Latest news with #FiepetConfesercenti
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- General
- Hindustan Times
Warning: Any changes to this traditional Cacio e Pepe recipe will draw the wrath of the Italians!
No tongue-in-cheek reel about snapping a bunch of spaghetti down the middle and dumping it in a pot is really complete without some mortified Italians — either in-frame or in the comments section. The decadent food of the tourist-favourite location is easily one of its most mammoth selling points when it comes to culture cred and messing with it is something Italians just won't have. The Italians are up in arms about a tweaked version of the age-old Cacio e Pepe: Here's the traditional recipe The trajectory of the Cacio e Pepe controversy is also somewhat similar. A Good Food recipe of the traditional dish found itself under legal fire from the Fiepet Confesercenti, an association representing restaurants in Italy, for the tweaked version it presented, the parmesan cheese and butter being the bones of contention. While adding some butter, cream or a cheese of your choice may not feel like a big deal, meddling in the texture and natural trajectory of the Cacio e Pepe has clearly been triggering. Come to think of it, the original recipe has all of 3 ingredients (no, literally) and can be made in quite a jiffy, IF done the right way. Cacio e Pepe — the traditional way Ingredients: Whole black peppercorns - 1/2tbsp, finely grated pecorino romano - 2.5 cups, spaghetti - 250gms, salt for the pasta water Method: Bring some water to a boil in a pot — keep in mind to not take as much water as you would to usually cook 250gms of pasta, the recipe asks for it to be significantly less. Salt the water as it comes to a boil. As this happens, grate the pecorino romano and crush the peppercorns in a mortar and pestle reserving about 1.5tsps of the coarse powder. Add the spaghetti into the water now and cook it only halfway through before taking off heat — it will finish cooking later in the pan. Put said pan on heat and toast 1.5tsps of the pepper powder for a minute max till aromatic. Be sure to not burn this. Now add a ladle of pasta water and wait till the pepper has infused with it before going in with the spaghetti. Cook this medium heat till it feels al dente, constantly tossing to allow the starch to release into the pan and amplify that creamy effect. Add a splash of pasta water to the pecorino romano and mix with a fork to achieve a paste-like texture. Once the pasta is cooked, take it off heat and add the former. Give it a good toss till all the starchy components fuse. Serve with a slight dusting of pepper powder and pecorino romano. (recipe from Pina Bresciani) While this recipe does require some tedious skill in the kitchen, it's hardly something unachievable. So will you be giving this traditional Roman recipe an authentic shot?
IOL News
5 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
No butter, no joke: Italians demand British embassy step in after pasta recipe backlash
Fiepet Confesercenti, the leading trade association for Italian restauranteurs, is demanding an official correction, claiming the British version disrespects Italian tradition. Imagine the British Embassy receiving an urgent letter - not about trade or diplomacy, but about butter in pasta. Who knew that a rogue knob of butter could spark a near-diplomatic crisis? Italian restaurateurs have protested in what they see as a high-culinary betrayal, and yes, the British Embassy may now be fielding more pasta complaints than trade inquiries. When the UK food website 'Good Food' (formerly BBC Good Food) called Roman cacio e pepe 'a speedy lunch' made with four ingredients, including butter and Parmesan, Italians were outraged. Purists pointed out that the authentic Roman dish has just three staples: pasta (often tonnarelli), black pepper, and pecorino Romano - no more, no less. Claudio Pica, president of Fiepet-Confesercenti in Rome and Lazio, formally lodged a protest - writing both to the media company Immediate Media, which publishes Good Food and the British ambassador in Rome for what he called an 'absurd mystification' of culinary tradition. Italian media had a field day. One newspaper, riffing on Britain's national anthem, quipped, 'God save the cacio e pepe'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
British Pasta Recipe Sparks Wave of Outrage in Italy
