GLI “STROZZAPRETI”ĭo you ever wonder why strozzapreti are called like this? Strozzapreti are a traditional hand-braided pasta of elongated shape, typical of some regions of Italy: Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany and Umbria. Regardless of their funny name, they are a must in the Italian cuisine. No matter which hypothesis is correct, surely spaghetti alla puttanesca got their name from brothels, which were widespread in Italy until the middle of last century. Others think that this name derives from the colorful undergarments of the ladies who worked in brothels, the colors of which bring mind the ingredient of this dish. But why this bizarre name (“puttana” is not a nice word in Italian)? Arthur Schwartz, author or “Naples at the table” states that the origin lies in the owner of a brothel in the Spanish harlem, who gave its clients this dish to eat to regain their strength, since this recipe is easy and quick to prepare, and substantial. Spaghetti alla puttanesca is an Italian pasta recipe which was invented in Naples in the mid XX century it’s made adding tomato, olive oil, anchovies, olives, capers and garlic to spaghetti. This quickness is what gave espresso coffee its name. But the important thing here is that this process wasn’t invented to create a concentrated type of coffee, that is with little water (although that’s what eventually happened), but to have a way of making coffee in less than a minute. Nowadays coffee is a tradition spread worldwide, but it should not be forgotten that the traditional caffè espresso originates in Italy.īut why is coffee called “espresso”? One of the main characteristics of espresso coffee, a drink known and appreciated everywhere in the world, is the very short preparation time, because it’s made through pressure-infusion: exactly like with the coffee pots which can be found in any Italian kitchen, which filter the pressed coffee-powder. When you wake up, coffee gives you that boost you needed, and in the afternoon it’s an occasion to meet with friends and colleagues. CAFFE’ “ESPRESSO”įor many people a good cup of Italian coffee, be it espresso, cappuccino or macchiato is a habit which marks specific moments of the day and they would never give it up. penne) if it’s very “al dente” and if you cut piece in half (normally with your teeth), you’ll see that the most inner part is white. Besides, with certain types of pasta (e.g. The best and simplest way to cook pasta “al dente” is not following the cooking time indicated on the box, but sampling a bit of pasta one or two minutes before that time, and adjusting accordingly. In both cases, though, pasta al dente is proved to be more digestible, and it’s the favorite cooking option of the vast majority of Italians. According to some sources the expression derives from the fact that, in the past, people missing several teeth found it difficult to chew pasta when it wasn’t too cooked others think that the term comes from the fact itself that pasta al dente is tougher on the teeth. Pasta al dente is slightly tougher on the teeth than overcooked pasta. But why do we actually say “pasta al dente”? This figure of speech refers to pasta when it’s not too cooked, that is, it remains a bit solid and pleasant to bite and doesn’t become sticky. Pasta is undoubtedly one of the most typical and representative products of our country, it’s synonymous with flavor, tradition and innovation, it’s the most exported product in the world, and currently there are more than 200 production plants and over 100 pasta factories in Italy: Campania, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto are top of the list of the biggest pasta producers. Of course the expression “pasta al dente”, one of the most famous ones, had to be included.

The weirdest and funniest Italian food-related figures of speech PASTA “AL DENTE”

“Pasta al dente”, “caffè espresso”… We use this terms every day, but do you ever wonder where they come from? We’re gonna reveal the origin of 6 of the weirdest ones. Strange names and singular figures of speech that have become, now, part of our language (and not only ours!), and whose origins are often unknown. Today we’ll talk about some of the weirdest and funniest Italian food expressions.

Noodles aldente