Two traditional dishes from Northern Italy are risotto and tagliatelle. Risotto is said to have been discovered by accident when some one tried to cook rice in a pan that was far too small and therefore had to add water little by little. To make a good risotto you need a type of rice rich in starch, ideally a type that grows in Northern Italy called Arborio rice, which is widely available elsewhere these days. You should use a wooden spoon to stir your rice but you do not want to stir too much not too break the grains as the starch should be released gradually from the grains. Once you learn how to make a decent risotto you can then experiment with hundreds of different combinations. Risotto is easy to make, cheap, can be vegetarian or even vegan and can be adjusted to fit different dietary requirements and be served in so many different ways. Here you can try a strawberry risotto recipe which is not something that you would expect but I assure you that it is delicious.
If you prefer to try some pasta you could start with tagliatelle. Unlike other types of pasta tagliatelle do not come from the South of Italy but from the area of Bologna. The legend says that they were invented by a creative chef for Lucretia Borgia’s wedding. You can add many different types of sauces to tagliatelle the most common one is the famous bolognese sauce but you can find here recipes for tagliatelle with pumpkin flowers. Again tagliatelle can be a vegetarian dish and also part of a healthy Mediterranean diet, it is also a cheap and quick dish to prepare. Tagliatelle are long and flat ribbons of pasta commonly yellow but there is also a green version often made with spinach and occasionally with nettles.
Tags: Arborio rice, Italian cuisine, strawberry risotto, tagliatelle