Central Italian Cooking

The cooking of Lazio is in essence the cooking of Rome; the Eternal City dominates the region now and did so to an even greater degree in the past. As a result the city became the depository of all of Lazio's local culinary traditions, including some one might not expect, for example that of the Roman Jewish population, part of which arrived before Paul.

This said, if one were to select a single word to describe the cooking of Lazio, it would likely be simple (as opposed to elaborate). The region boasts some of the finest farmland in all of Italy, and the produce is superb, in particular the artichokes, olives, chicory, and salad greens, and the cooks have wisely realized that the less they do to these ingredients in the kitchen the better. Pasta sauces also tend to be simple, aio e oio (garlic and olive oil), for example, or all'amatriciana, a spicy tomato sauce with pancetta or guanciale, or alla carbonara, with pancetta and eggs. And this simplicity carries through into the meats dishes, which are, with a few exceptions -- coda alla vaccinara comes to mind -- primarily veal and lamb based: Quickly cooked veal cutlets, either with wine sauce or prosciutto (what's called saltimbocca), and roasted or grilled abbacchio, i.e. suckling lamb.

The wine to enjoy with all this? Though Lazio's producers are now making reds as well, tradition dictates one quaff the light zesty whites from the Alban Hills, and a fine pairing it is.

Recipes from Lazio on site.