Gastronomy is an important part of Italian culture, and if you want to get to know Italy, you can start with it!
We've talked a lot about Italian cuisine before, and Italy is best known for its pasta and pizza.
Today, don't talk about pasta or pizza, let's see what other treasures italy has!
Risotto
One of the staple foods in Italy is rice. Risotto is also one of the most famous traditional dishes in Italy.
Risotto originated in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. It is made with a variety of broths, fish or vegetable soups, onions, olive oil or butter (or even lard), white wine and Parmesan cheese.
In Italy, the most authentic risotto is made with round rice or cannaroli rice, and the common ones are chicken meatball risotto, mushroom risotto, seafood risotto, prawn risotto and beef risotto.
Different regions may have different characteristic risotto, such as saffron risotto in Milan and cuttlefish black risotto in Veneto.
Pea rice soup (Risi e bisi)
Pea rice soup is one of the most common traditional Italian foods. It is not risotto, but a thick soup. Pea rice soup originated in Venice and is usually flavored with Italian bacon.
Polenta
Originating in central and northern Italy, corn paste is a traditional Italian delicacy made from cornmeal cooked.
In the past, poor people would replace potatoes, rice or pasta with corn paste. This corn paste is popular not only in Italy, but also in neighboring countries such as Switzerland, Slovenia and Croatia.
Raw cured meat slices (Carpaccio)
Raw cured meat slices are a traditional Italian appetizer made from thinly sliced meat or fish.
The original raw cured meat slices came from Venice and were made from beef fillets. If you're heading to Venice, try this flavoured side dish.
Prosciutto
Smoked ham is usually raw ham, and a very small number are cooked ham.
Smoked ham originated in the Po Valley and is often eaten as an appetizer throughout Italy. Sometimes Italian smoked ham is also called Parma ham, as the most popular Italian fuzzy ham comes from Palma in the Emilia Romagna region of the Po Valley.
Prosciutto e Melone
Honeydew ham is made from Italian smoked ham and cantaloupe.
Salted and dried ham paired with sweet and juicy cantaloupe has been a favorite summer presby for Italians for centuries.
Bruschetta
This is a toasted bread slice that originated in ancient Rome and is an italian appetizer. Traditionally, toast is rubbed with garlic and garnished with olive oil and salt.
Sometimes it is served with cheese, tomato, bacon, salami and a variety of vegetables, the most popular of which is tomato and basil.
Tuna with veal (Vitello Tonatto)
Tuna with veal is a famous Italian dish that is used as a cold appetizer. In the past, tuna with veal was the quintessential Christmas dish.
It originated in the Piedmont region and is made from veal and tuna. Typically, veal is sliced, covered with tuna sauce and seasoned with capers, anchovies, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Insalata Caprese
Capri salad is a famous Italian salad made from tomato, mozzarella cheese, olive oil, italian vinegar and basil.
Traditionally, Capri salad is eaten as an appetizer.
Grissini
The Ala stick is a traditional Italian bread stick/bread strip. It originated in the city of Turin and is a typical Italian snack and appetizer.
This ara stick is crispy and crunchy and very convenient.
Mullet roe (Bottarga)
Mullet roe are pickled roe, usually from tuna or grey mullet.
In the past, mullet roe was called "the caviar of the poor", and in modern times, it is also called "ocean gold". Italian mullet roe originated in Sardinia and Sicily. It has a creamy texture and a slightly salty taste, making it ideal to accompany a variety of pasta, salads and vegetables.
If you are going to Sardinia you can choose mullet roe, if you are going to Sicily, you can choose tuna mullet roe.
海胆(Sea Urchins)
Sea urchin is a delicacy of Italy and beyond. From Naples to Sicily, Italians love to eat sea urchins.
In Italy, sea urchins are usually fresh, scooped from their shells, and eaten with lemon juice or with pasta.
Bistecca alla fiorentina
As the name suggests, this dish comes from Florence, Italy.
The traditional Florentine steak is a T-bone steak that has been lightly grilled and slightly charred on the outside, but still soft and juicy on the inside.
Grilled eggplant with Italian cheese (Melanzane Alla Parmigiana)
Grilled eggplant with cheese is a traditional Italian dish made from a combination of eggplant, tomato and parmesan cheese baked in the oven.
Originating in the Sicily and Campania regions, this dish is one of the most famous dishes in Italy.
Meatballs (Polpette)
Italian meatballs are made from minced meat (usually beef), eggs, parsley and parmesan cheese. Meatballs can also be made from fish meat, which is called "crochette".
Meatballs are often served as a snack or a second course. In southern Italy, it is eaten as a main course with tomato sauce.
Fried artichokes (Carciofi alla Giudia)
Fried artichokes have been popular in Italy for centuries, dating back to the Jewish ghetto of Rome in 1555.
In Italy, fried artichokes are often used as a head plate.
Salami
Salami is a traditional Italian sausage made from pork and fat, with pepper, salt, garlic, wine, fennel and sometimes cinnamon.
Sometimes salami is also added to other meats, such as beef or rabbit. But one thing is uniform, that is, all salami sausages are red inside, with white fat.
Mortadella
Italian sausages, also known as moteira sausages, are traditionally made with pork, black pepper, pistachios and myrtles.
Italy has different varieties of sausages, such as Bolognese sausage, Prato sausage and Tuscan sausage.
Truffles (Tartufo)
Truffles in Italy are famous, especially white truffles from the Piedmont region, where the city of Alba is known as the "White Truffle Capital of the World". The price of white truffles in the market often reaches a few thousand dollars per kilogram.
