Question for the Italians

[seaboy4hire]

This is an east coast term near as I can tell. My family, Sicilian, refers to the sauce as "sugo" which would be similar to a ragu in northern Italy.

 

In my community in Louisiana we celebrated the feast of San Giuseppe (Saint Joseph's Day) on March 19. This was a bigger deal than Saint Patrick's when I was growing up. I was in high school before it dawned on me that this St Paddy's day was a major thing . While the Irish were getting blitzed at a bar, we Sicillians were stuffing ourselves with pasta, fish, homemade wine (and getting blitzed as well) at a Saint Joseph's Alter.

 

Since Saint Joseph's always falls during Lent there's no meat or dairy products served. The cheese was replaced by "modica" or rather herbs and bread crumbs. This was served in place of the Parmesan on spaghetti. I recommend giving it a try.

 

I can remember as a kid being part of a St Joseph's Day alter representing one of the twelve apostles. Me and a bunch of my male cousins were forced into our Sunday best on a week day, paraded around some ancient Sicilian widdow's house (who made a promise to build in an alter that year in exchange for some favor), blessed by a old priest, and huddled around a huge table that had an alter reaching up to the ceiling piled with platters of food. About the only thing that made this worth while for this eight year-old was we got to taste everything first and had a glass of wine to savor with this meal.

 

Preparing one of these alters was no small feat and it wasn't cheap either. Hence it was a promise to a major Saint for a favor. Everyone who visited the home has to be fed and given food to take home. Thus an army of Italian grandmothers would be marshaled for months preparing breads pasta, smoked fish, and cookies to be served at this alter. The only event that rivaled this for complexity was Christmas.

 

Imagine the scene, a half dozen old Sicilian widdow's in black dresses, dandruff on the shoulders like snowflakes, and a stained apron with used Kleenex in one pocket, Rosary beads in the other, a Miraculous Medal and/or a Green Scapula around the neck, drinking wine and arguing about something during "the war" in a kitchen preparing all this food to feed a couple hundred people. To this day I'm not sure if they were arguing about World War II, World War I, or the War for Italian Independence. There were references to Garibaldi and Mussolini and maybe even Frank Sinatra.

 

Anyone else grow up with an Italian Experience like mine?

 

Monus the church thing I woulda loved to been a guest in your home during that time of year. My belly would be soooo full and I'd be worshipping the grandmas like goddesses. Lol

 

Hugs,

Greg

[jjkrkwood]

I like a thick meaty sauce and lots of cheese.

 

Hugs,

Greg

 

 

 

YES, thick and meaty, but hold the cheese.... I like my meat CLEAN....

[LookingAround]

I have two close italian friends who are from Italy and they chuckle at Americans of italian backgrounds (when I mention meeting someone Italian, they often ask me "a 'real' Italian or an American who says they're Italian?" My Italian friends from Italy would never mix the sauce with the pasta before serving; ever. And the word 'gravy' would never come out of their mouths. Purely an American invention.

[jjkrkwood]

I like a thick meaty sauce and lots of cheese.

 

Hugs,

Greg

 

[jackjackjack]

Look at this thread. Seaboy asked a simple question, and the answers exploded into a wonderful discussion about sauce or gravy, with recipes added, Arvaguy sharing about his delicious Italian up bringing, of course jjk throws in cock. How fabulous is this forum.?!!!!

And dear folks ......it's sauce not gravy :)

[+ Italiano]

I wonder if thats an east coast thing.

 

Hugs,

Greg

I have two close italian friends who are from Italy and they chuckle at Americans of italian backgrounds (when I mention meeting someone Italian, they often ask me "a 'real' Italian or an American who says they're Italian?" My Italian friends from Italy would never mix the sauce with the pasta before serving; ever. And the word 'gravy' would never come out of their mouths. Purely an American invention.

 

Well, it's definitely true!

I am Italian born and raised (in Milan) and living in NYC for the past 16 years. Having embraced for marriage an Italian-American family arrived in USA 45 years ago and settled in Brooklyn, I have learned to discover habits and things that definitely don't exist (anymore) in most parts of Italy!

And let's not talk about all the Italian-American slang...

