Roma
The Eternal City
The food of Rome has evolved over centuries as the region has undergone cultural and social changes.
Beginning in Ancient Rome, the region’s cuisine has been influenced by the expansion of the empire and exposure to new ingredients and techniques. During the renaissance, Rome became a center of cuisine because many of the best chefs worked for the popes. One of the earliest cookbooks, Opera dell'arte del cucinare, was published in 1570 by Bartolomeo Scappi, a chef for Pope Pius IV. When Spanish explorers discovered the new world, they introduced Rome and all of Italy to new ingredients, most notably the tomato. Rome is a diverse city with one of the oldest Jewish populations in the world, which has also heavily influenced the cuisine.
Today the food of Rome can be characterized by simple, inexpensive, and local ingredients. It is a testament to the tried-and-true adage that the best cuisine makes use of fresh, local, and seasonal produce and high-quality ingredients. Despite being relatively simple, Roman food is strong in flavor with bold ingredients like pecorino Romano, black pepper, guanciale, bitter greens, artichoke, and ofal.
Below are some of the best Roman dishes to try on a visit to the Eternal City
Suppli
Suppli are made by shaping cooled rice and mozzarella into an oblong pill shape, then breading and frying them. Often called “Suppli di Telefono,” because when broken apart, the cheese pull resembles an old-fashioned telephone cord. They are made with a starchy medium grain rice like arborio or carnaroli which is also used for risotto. Suppli originated with Roman street vendors in the early 19th century. Sicilian arancini are similar but typically larger than suppli. Another difference is in the filling. In suppli, the rice is mixed with tomato sauce, and sometimes meat. In arancini, the rice layer is separated and surrounds the sauce and meat.
Artichokes
Artichokes grown around Rome do not have the fibrous inner choke that needs to be removed that is common with French, Californian, or southern Italian artichokes. They can be trimmed, cooked, and eaten whole. There are two main preparations for artichokes in Rome:
Carciofi alla Romana (Roman Style) artichokes are stuffed with herbs and breadcrumbs then poached stalk side up with lemon and wine until softened.
Carciofi alla Guidia (Jewish Style) are fried and then fried again to crisp up, and seasoned with salt, then eaten petal by petal.
Roman Style Pizza
Pizza al Taglio is a thick, rectangular pizza, cut with scissors, and sold by the slice by weight. It originated in the 1950s in Rome and is made with a two-day fermented dough with olive oil and has a crispy texture. It is oven baked on a pan, which allows the dough to rise more than a thin crust Neapolitan style pizza.
Gelato
Gelato means “ice cream” in Italian. Italian gelato is richer and denser than ice cream. Gelato has 25%-35% of air whipped into it while ice cream has around 50%. It also has less butterfat (around 4%-9%) than ice cream, which has 14%- 25%. Fat mutes flavor so the lower fat percentage in gelato allows more intensity in taste.
Gelato is also typically stored and served at a higher temperature (10-20 degrees F) than traditional ice cream (6-10 degrees F) because it is easiest to scoop at that range. The slightly “warmer” temperature also makes it easier to taste. Gelato is sold in Gelaterias in Rome in many different flavors. A pro-tip to keep in mind when selecting a Gelateria is that the “prettier” the gelato, the less authentic it is—high quality gelato looks like the ingredient its made from, so avoid brightly colored gelato that is piled high on display.
The Four Classic Roman Pasta Dishes
These simple pasta dishes are similar to each other and vary by one or two ingredients. The simplest is Cacio e Pepe, made with cheese and black pepper. Gricia adds guanciale: a rich, cured pork jowl. Add egg to make Carbonara or Tomato to make Amatriciana. In each dish, the pasta, often spaghetti, is cooked al dente and tossed with starchy pasta water to help form the sauce. Each of these dishes use a few ingredients to create a flavorful and delicious combination.
Pasta alla Gricia
Made by rendering the fat of guanciale, then adding pasta with pasta water and tossing to form a sauce. Finish with pecorino Romano and fresh ground black pepper.
Spaghetti alla Carbonara
Made by rendering guanciale and adding pasta with pasta water and black pepper in a similar way to La Gricia. The pecorino Romano and egg are mixed together and emulsified with the pasta water to form a rich and creamy sauce.
Bucatini All’Amatriciana
Is rendered guanciale mixed with tomato and tossed with bucatini pasta and starchy water. Pecorino Romano is then added, which melts and helps to bind the ingredients.
Cacio e Pepe
Made by using the pasta water to melt pecorino Romano cheese and seasoned with fresh cracked black pepper. The simplest of these dishes, it takes some touch to get the right amount of pasta water and cheese to form a sauce.