Who doesn’t love Italian food? Pizza… pasta… all that rich goodness. But don’t be fooled! These foods aren’t even actually Italian:
1. SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE AND SPAGHETTI WITH MEATBALLS
Italian spaghetti is made without meat – just tomatoes. The story goes, meat was added to the dish by Italian immigrants in the US who were unable to find good-quality tomatoes so instead used meat to make their sauces thicker and sweeter.
2. GARLIC BREAD
Italians to use garlic to make bruschetta, but ‘garlic bread’ is made from baguettes – these aren’t even Italian in the first place.
3. PEPPERONI AND HAM AND CHEESE PIZZA
If you go to Italy and ask for a pepperoni pizza, chances are you’ll end up with a pizza covered in grilled peppers. ‘Pepperoni’ is plural for peppers. If you want the ‘pepperoni’ pizza you know and love – ask for a ‘salame piccante’ (spicy salami) pizza instead. As for ham and pineapple pizza – that was invented somewhere in Canada.
4. MACARONI AND CHEESE
This is actually an American dish, in Italy macaroni is usually served with a tomato sauce or ragù. The closest you’ll get to macaroni and cheese in Italy is ‘pasta pasticciata’ – a mix of left-over pasta with béchamel, baked in the oven.
5. PANINI
Ask for a panini and you’ll usually get something resembling a grilled sandwich – but not in Italy. ‘Panini’ is simply the plural word for sandwich, so that’s exactly what you’ll get. If you do want it tostato (toasted) you’ll have to ask.