 

No, in Italy generally speaking the sauce (gravy???...HAAAAAA!!!!) it's put on top of the pasta al dente, but believe me, it's not a sin at all to add it in the pot (NEVER TOO MUCH SAUCE LIKE THEY DO HERE, PLEEEEEASE!!) and stir it, as now it's actually quite "fashionable" to do that. There is this newish trendy cooking term called "mantecare" which means to have the pasta and the sauce sauté for a minute with the sauce to suck up the flavor.

And then putting it on the dish (piatto) now it's called "spiattare"....

 

Generally Italians don't eat leftover reheated pasta. What they do (especially in the South) is mixing it with 1 or 2 beaten eggs with more parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, and make in a pan a "frittata di pasta", which is really delicious.

 

Sugo and Ragù are not the same, or better said, Ragù is one of many ways to make sugo. Sugo is a general name for a tomato sauce. Ragù is in the north what here is called Bolognese, in the South a Ragù is cooking a piece of meat (not ground) in the sugo until it becomes flaky and then eat it as a second course.

 

Italians have always a first course of pasta or rice (rice more in the north than south), and then a second course with beef, fish, chicken and a side dish. And possibly a dessert.

And generally obesity is not a generalized problem like here.....

 

And no, in Italy they don't eat "spaghetti with meatballs" or "spaghetti bolognese"!

In Italy nobody knows what "fettuccine Alfredo" are. Nobody eats "Ceasar's salad".

 

[MikeBiDude]

This one might drive some of the purists nuts, and believe me I grow my own tomatoes and makes lots of sauce from them, here in SoCal it's quite the extended season.

 

But try this - one 28oz can of whole tomatoes (Roma, Italian, etc,), 5T butter, and one whole (yes!) peeled onion. Simmer all together in a pot about 45 mins breaking up the tomatoes as you go. When ready to serve, just fish out the onion and discard. You're left with a delicious marinara sauce. Modify as you please with fresh basil, etc.

 

I was extremely skeptical when another friend recommended this, we are both good home chefs. But I was pleasantly surprised at how good this very simple sauce is, and I always have good canned Italian tomatoes in the pantry now.

[+ Italiano]

If you want to buy a VERY GOOD canned (bottled, better said...) Italian tomato sauce try to look for MUTTI brand, which is now quite available in USA.

If not, the popular POMI is a good one too. I prefer strained tomatoes.

[+ purplekow]

I have two close italian friends who are from Italy and they chuckle at Americans of italian backgrounds (when I mention meeting someone Italian, they often ask me "a 'real' Italian or an American who says they're Italian?" My Italian friends from Italy would never mix the sauce with the pasta before serving; ever. And the word 'gravy' would never come out of their mouths. Purely an American invention.

If they are European Italian, one presumes Italian is their native language. Not the best source of information regarding Ital0-American terminology or culture. Much of this also has to do with most of the Italian immigrants immigrating from southern Italy into NYC, RI and Montreal and to a lesser degree Boston and Philadelphia. Those enclaves all have idiosyncrasies unique to their version of the Italian American experience. It is also getting to be more than 100 years since that large influx of Italian immigrants, so some things are held dear and others, slip into the melting pot.

[LookingAround]

The title was question for the Italians not the Americans of some Italian lineage.

[jjkrkwood]

Eat MY spaghetti any way you want to ! Any MY sauce is always FRESH !

 

http://image.shutterstock.com/z/stock-photo-sexy-chef-isolated-on-white-background-with-spaghetti-and-pasta-boiling-pot-202373632.jpg

 

 

http://previews.123rf.com/images/ferrerivideo/ferrerivideo1310/ferrerivideo131000003/22567050-sexy-chef-Stock-Photo.jpg

 

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/24/17/3c/24173c56efa14c996e05b4149714e1d7.jpg

 

 

[Reluctant Daddy]

Growing up, Sundays were always "pasta" day at my Nonna's house. Handmade bucatini which she mixed with a little sauce to keep it from sticking while serving. Huge bowls of extra sauce, with meatballs, sausage, pork, beef and hardboiled eggs.

[+ purplekow]

The title was question for the Italians not the Americans of some Italian lineage.

