Pasta. Pizza. Yawn. Today, we are so exposed to 'italian' food on the high street that it's easy to lose sight of the fact that italy has a far richer edible heritage than tomato sauces and bland, made-over pastas. Perhaps the key to understanding the real beauty of Italian food is to learn about the strong - and widely differing - regional heritages.
In the North of the country, close to the rest of Europe, the pizza has achieved near hegemony. Purely a Napolitan and Roman tradition this basic bread and tomato recipe is nearly ubiquitious. Alongside the bland, heavy, cheese-laden pasta dishes that line up for our attention on supermarket shelves has frogmarched over our perceptions of Italian food, despite its most common incarnation having more in common with the kitchens of Manhattan than the simple rustic traditions of Italian food.
The really interesting side avenues of Italian food are to be found in the South of the country - where the proximity of Africa and a tradition rooted in overt poverty has resulted in an exciting clash of flavours and styles a world away from what you might expect.
Take Calabria's version of lasagna. The traditional version is turned on it's head in this region's twist on the recipe. Instead of the traditional mince and layers of flat pasta, the local cooks make a version in which tiny meatballs are layered with a delicate network of white noodles and flavoured with a rice, creamy white sauce. To add to the subtle and yet sensational taste difference, the meatballs are made from pork.
Pork is the staple meat of the region and forms the basis of many favourite dishes. Salami and cured meat - common throughout the country - is given its own twist by the use of a chilli unique to the region - the peperoncini. This small, sweet and intense chilli lends an almost arabic flavour to much of the region's food. Indeed, the fiery intensity of some of the local cuisine is a shock to the system of some people accustomed to the Italian comfort blanket of salty cheeses and tomato.
With Calabria's traditional poverty to the fore, there is a great tradition of using the entire carcass of the pig. Pig cheeks are a popular snack for example, but perhaps the most obvious example of this are the huge spit roasts in which whole adult pigs are roasted over an open charcoal pit - often as the centrepiece of celebrations such as weddings and religious festivals.
Away from the land, the region is also rich in seafood - its endless miles of heavily indented coastline creating hundreds of sheltered bays in which shellfish thrive. Tiny sweet clams are a particular favourite, forming the basis of delicate stews or simply served with pasta and allowed to speak for themselves. Returning the theme of peasant food, bacala - a form of cod heavily salted as a preservative forms the basis of many local delicacies. So salty is this delicious fish dish that it must be soaked for 24 hours before use to draw the salt out from it before it can be eaten. This unusual dish dates back to Roman times, before the establishment of a proper road network made it possible to transport fresh fish inland and keep it edible in it's natural state.
So, if you're looking to cook up something a little different for your next romantic meal or family get-together, look up the food of Calabria as a great starting point for new ideas and twists on traditional italian food. I can guarantee you won't be disappointed with the results and it might open your eyes to a few flavour combinations you might never have happened across otherwise.
Happy cooking!
Rory Burgess has fallen in love with the region of calabria ever since he became an investor in the calabria property market. Away from his frequent trips to Italy and the Med, he is a father to an errant 2 year old and a keen amateur gardener.
In the North of the country, close to the rest of Europe, the pizza has achieved near hegemony. Purely a Napolitan and Roman tradition this basic bread and tomato recipe is nearly ubiquitious. Alongside the bland, heavy, cheese-laden pasta dishes that line up for our attention on supermarket shelves has frogmarched over our perceptions of Italian food, despite its most common incarnation having more in common with the kitchens of Manhattan than the simple rustic traditions of Italian food.
The really interesting side avenues of Italian food are to be found in the South of the country - where the proximity of Africa and a tradition rooted in overt poverty has resulted in an exciting clash of flavours and styles a world away from what you might expect.
Take Calabria's version of lasagna. The traditional version is turned on it's head in this region's twist on the recipe. Instead of the traditional mince and layers of flat pasta, the local cooks make a version in which tiny meatballs are layered with a delicate network of white noodles and flavoured with a rice, creamy white sauce. To add to the subtle and yet sensational taste difference, the meatballs are made from pork.
Pork is the staple meat of the region and forms the basis of many favourite dishes. Salami and cured meat - common throughout the country - is given its own twist by the use of a chilli unique to the region - the peperoncini. This small, sweet and intense chilli lends an almost arabic flavour to much of the region's food. Indeed, the fiery intensity of some of the local cuisine is a shock to the system of some people accustomed to the Italian comfort blanket of salty cheeses and tomato.
With Calabria's traditional poverty to the fore, there is a great tradition of using the entire carcass of the pig. Pig cheeks are a popular snack for example, but perhaps the most obvious example of this are the huge spit roasts in which whole adult pigs are roasted over an open charcoal pit - often as the centrepiece of celebrations such as weddings and religious festivals.
Away from the land, the region is also rich in seafood - its endless miles of heavily indented coastline creating hundreds of sheltered bays in which shellfish thrive. Tiny sweet clams are a particular favourite, forming the basis of delicate stews or simply served with pasta and allowed to speak for themselves. Returning the theme of peasant food, bacala - a form of cod heavily salted as a preservative forms the basis of many local delicacies. So salty is this delicious fish dish that it must be soaked for 24 hours before use to draw the salt out from it before it can be eaten. This unusual dish dates back to Roman times, before the establishment of a proper road network made it possible to transport fresh fish inland and keep it edible in it's natural state.
So, if you're looking to cook up something a little different for your next romantic meal or family get-together, look up the food of Calabria as a great starting point for new ideas and twists on traditional italian food. I can guarantee you won't be disappointed with the results and it might open your eyes to a few flavour combinations you might never have happened across otherwise.
Happy cooking!
Rory Burgess has fallen in love with the region of calabria ever since he became an investor in the calabria property market. Away from his frequent trips to Italy and the Med, he is a father to an errant 2 year old and a keen amateur gardener.