In Italy, fresh truffles can be used for pasta, risotto, eggs and salads.
Black truffles are of course delicious, but they are not as fragrant as white truffles and are not as popular.
Affogato
Aphrodite is an Italian dessert made from coffee, made from a spoonful of vanilla ice cream and a cup of espresso.
Usually, some berries, honey and other flavors of ice cream are added. It can be said that Aphrodite is a food between dessert and drink.
Tiramisu
Tiramisu is one of the most famous cakes in Italy. Tiramisu is made from coffee, finger biscuits and sweet cream (made up of mascarpone cheese, eggs and sugar), sometimes with liqueurs.
Tiramisu is native to Treviso and later became popular throughout Italy and around the world.
Spaghetti (Panna Cotta)
Jelly is another famous Italian dessert made from flavored cream (usually coffee, rum or vanilla flavored) and served with berries, chocolate or caramel sauce.
In addition, it may also be garnished with some wine and fruit.
Zabaione
Sabahon is an Italian dessert that resembles custard. Traditionally, it is made with egg yolks, sugar and marsala wine (sometimes including holy wine or paseoto) from Sicily.
Sabahon can be made into drinks or other desserts. Traditionally it is eaten with fruit and apples during Christmas.
Croissants/croissants (Cornetto)
It is an Italian pastry similar to a French croissant. Compared to French croissants, italian croissants have a lighter creamy taste and a stiffer texture.
Italian croissants can be hollow and fillings can be custard, vanilla, chocolate or apricot jam.
Christmas Bread (Panettone)
Traditionally, this sweet bread is prepared for Christmas. It originated in Milan, Italy, and later became popular in other parts of Italy.
Bread is usually flavored with orange preserves, rafters, lemon zest, raisins and chocolate.
Pigeon cake (Colomba di PaSqua)
Pigeon cake is the Easter cake of Italy. Pigeon cake tastes similar to Christmas cake and has similar ingredients, but pigeon cake does not contain raisins and is traditionally sprinkled with almonds and sugar.
Crostata
There are two kinds of italian scavenged pies, salty vegetables, cheese, meats, seafood and fish, and the sweet ones are usually fruits, the most common are cherries, apricots and peaches.
One of the most popular pies is the cheese pie from central Italy, made from Ricotta cheese and lemon zest.
Cream Pancake Roll (Cannoli)
Cream omelets are tube-shaped and finger-sized pastries, and the filling inside is usually sweet cream containing Ricotta cheese.
The cream omelet originated in Sicily. Authentic Sicilian cream omelet fillings are Ricotta cheese, Sicilian marsal, white vinegar, chocolate chips and sometimes pistachios.
Honey amygdala (Torrone)
Spain has pralines, Italy has honey almonds. Usually, it's made of egg whites, sugar, honey, and roasted nuts (most commonly almonds, but also hazelnuts and pistachios), and its shape is mostly rectangular.
Honey almond saccharide is a traditional Italian Christmas dessert.
Galani
Galani is a traditional Italian carnival pastry. It is a fried strip pastry that is sold in every bakery and pastry shop in Venice.
Almond cake (Biscotti/cantuccini)
Originating from Tuscany, Italy, marzipan is a rectangular crisp cookie that is traditionally eaten with liqueur.
Frittelli
This donut is usually made during carnivals and first came from venice and the Veneto region. The filling of this donut is usually raisins, and sometimes pine nuts.
Gelato
Authentic Gelato is a cream custard made from whole milk and eggs, traditionally flavored with chocolate, vanilla, hazelnuts and pistachios. Modern ice cream, on the other hand, has a variety of fruit flavors.
Semifreddo
Semi-frozen sorbets are half mousse and half ice cream, usually made from egg yolks, sugar and cream.
The most popular semi-frozen sorbet flavors are chocolate, lemon, nougat, pistachios, berries and tiramisu.
Campri
Kimberly is the most popular Italian wine in the world. This bittersweet wine is often used to make various cocktails.
Limoncello
Limoncello is native to the Gulf of Naples, the Amalfi Coast and the Sorrento Peninsula in southern Italy.
Limoncello is made by soaking lemon zest in neutral grain alcohol for several months. Traditionally, it is refrigerated and eaten as digestive wine after dinner.
Prosecco
Prosecco is an Italian sparkling wine named after the village of Prosecco, where it is produced.
Prosecco is characterized by fruity and floral aromas and can be paired with cured meats and fruit appetizers.
Italian almond wine (Amaretto)
Almond wine is made from bitter almonds, but it tastes sweet. Originally almond wine was made with almond cores, and walnut kernels were also used later.
Almond wine can be drunk alone or added to certain foods, especially desserts such as tiramisu. Of course, there are also many cocktails that use almond wine.
Holy Wine (Negroni)
The status of holy wine in Italy is equivalent to the status of sherry in Spain. Holy wine is a classic Italian dessert wine that is traditionally eaten with biscuits.
It originated in Tuscany and was later produced throughout Italy. The color and dessert of the holy wine depends on the region and the method of production.
Chianti Vino
Chianti wine is one of the most famous Italian red wines. It is produced in the Chianti region between Florence and Siena in central Tuscany.
The symbol of a Chianti wine is a black rooster stamp with a decoration on every bottle of Chianti wine. Chianti wines are suitable for pairing with all tomato-based dishes.
Espresso
Espresso is one of the most iconic Italian drinks and one of the most famous coffees in the world.
These are some of Italy's treasures
Have you tasted too much?