When it comes to ethnic cuisines, there are none more popular than Italian food. From your local pizza joint (debatable as to whether that’s truly Italian food) to the four-star places found in major cities, Italian food is one of the top choices when families are deciding where to go to eat out.
The food of Italy is commonly thought to be decadent, cheese-laden stuff with a predominance of garlic and oregano, almost always involving pasta of some sort and usually served with a good bottle of wine. While none of this is untrue about Italian cuisine, it does give one a very limited view of what is one of worlds most varied culinary areas.
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The preconceived notion that Italian food consists of about fifteen dishes found at the italian food joints in the U.S is false. In fact, Italion food has a wide variety and varies greatly acroos across the country. The different regional cuisines found in Italy take cues from surounding nations and spice it up with a lit of bit of local creativity to provide the inimitable Italian cuisine. A great example of the fore-said is the cuisine from the region of Fruili-Venezia Giulia
The region has a common border with the formerly Soviet nation of Yugoslavia, and has a lot of customs and traditons (including culinary) in common. The Italian food from this region has a strong Austrian, Hungarian, Croatian, and Slovenian influence. The beer halls in this region show the most apparent influence. Dishes such as Goulash and Viennese sausage are available here, goulash which originally was a Hungarian dish, acquired the distinct Italian taste from this area and can be found in restaurants in and outside of Italy. The dish is very popular in this area, and constitutes a thick beef stew and vegetables available locally such as red peppers and onions. It is thick and the seasoning is done with paprika, and is usually served along with pasta. Another popular dish at the local beer halls is the Bohemian hare.
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Italy is one of the oldest countries in the world, and thanks to the geographical boundaries of the Mediterranean Sea and the Alps it has remained largely unchanged throughout history. Even during the Roman Empire, Italy was set apart. Legions that had been abroad always knew when they had returned to the mother country. Italian food history, however, reaches far beyond the country’s borders.
For starters, look at pasta. There is much historical debate on its origins, but many historians point to Marco Polo’s voyages to the Far East, from which he returned with all manner of foreign spices and foods, as the venue from which pasta came. The Chinese had cooked with noodles for centuries, and Marco Polo’s men encountered the same on their travels.
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