Food has always played a considerable part in the Italian way of life. Sharing, enjoying, buying and preparing food are carried-out with an uncommon sense of pleasure that one doesn't as a rule find in other countries. In Italy the meal is to be savored, It is a time to pause, settle downand enjoy the companionshipof one's family and friends, and of course, some of the finest food anywhere.
A meal in an Italian restaurant for example a Trattoria customarily has four or 5 courses: the antipasto, the primo, the secondo, the contorno and the dulce course. Also coffee and a digestive liqueur will be offered. In more formal situations, for example a wedding (or Easter or Christmas) meals will be made of up to nine courses.
The conventional Italian evening out with friends begins with what is called an aperitivo. This is a light alcoholic drink such as Vermouth, Campari or Prosecco wine, or perhaps a non-alcoholic fruit juice. This is often drunk at a separate bar with friends, prior to going on to the meal. Italian meals are served in a number of courses with each type of food served separately. Thus an Italian meal is really quite different from the equivalent in other countries.
At the restaurant one typically would start with the antipasto (literally translating as “before the meal”) which could be either a hot or a cold appetizer.
The primo course (the first course) is habitually a soup, rice or pasta dish, or occasionally a bruschetta.
The second course is the major dish, commonly consisting of meat or fish, most commonly chicken, pork or veal. Since the second world war beef has become far more popular in Italian cooking.
A side salad or plate of grilled vegetables, the contorno, is served separately or if requested, along with the secondo.
The second main dish would then be followed by formaggio e frutta (cheese and fruits). Many local cheeses would be eaten with fruits of all kinds. The dolce course would follow bringing with it cakes and cookies.
And, of course as Italy is celebrated for the innumerable different varieties of coffee, which is enjoyed after the food prior to the digestive liqueurs.
And Now – Pizza
Pizza is the prototypical Italian dish. Actually it was invented in Naples (Napoli) to honor the visit to Naples of the Italian Queen Consort Margherita of Savoy in 1889 by chef Raffaele Esposito. His first creation was christened 'Pizza Margherita'. To denote the white, red and green of the Italian flag he used tomato (red), mozzarella cheese (white) and basil (green). There had been versions of this prior to the Margherita, such as the Neapolitan flat bread also known as the Naples Pie, was essentially a flat dough.
Pasta
A different food category Italy is well-known for is pasta. Pasta is a universal term for a variety of foods that are made out of dough made from wheat and water and occasionally with vegetable flavorings and colors and eggs. There are hundreds of different types of pasta, due to the texture, shape and size. Consequently pasta can be used in many assorted ways. Some common styles are spaghetti (thin sticks), lasagne (sheets), macaroni (small tubes) and fusilli (small swirls of pasta).
Wine
Wine of course plays a key part in Italian culture and the Italian economy. Italy is famed for its wine and makes and exports more wine than any other country in the world. Vino cotto is a form of wine made in central Italy, made for individual consumption and not sold commercially. The wine is cooked in a copper vessel until the volume is reduced to roughly half. This wine is allowed to age for a some years, each year a little more wine is added to compensate for evaporation.
Mitchell Sellers