What's So Awesome About Italian Food, Anyways?
Chances are, you have people in your life who love going out for Italian food. Maybe you love going out for Italian food yourself. It certainly is a delicious cuisine, but have you ever wondered why people love Italian food so much? As it turns out, there are a few reasons why Italian food appeals to the masses and is generally, well, awesome.
1. Italian food makes the most of simple, but quality ingredients.
If you break most Italian dishes down into their parts, they are not very complicated. Cacio e Pepe, for example, is just pasta, cheese, olive oil, and pepper. Marinara sauce is just tomatoes and some seasonings. What really makes these dishes incredible is the fact that they're made with the highest-quality ingredients possible. The tomatoes in a good marinara are not just any variety. They're usually San Marzano tomatoes — widely accepted as the best. The cheese in Cacio e Pepe is not everyday, generic cheese — it's real Parmigiano Reggiano. The use of these high-quality ingredients makes even simple dishes taste luxurious, which people love.
2. The dishes are balanced.
Not every Italian dish is balanced and includes foods from all food groups, but many do. One of these dishes is pizza. It has starch in the form of a pizza crust. It has vegetables in the form of pizza sauce and sometimes some other toppings. And it has protein-rich foods in the form of cheese and sometimes various types of meat. You can eat this one dish and enjoy all the major food groups. There are lots of other examples of this in Italian cuisine, too. Chicken Parmigiana, Veal Picatta — the list goes on and on.
3. There are a lot of comfort foods.
When you think about comfort food, what comes to mind? Chances are, you imagine foods high in carbohydrates. Well, Italian cuisine is full of those. Pasta is the ultimate comfort food. Bread, which is served alongside almost every Italian meal, is another comfort food. When you go out for Italian food, you know you're going to leave feeling comforted and cared for, so of course, you're going to look forward to the experience. (The friendly nature of servers at many Italian restaurants helps, too.)
Italian cuisine is a tried and true favorite, and that's unlikely to change anytime soon. This cuisine uses simple but quality ingredients, has plenty of one-dish meals, and offers plenty of comfort foods.
For more information, contact a local restaurant like zprime.