You are correct, however, those of us of certain Italian lineages refer to ourselves, rightly or not, as Italian. But if you are not of such Italian lineage, you may not be aware of that, or perhaps just choose to ignore it. On the other hand, if this was indeed meant for only those who were born in Italy, I await the replies. My cousin and my late aunt, who came to live with my father, her brother, from Italy after WW2, were not distinguishable in the way they ate, acted or served food, from the rest of the Italian Americans in my family, except they managed to keep the waistline intact whereas the rest of my family was not as adept at that. To this day, my cousin Vinny, yes Vinny, is a slim trim and fit individual at nearly 80.

[+ purplekow]

Growing up, Sundays were always "pasta" day at my Nonna's house. Handmade bucatini which she mixed with a little sauce to keep it from sticking while serving. Huge bowls of extra sauce, with meatballs, sausage, pork, beef and hardboiled eggs.

The hard boiled eggs wrapped as part of a braciole?

[+ Truereview]

Well, just like any Italian or Italian American dish, it no good without some drama! Thanks guys!

 

I think I will have a hot dog now. Mayo on top.

[Reluctant Daddy]

The hard boiled eggs wrapped as part of a braciole?

 

Sometimes, and sometimes just straight eggs. During lent she always made a quick garlic and tomato sauce, and we had an egg with it. I actually went to a local restaurant which served something they called Sunday Sauce that included a plain hardboiled egg.

[jjkrkwood]

Well, just like any Italian or Italian American dish, it no good without some drama! Thanks guys!

 

I think I will have a hot dog now. Mayo on top.

 

 

You bring the Meat BALLS and i'll bring the Drama .....

[+ ArVaGuy]

If they are European Italian, one presumes Italian is their native language. Not the best source of information regarding Ital0-American terminology or culture. Much of this also has to do with most of the Italian immigrants immigrating from southern Italy into NYC, RI and Montreal and to a lesser degree Boston and Philadelphia. Those enclaves all have idiosyncrasies unique to their version of the Italian American experience. It is also getting to be more than 100 years since that large influx of Italian immigrants, so some things are held dear and others, slip into the melting pot.

 

PK, you left out New Orleans. A huge number of Italian and Sicilians landed in NOLA. I'm not sure if the boats got lost on the way to New York.

[+ Truereview]

When we say sauce, Is it bolognese by default? My bay ridge friends (Italian Americans) tend to call their bolognese "sauce."

[+ Funguy]

What does WG say to all of this?

 

Più siamo, meglio è!?

[+ Truereview]

What does WG say to all of this?

Whip it, whip it good

[jjkrkwood]

The conditioning to my mouth that "slurping" in that pasta has provided, has served me Really well in other facets of my life ....

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xd7vtk_zS9o/UkSwNKNFj4I/AAAAAAAACow/huTFi4KCls4/s1600/Woman+eating+spaghetti+in+restaurant.+New+York,+1941+(5).jpg

[+ Truereview]

The conditioning to my mouth that "slurping" in that pasta has provided, has served me Really well in other facets of my life ....

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xd7vtk_zS9o/UkSwNKNFj4I/AAAAAAAACow/huTFi4KCls4/s1600/Woman+eating+spaghetti+in+restaurant.+New+York,+1941+(5).jpg

I prefer my "pasta" thicker for such practice/conditioning, but knock yourself out, Mr. Fishy Face.

[+ azdr0710]

one of the best of many fantastic scenes in "Good Fellas".....the guys show up at Mom's (that's Martin Scorsese's mother, by the way) house at 2am and she decides to throw just a little food together for them.....hilarious at 0:59:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eVqdnDk02Y

[gallahadesquire]

Since my sister's son had his DNA processed, and he's only from the UK (and Ireland), I assume I'm in a similar genetic stream.

My adopted home town of Worcester, MA has one kind of Restaurant: Italian. I've heard tomato based sauce called "Red gravy" as opposed to beef based "Brown gravy."

 

I saw a patient preoperatively once. At the end of my interview, she said "You Paisan?" I stumbled, "uh ... no ..." and she said "You look Paisan!" [The British think I'm one of them when I'm in the UK]. I was later told that she was giving me a compliment.

 

... and my local Jewish friends used to ask me when the High Holy Days were.

 

So go figure.