The British Broadcasting Corporation, or BBC, publishes recipes from around the world in the Food category on its website, including numerous pasta dishes from Italy. However, a recently published recipe for a traditional Roman pasta dish has sparked outrage among Italian restaurateurs. TRAVELBOOK reveals what it's all about. When it comes to their original recipes, Italians are famously uncompromising. Recently, an Australian restaurant chain caused a social media storm with its unconventional pizza creation featuring ham and oranges (TRAVELBOOK reported). And it's not uncommon for Italian restaurateurs to charge a penalty fee to guests who order a Hawaiian pizza. In the current case, it's a recipe for the traditional Roman pasta dish Cacio e Pepe, published by the BBC, that has drawn the ire of Italians. According to the Italian daily newspaper 'Il Messaggero,' the British are committing a 'mortal sin' in the eyes of Roman chefs by listing butter and Parmesan as basic ingredients. 'We Are Stunned' 'We are stunned when we read this recipe on the BBC website,' the newspaper quotes Claudio Pica, president of the Roman restaurant association Fiepet Confesercenti. 'We regret having to correct the venerable British medium, but the original and authentic recipe for Cacio e Pepe does not include Parmesan or butter. The ingredients are not four, but three: pasta, pepper, and Pecorino.' What particularly bothers him is the fact that the BBC presents the recipe as the original recipe—and not as a possible variation. 'We have asked the BBC website to correct the recipe and informed the British Embassy in Rome.' Another Cacio e Pepe Recipe Causes New Stir In the meantime, the BBC has indeed slightly modified the recipe and now lists Pecorino instead of Parmesan in the ingredients. However, butter is still listed as a basic ingredient. And now another recipe for Cacio e Pepe, also published on the BBC website, is causing new controversy. This one even recommends adding cream to make the sauce 'creamier.' 'The BBC even recommends Cacio e Pepe with cream—an affront to all Roman restaurateurs!' exclaims Claudio Pica in another report by 'Il Messaggero.' He then addresses King Charles II: 'Come to Rome—I invite you and will serve you a Cacio e Pepe according to all the rules of art and tradition.' Whether the King of England will accept this invitation is questionable. In any case, it remains to be seen whether the pasta dispute between London and Rome will go another round. The post British Pasta Recipe Sparks Wave of Outrage in Italy appeared first on TRAVELBOOK.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Fury over UK recipe for pasta sparks complaints to British embassy in Rome... because of two additional ingredients
A UK recipe for a popular Roman pasta dish has sparked fury in Italy after it allegedly botched the meal by adding two additional ingredients. The cacio e pepe recipe on Good Food, formerly owned by the BBC, branded the traditional pasta a 'store cupboard favourite' and advised readers they could whip it up using four simple ingredients - spaghetti, pepper, parmesan and butter. But Italians have hit back with fury. The real deal, they say, uses just three ingredients - tonnarelli pasta, black pepper, and pecorino Romano. Now, Fiepet Confesercenti, the leading trade association for Italian restauranteurs, is demanding an official correction, claiming the post misleads readers and disrespects Italian tradition. They have even raised the issue with the British Embassy in Rome in a bid to 'safeguard this iconic dish'. The blunder, which has been online for months, only recently caught the attention of furious food purists - despite a few sharp-eyed readers calling it out earlier. But a video accompanying the recipe showing a thick knob of butter melting into a pan seems to have been the final insult. Claudio Pica, head of the Rome branch of Fiepet Confesercenti, said the association was 'astonished' to see the recipe on such a popular and esteemed food site, adding that letters have been sent to Immediate Media, the site's owner, and the British ambassador to Rome, Edward Llewellyn. 'This iconic dish, traditionally from Rome and the Lazio region, has been a staple of Italian cuisine for years, so much so it has been replicated even beyond Italy's borders,' he said. 