), mixed fried fish and Boreto Graesano, a fish and white polenta soup. Regional desserts have a Germanic touch: favorites are听apple strudel, Cuguluf (a ring cake) and Gubana (made from dried fruit and raisins).
Friulan听wines are well known, with Ramandolo听being protected by a DOCG designation. Other reds include Refosco dal Peduncolo and Schiopettino. Friuli is best known for its whites, with the very popular Tocai, Malvasia Istriana, and Ribolla Gialla听topping the list.听Vitoska is a white wine served as an aperitivo and Picolit is a white dessert wine.
Liguria
The most famous of all culinary masterpieces from Liguria is its basil pesto sauce, served with either trofie (favored in Cinque Terre) or trenette (favored in Genoa). The olive oil of the region is an exception to most of Northern Italian cooking and plays an everyday role along the听rocky coast of the area.听Seafood has听a large role in the local diet, with fresh caught anchovies being a favorite as well as swordfish, tuna, sardines and sea bass. Zuppa di datteri is a shellfish soup made in the port of La Spezia. Popular meat dishes include tomaselle (Veal rolls) and coniglio in umido (Rabbit stew). Ligurian desserts include pandolce genovese, a sweet bread made with candied fruit, raisins and nuts, and sweet pizzas made with walnuts, chestnuts and candied fruit.
Red wines include Rossese di Dolceacqua, Ormeasco, and the dessert wine Sciacchetr脿听Rosso. The white wines of Liguria are ideal for seafood and include Cinque Terre, Sciacchetr脿听and Colline di Levanto. Spirits range from Grappa听and听the citrus based Limoncello Ligure,听to walnut-infused Nocino.
See also:
- Regional food:听Introduction
- Regional food:听Central Italy
- Regional food:听South Italy
By Justin Demetri & Paolo Nascimbeni
Excellent article, and much appreciated , as a northern Italian I totally agree that the U S has not really known the culinary difference of Italian food found in the two countries