Items related to Al Dente: A History of Food in Italy (Foods and Nations)
Spaghetti with meatballs, fettuccine alfredo, margherita pizzas, ricotta and parmesan cheeses―we have Italy to thank for some of our favorite comfort foods. Home to a dazzling array of wines, cheese, breads, vegetables, and salamis, Italy has become a mecca for foodies who flock to its pizzerias, gelateries, and family-style and Michelin-starred restaurants. Taking readers across the country’s regions and beyond in the first book in Reaktion’s new Foods and Nations series, Al Dente explores our obsession with Italian food and how the country’s cuisine became what it is today.
Fabio Parasecoli discovers that for centuries, southern Mediterranean countries such as Italy fought against food scarcity, wars, invasions, and an unfavorable agricultural environment. Lacking in meat and dairy, Italy developed foodways that depended on grains, legumes, and vegetables until a stronger economy in the late 1950s allowed the majority of Italians to afford a more diverse diet. Parasecoli elucidates how the last half century has seen new packaging, conservation techniques, industrial mass production, and more sophisticated systems of transportation and distribution, bringing about profound changes in how the country’s population thought about food. He also reveals that much of Italy’s culinary reputation hinged on the world’s discovery of it as a healthy eating model, which has led to the prevalence of high-end Italian restaurants in major cities around the globe.
Including historical recipes for delicious Italian dishes to enjoy alongside a glass of crisp Chianti, Al Dente is a fascinating survey of this country’s cuisine that sheds new light on why we should always leave the gun and take the cannoli.
Fabio Parasecoli discovers that for centuries, southern Mediterranean countries such as Italy fought against food scarcity, wars, invasions, and an unfavorable agricultural environment. Lacking in meat and dairy, Italy developed foodways that depended on grains, legumes, and vegetables until a stronger economy in the late 1950s allowed the majority of Italians to afford a more diverse diet. Parasecoli elucidates how the last half century has seen new packaging, conservation techniques, industrial mass production, and more sophisticated systems of transportation and distribution, bringing about profound changes in how the country’s population thought about food. He also reveals that much of Italy’s culinary reputation hinged on the world’s discovery of it as a healthy eating model, which has led to the prevalence of high-end Italian restaurants in major cities around the globe.
Including historical recipes for delicious Italian dishes to enjoy alongside a glass of crisp Chianti, Al Dente is a fascinating survey of this country’s cuisine that sheds new light on why we should always leave the gun and take the cannoli.
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About the Author:
Fabio Parasecoli is associate professor and coordinator of the Food Studies Program at the New School for Public Engagement in New York City. He is the author of several books, including Bite Me! Food and Pop Culture and Introduction to Culinary Cultures in Europe.
Review:
“This cool analysis of the geopolitical background to the delights of Italian gastronomy is a welcome addition.” (Gillian Riley, author of The Oxford Companion to Italian Food)
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherReaktion Books
- Publication date2014
- ISBN 10 1780232764
- ISBN 13 9781780232768
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages332
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. Hardcover. Over the last three decades Italian cuisine has gained in status as well as fame. High-end Italian restaurants are now listed among the most prestigious establishments in major cities worldwide, and television shows and magazines are full of Italian recipes. What is all the fuss about? How did Italian food become what it is today? Why does it speak to so many all over the world? Where does the apparently endless variety of local and regional cuisines come from? In Al Dente, food historian Fabio Parasecoli answers these and many other questions while surveying the fascinating story of Italian food. The author shows that for centuries, Italians fought against food scarcity, wars, invasions and an environment that was often not very favourable to agriculture. With limited access to meat, dairy and fats, they developed foodways that depended on grains, pulses and vegetables. It was only after the 'economic miracle' of the late 1950s that the majority of the Italian population was able to afford a more diverse and abundant diet, albeit by making compromises in their traditional ways of life and culinary habits. New packaging and conservation techniques, industrial mass production and more sophisticated systems of transportation and distribution brought profound changes in the way Italians ate and thought about food. At the same time, the rest of the world became aware that the practices adopted by Italians in the past constitute a model for healthy eating. The cuisine's reputation has been growing exponentially ever since. For anyone who's enjoyed the recipes of Anna Del Conte or Marcella Hazan, or who just loves pasta, Al Dente provides the multilayered background to what is arguably the world's favourite cuisine. A colourful history of Italian food, Al Dente showcases the dazzling assortment of wines, cheeses, breads, vegetables and salamis that have pushed Italy's cuisine to the forefront of global popularity, from ice-cream parlour and pizza shop to Michelin-starred restaurants today. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781780232768
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Book Description Condition: New. 2014. 1st Edition. Hardcover. A colourful history of Italian food, Al Dente showcases the dazzling assortment of wines, cheeses, breads, vegetables and salamis that have pushed Italy's cuisine to the forefront of global popularity, from ice-cream parlour and pizza shop to Michelin-starred restaurants today. Series: Foods and Nations. Num Pages: 384 pages, 100, 20 in colour. BIC Classification: 1DST; JFCV. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 166 x 239 x 27. Weight in Grams: 966. . . . . . Seller Inventory # V9781780232768
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