'We regret to contradict the historic and authoritative British media, but the original recipe for cacio e pepe excludes parmesan and butter. There are not four ingredients, but three: pasta, pepper and pecorino.' He admitted that while chefs might experiment from time to time, misrepresenting such a dish as the authentic original is a step too far. Unsurprisingly, Italian media has been gleefully lapping up the culinary scandal. Rome's Il Messaggero quipped: 'Paraphrasing the famous British anthem 'God save the king', Rome restaurateurs are now saying: 'God save the cacio e pepe'.' But this is not the first time foreign cooks have tampered with Italian classics and been burned. In 2021, the New York Times sparked a similar uproar with its 'smoky tomato carbonara' – a version of the traditional Roman dish that included tomatoes. Despite backlash from Coldiretti, Italy's powerful farming lobby, the recipe resurfaced again in 2023 – suggesting the US paper was unbothered by Italian disapproval. And Italians aren't shy about calling out 'crimes' against their cuisine, from chicken stirred into pasta to pineapple on pizza. The New York Times also once stirred outrage in the UKby describing the Yorkshire pudding – a Sunday roast staple – as a 'large, fluffy pancake' suitable for breakfast, lunch or dessert.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
Inclusion of butter in UK recipe for cacio e pepe draws outrage from Italian media
One of the UK's most popular food websites has cooked up a storm in Italy after allegedly botching a recipe for the traditional Roman pasta dish, cacio e pepe, drawing diplomatic representations from the main trade association for Italian restaurateurs. A recipe on Good Food, formerly owned by the BBC, which continues to licence the web address – described cacio e pepe, a culinary institution in the Italian capital, as a 'store cupboard favourite' that could easily be whipped up for 'a speedy lunch' using 'four simple ingredients – spaghetti, pepper, parmesan and butter'. The notion that making cacio e pepe is easy was bad enough, but the presence of parmesan cheese and butter has been deemed a cardinal sin. Traditional cacio e pepe contains three ingredients: pasta (usually tonnarelli, a type of spaghetti), pecorino Romano cheese and black pepper. Such is the fury, Fiepet Confesercenti, an association that represents restaurants in Italy, said it would demand a correction from the website in order to 'safeguard this iconic dish'. Furthermore, it has taken up the issue with the British embassy in Rome. The recipe appears to have been on the site for about three months, but despite a couple of readers calling out the butter blunder, it only now seems to have caught the attention of Fiepet Confesercenti, which was also offended by the brief preparation video that runs alongside it showing a chunk of butter being put into a pan. Claudio Pica, the president of the Rome unit for Fiepet Confesercenti, said the association was 'astonished' to see the recipe on such a popular and esteemed food site, adding that letters have been sent to Immediate Media, the site's owner, and the British ambassador to Rome, Edward Llewellyn. 'This iconic dish, traditionally from Rome and the Lazio region, has been a staple of Italian cuisine for years, so much so it has been replicated even beyond Italy's borders,' he added. 'We regret to contradict the historic and authoritative British media, but the original recipe for cacio e pepe excludes parmesan and butter. There are not four ingredients, but three: pasta, pepper and pecorino.' Pica admitted that while some chefs may dabble with the recipe, the main concern is that the website has misled readers by presenting the dish as the original. The Guardian has asked Immediate Media for comment. Italian newspapers have had a field day over the controversy, with the Rome-based Il Messaggero writing: 'Paraphrasing the famous British anthem 'God save the king', Rome restaurateurs are now saying: 'God save the cacio e pepe'.' The Guardian's 2021 recipe for the dish by the food writer Felicity Cloake comprises just pasta, pepper and pecorino. It is not the first time the foreign media has become embroiled in an Italian food row. In 2021, the New York Times published a tinkered-with recipe for another classic Roman pasta dish, carbonara, which included tomatoes. While the description of the recipe, called 'smoky tomato carbonara' and created by Kay Chun, did warn readers that it was not the original, Coldiretti, the Italian farmers' association, lashed out, saying the alteration was 'the tip of the iceberg in the falsification of traditional Italian dishes'. Given that Chun's recipe was again published in 2023, it appears the newspaper was unperturbed by the indignation. Italians often mock foreigners for their interpretation of an Italian recipe, especially pineapple on pizza or mixing pasta with chicken. The New York Times also provoked outrage in the UK in 2018 after publishing a recipe in which it described the yorkshire pudding, a roast dinner staple, as a 'large, fluffy pancake' that was excellent for 'breakfast, brunch, lunch and dessert any time of the year'.
