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Tomatoes were also viewed with suspicion initially in Italy and used only ornamentally. It wasn't until the 18th century that tomatoes really became accepted in
by AlanYx 4y ago
Tomatoes were also viewed with suspicion initially in Italy and used only ornamentally. It wasn't until the 18th century that tomatoes really became accepted in Italian cuisine.
- TylerE 4y agoTo this day there remains a sharp geographic gradient. Northern italians do not use many tomoatoes - practically never red sauces.
- manuelmoreale 4y agoDo you have a source for this? Because my experience tells me quite the opposite.
- alanfranz 4y agoNorth-East italian here. Never knew that.
- fmajid 4y agoThey are a member of the nightshade family after all, which includes many poisonous plants.
- OkayPhysicist 4y agoThey also were rather acidic compared to most foods people ate at the time. Acidity + pewter plates makes for a bad time.
- fmajid 4y agoI doubt any but the very rich could afford pewter tableware.
- OkayPhysicist 4y agoNobody but the very rich could afford tomatoes.
- WorldMaker 4y agoEggplant parm is such a fascinating dish for its mix of nightshades. Relatedly, I've known Americans that rate Italian-American restaurants on their eggplant parm as their preferred benchmark dish.
- fmajid 4y agoI'd use risotto as the benchmark myself, but then again I loathe eggplant.
- WorldMaker 4y agoReminds me of the risotto scene early in "The Big Night" (1996), which is also an interesting movie generally in the context of this discussion. The scene is about Italian immigrants trying to run a restaurant in America, and revolves around the kitchen dispute that happens when an American customer requests a side of spaghetti to go with the risotto.
- fmajid 4y agoHeh. I have French friends who eat rice with bread as for them rice is a vegetable.