How to Eat in Italian
Have you been to Italy? Or know someone who has? They are probably talking about an aperitif. It is a tourist rite of passage well known to both students fresh from their first semester abroad and experienced travelers alike. Similar to tapas, happy hour or even buffet, this unique Italian tradition brings people together after work and in some cases even after dinner.
While it can be heavy on meats and cheeses, an aperitif is more than a cheese plate or sausage board; it’s a mood, a way of life. There is a culture in big Italian cities: whet your appetite before dinner, have a snack to satisfy your hunger, or order dinner time. You can even make an “apericena” and eat enough free bites to call it dinner if you’re feeling very thrifty.
The aperitif is as old as Ancient Rome but evolved into its current incarnation during the Industrial Revolution in Northern Italy. An aperitif today is usually an exchange with a purchase, where you are handed a small snack, such as arancini, mini sandwiches or cheese and canned vegetable pasta, when you order a drink. You will notice in the hands of everyone’s favorite Italian classics such as Negroni, Aperol Spritz and Americano – all traditional appetite-stimulating drinks that are served in huge quantities in busy squares, especially in big cities.
It is rare to find an aperitif in its true form in the United States. Instead of a free item with the purchase of a drink, you get billed for everything you order, down to tiny bites. Pound for pound of prosciutto, if you want to recreate or replicate the magic of “pleasant hour”, it’s cheaper to do it at home. Make it easy by getting everything ready ahead of time and then pulling it all out when people start coming. Let them snack and sip while you finish dinner, or let snacks serve as dinner.
Start with drinks
Bitter bevas set the tone for a more hearty meal; Italians believe that this taste shock awakens an appetite for more food. By all means, freshen up your life with the arrival of spring, but don’t settle for Aperol if you don’t like it. Substituting Aperol for Campari will give you a more bitter blend, while a fortified citrus wine has a lower ABV but feels spiritually connected to a spritz. You can also exchange fortified wines for Campari at Negroni. Play with it until you settle on your signature aperitif cocktail.
Don’t absorb? Do not worry. There are many Italian options for you too. Soft drinks like Ghia or Sanbitter mimic the flavor characteristics of aperitif cocktails incredibly well, with herbal notes similar to those found in complex Italian liqueurs, but without the booze.
Manage your meat spending
When buying all at once, a cheese platter, a meat platter, a few fried items, and maybe a small sandwich or two will cost upwards of $100 at most restaurants in America. That’s before you order a drink, which often costs $16 to $20 a pop in this writer’s town. For the price of a taba for two, you can cater for four to six people in high Italian style.
While four ounces of prosciutto can cost $16-$20 at a restaurant, you can get a whole pound for it at your local butcher. Pistachio mortadella on plain bread is another staple, and like prosciutto, fancy bologna is a lot cheaper when bought at the grocery store. Even vegan cold cuts and analogues in the store are cheaper than on the street. Create mini sandwiches and meat platters to suit your dietary preferences, tastes and budget for the best results.
Count on sheep’s milk cheeses
Aged pecorino is a great grated cheese, but there are other age restrictions. A young pecorino is moist, milky and sweet and pairs perfectly with fatty meats such as mortadella or soppressata. Spicy and salty, mature pecorino isn’t just for spaghetti; it goes great with fruits like fresh strawberries or dried apricots, better than any cheddar.
Cheese plates are one way to serve formaggio, but you can also skewers blanched vegetables and cheese for an elegant cheese, slice it thinly into pieces of jam for bruschettini, or create a spread with fresh milk cheeses such as ricotta, which are also traditionally made with sheep tenderloin. milk or stracciatella for a variety of mu.
Whether it’s inside a rice ball or generously grated on top of a panel (a type of Sicilian chickpea fritter), cheese is everywhere in the aperitif. Are you vegan? Recreate the cheesy spirit with fancy pickled vegetables or bold spreads like the vegan bagna cauda . It also never hurts to add acid; Squeeze a fresh lemon over anything fried for a quick seasoning.
Roast at home for a fraction of the cost
Small fried and grilled dishes are how southern Italians prepare their own informal aperitif, from the aforementioned panele (chickpea fritters) and arancini (rice balls) to potato croquettes, dough balls, artichokes and especially offal. Mini calzones, scaccia (pizza rolls) and other bread treats are smeared with red sauce and cooked quickly and hot.
One lovely little bite you might not be familiar with is mozzarella en carozza , a breaded and grilled cheese sometimes served with anchovies tucked inside. To do this, make a mozzarella sandwich with white bread and roll it in egg and breadcrumbs. Toast it and enjoy a bitter soda called chinotto (so you don’t get hungry before your next snack).
Nothing beats a real Italian aperitif, but as long as we don’t have large areas dedicated to socializing and al fresco dining (or some relief from inflation), your lovely patio or veranda will do just that.