Do you know Italian cuisine?

Sometimes, it even seems that Italian restaurant and pizzeria are synonymous, as if Italian cuisine had nothing else to offer us ... Nothing could be further from the truth! Despite both being stars of this country's cuisine, undoubtedly the most popular, within Italian cuisine we find dishes of all kinds, sweet and savory, that are worth knowing and enjoying.

What do you know about pasta?

The different varieties of pasta will have differences at a nutritional level but in general terms pasta is a food rich in carbohydrates, low in fat and with around 12% protein content (raw). Pasta proteins contain few amounts of lysine, an essential amino acid, something that is complemented if we combine pasta with legumes as happens in some dishes. We must also bear in mind that we do not usually take pasta alone, so in stuffed pasta we must consider that the filling normally adds proteins and fats to the nutritional contribution, the same as with most sauces, unless both are fundamentally plant-based. With regard to micronutrients, pasta does not stand out for being a food rich in them, it all depends on the degree of extraction of the flour or on whether we choose wholemeal pasta, which does contain a greater contribution of minerals and fiber.

• Beyond pasta and pizza, Italian cuisine offers us many interesting and equally tasty dishes.
• The typical original raw materials are those that usually give originality, color and flavor to many recipes: mozzarella, pecorino, spec, bresaola, grissini, caperi ...
• In Italy the structure of starters, firsts, seconds and desserts is also common, or, as one would say there: antipasto, primo, secondo and dolce.

DIFFERENCES BY ZONES

Each region has its typical products and, oddly enough, there are dishes that in one area can be very popular and, on the other hand, are not common in another. And is pasta consumed the same throughout Italy? Well, neither, although globalization makes it easier for us to find everything everywhere, the reality is that each area of ​​Italy has its typical pasta specialties and its own recipes. So while in Bologna are produced and consumed the tortellini and they are taken for example in the recipe of "tortellini in brodo" or what is the same, tortellini in broth, in Bari are typical the orecchiette and they are consumed "le orecchiette cime di rapa", which are prepared with little broccoli florets. It is also quite common for this pasta to make it with a sauce of onion, garlic, peeled tomato, minced meat, parsley, basil, etc.

SOME TYPICAL PRODUCTS OF ITALIAN CUISINE

Being part of the different dishes of the Italian cuisine We find typical Italian raw materials that are precisely those that tend to give the dish the most originality, some well known and others not so much. Cheeses like pecorino, a goat cheese originating in Sardinia, the burrata, a very buttery cheese made with goat's milk or mozzarella di Búfala similar to burrata but made with buffalo milk. The Parmigiano, a very dry cheese that does not require many presentations, the scamorza affumicata, a smoked and pear-shaped cheese, as it is hung from a rope and acquires this shape etc. We can also taste cold cuts or meat products such as speck, a kind of cured and spiced ham typical of Tyrol, bresaola, which consists of thin slices of cured beef, etc. There are also typical accompaniments such as different bread preparations, for example grissini, very thin and long sticks, the typical Puglia taralli that are eaten as a snack and consist of a bread ring that may or may not be spiced. There are also the scaldatelle, similar to the taralli but larger and elongated, which are so called because before they are baked they are blanched in water. Another product is "i capperi", capers, a food of indigenous production that is sometimes large.

AN ITALIAN MEAL

In a similar way to what happens in Spain, in Italy the structure of the food organized in starters, firsts, seconds and desserts is common or, as one would say in Italy: antipasto, primo, secondo and dolce. So let's see some examples of each. ANTIPASTI

• Vitello tonnato It is an original dish from Piedmont, it consists of beef loins accompanied by a sauce based on hard-boiled egg yolks, tuna, cream and anchovies. Optionally, capers are usually added. This dish is usually eaten cold.
• Bruschetta This traditional antipasto from central Italy consists of several slices of toasted bread that are roasted in a special oven called brustolina so that they turn golden brown, after having rubbed garlic on them. Later, as a general rule, ground paprika and salt are added. Also cheese, tomato and other vegetables cut into small cubes, such as peppers, carrots, sweet corn, onion ...
• Carpaccio This preparation has also crossed borders. We are facing a very versatile dish, it can be made with different meats or fish, it involves cutting very thin slices and adding additional ingredients such as olive oil, lemon, cheese, basil, etc. Others: other antipasto options are Puglia's own panzerotti, salads such as caprese, Sicilian arancini, salami or burrata.

PRIMI PIATI

• Risi e bisi It is a Venetian recipe, made from peas with rice, not the most typical risotto rice called carnaroli, but a similar one, the vialone nano. In addition to peas and rice, it contains onion, parsley, grana padano, vegetable broth, etc. It is halfway between a stew and a soup.
• Minestrone Minestrone is a type of well known, which is prepared based on tomatoes and a wide variety of vegetables, as well as legumes and short pasta. Seasonal products are generally used to repair it and depending on the area it may include some meat or seafood and fish.
• Parmigiana di melanzane This typical recipe from Sicily and southern Italy consists of a preparation based on layers that we can assimilate to musaka and that contains, in addition to of course aubergine (melanzane), and Parmesan, mozzarella, tomato, onion, basil ...

Others: We have very different options in all areas of Italy, the typical polenta from the northern and more mountainous part of Italy, the typical pesto trofie from Liguria or the ribollita from Tuscany, both in the central area, or the cuscus di fish more typical of the south and specifically of Palermo, etc. Other first-class options are the pomodori al riso or the gnocchi di patate.

SECONDI PIATI

• Polpetone ripieno Polpetone ripieno is a very versatile dish as it can be served hot or cold and also has many different filling options. It is a meat roll that can be filled with other types of meat with vegetables, it can have spinach, etc. You can even make the fish-based version, the polpetone di tonno (tuna).
• Ossobuco Ossobuco is a traditional dish from Milan, osso buco literally means hollow bone as it is a stew or stew made with beef shank cut into thick slices and boneless. It is made with some vegetables such as carrots and it is common to accompany it with a risotto alla milanese.
• Kick riso e cozze This typical Barese dish is a vegetable stew with fish, taking advantage of the wealth of seafood that can be enjoyed in most regions of Italy, due to its geographical location. There is also the option of fave e cozze, which combines and seafood.

Others: Other ideas for second courses are the pepperoni ripiene, the cotoletta a la milanese, its name already indicates the origin, the typical Tuscan ragù di cinghiale or the Cacciuco, a typical fish dish from Livorno. We can also choose from second courses that are very often served first but can actually be a second, such as lasagna or canelloni.

DOLCI

• Panettone It is a typical Christmas cake, increasingly known in Spain. Originally, sourdough and a very laborious preparation were required to achieve this dessert with a texture so fluffy that it grows like a mountain. It can have different ingredients inside, although the most common are raisins and pieces of candied orange.
• Cannoli It is a typical Sicilian sweet, which consists of crusty dough cylinders filled with pastry cream, ricotta ... And that on the edges usually have strips of candied fruit, a bite of dried fruit or little tears of
• Crostata It is a consistent cake with slightly raised edges so that it is covered with jam, which can be cherry, strawberry, peach or apricot.

Others: The well-known tiramisu, with coffee and cocoa, the panna cotta, a dough with a texture between gelatin and flan, with a milk flavor to which some fruit jam is usually added, the typical Venetian pandoro, similar to panettone but with peculiar characteristics such as its star shape, the Martorana fruit, very similar to marzipan, etc.