A panel of Italian chefs have put together a list of dishes they would never order themselves despite being wildly popular.
The group of culinary experts have called out the meals they feel are unworthy of true Italian status and are more American in their origin. Dishes on the list include spaghetti and meatballs and chicken parmesan which have been blasted for being unauthentic.
Italian celeb chef Gennaro Contaldo offered his expertise on on how many of the main dishes on an American-Italian menu were actually invented in the US following large bouts of immigration in the 19th and 20th centuries. New arrivals adapted their dishes to utilise “the abundance of ingredients available to them” and began developing “a richer, often meatier cuisine.”
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The chefs have slammed a number of Italian dishes (Getty Images/StockFood)Gennaro explained to the Huffington Post: “When Italians began to immigrate to the US most hailed from poor, rural backgrounds and their cooking was leaner with few ingredients, dishes were mostly vegetarian, and they basically used whatever was available to them,”
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A second chef, Fabio Pizzigoni from Phoenix, Arizona, added that these dishes “often amp up the garlic, sauce and cheese, plus the portions are much bigger.” Below are the dishes you have been duped into believing are authentic Italian cuisine according to the experts.
Chicken Parmesan
Chicken Parmesan is believed by many to have originated in Bamonte’s in Brooklyn and is an undeniably Italian-American dish you would rarely seen on restaurant menus in Italy. This rule also applies to many pasta dishes that are finished with the addition of chicken says chef Stefano Carniato of Miami.
He explained: “It’s uncommon to add chicken to a pasta dish that already has many components…for [Italians], a few fresh, local ingredients suffice. A pasta al pomodoro with fresh basil and tomato is sublime and doesn’t need anything else. Less is always more."
Pasta dishes with chicken are frowned upon (Getty Images)Pasta Alfredo
While Alfredo sauce was invented in Rome, it has been around for barely a century, leading chefs to claim it simply isn't Italian enough. It was created at a restaurant which was supposedly catering to Americans which is enough to land it on the no-go list.
Jacopo Falleni, who owns Nonna in Westlake Village, California, said: “For an Italian, fettuccine Alfredo is a big no in the rule book. Alfredo is loaded with cream and butter, which is way too heavy. It really misses the mark on what Italian pasta is all about, which is simplicity and elegance.
"And then there’s the chicken - total disaster! It’s like putting ketchup on risotto. Just … why? I wish I could use a hand gesture to show how wrong it is." Pietro Gallo, executive chef at San Diego’s Civico, also admitted that they try “not have recipes camouflaged by heavy butter and cream.”
Garlic Bread
Garlic bread is not welcome on the table (LA Times via Getty Images)Gennaro made it clear that garlic bread is not something that belongs on authentic Italian dinner table. He slammed the dish saying: “This is stodgy and sickly and has absolutely nothing to do with delicate bruschetta, which is served in Italy with a light rubbing of garlic drizzled with extra virgin olive oil on slices of grilled rustic bread.”
Marinara Sauce
The sweet tomato-based topping is not one that Giuseppe Gentile, executive chef of Naples’ L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, is keen to endorse, despite his self-proclaimed open-mindedness. He said: “I consider myself to be an open-minded chef, but when I go out, I cannot stand to order American marinara sauce or even make it at home, as there is usually a unique sweetness with flavors of fake oregano and garlic peppered in."
Pizza with heavy toppings
The debate on pineapple on pizza has been settled (Getty Images)Chef Matteo Venini of Washington, D.C. has cleared up the debate over pizza toppings as he gave his opinion on over-populating the dough based dish. He said: “Pineapple doesn’t go on pizza. It’s a fruit that doesn’t match with Italian flavors. It’s too strong and the finish will cover most of the delicate flavors of the other ingredients.”
Matteo added that he "wouldn’t order pineapple on pizza at a different restaurant…it’s too sweet and overwhelms the other flavors.” So that has cleared up the fruity delicacy argument once and for all.
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Spaghetti and Meatballs
Spaghetti and meatballs is on the list (Getty Images)Top Chef alum Fabio Viviani gave his opinion on the popular cuisine as he slammed it saying "an Americanized Italian dish I would steer clear from is spaghetti with meatballs,” even though he admitted that he himself finds the meal “comforting.” He explained that “in Italy, meatballs, or ‘polpette,’ are typically served on their own, perhaps with bread or a side salad, but never over spaghetti."
He added that “the combination is distinctly American, catering to the desire for protein-packed, substantial meals… it lacks the authenticity and the balance of flavors that traditional Italian cooking is all about.”
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