The cooking of Campania
has spread globally

To most foreigners "Italian cuisine" is basically Neapolitan cooking because most of the Italian immigrants to the world came from the Campanian city of Naples and its environs. When this ethnic group opened restaurants in their new countries, they naturally served the style of food it loved and knew best: Neapolitan (Campanian) cooking.

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Cooking ingredients
of Naples and Campania

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Produce

The Campanian countryside produces superb fruits and vegetables, particularly tomatoes and eggplants.

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Mozzarella

The bland Mozzarella cheese that is made from water buffalo milk regularly finds its way to the table, often with tomatoes on a salad plate.

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Pasta

Spaghetti is a favorite, and is frequently served covered with seafood and meatless marinara tomato sauce.

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Other basic ingredients

They include garlic, onions, bread, olive oil, oregano and other heady herbs.

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Seafood

It's the principal protein source and can be scungilli (conch), clams, mussels, octopus, squid, shrimp, or any of a wide variety of locally caught fish.

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Meat

Although Neapolitan Italian restaurants in countries like America serve a lot of meatballs, red meat is infrequently eaten by the average Campanian because it tends to be expensive owing to poor pasturage conditions. Poultry, in terms of use and popularity, falls between seafood and red meat.

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Famous specialties
of Naples and Campania

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Bistecca alla Pizzaiola

A thin, usually tough beefsteak masked with a garlicky, oregano-flavored tomato sauce.

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Calzone alla Napoletana

Deep fried, crescent shaped dough stuffed (usually) with ham flecked Mozzarella cheese.

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Lasagna

A baked dish comprising alternating layers of wide noodles, cheese, and seasoned meat sauce. (This dish is equally popular in several other Italian regions.)

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Mozzarella in Carrozza

Literally, Mozzarella on a Carriage. The cheese is inserted between slices of bread, then dipped in an egg batter and cooked in hot oil. Essentially, it's a deep fried cheese sandwich.

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Parmigiana di Melanzane

Sliced eggplant baked with cheese and a garlic and oregano laced tomato sauce.

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Pizza

The Neapolitan version (topped with ingredients such as mozzarella cheese, green peppers, onions, sliced sausage, anchovies and tomato sauce) is popular worldwide.

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Best city for gourmets

Naples is the top all around food city in Campania. Criteria include cooking, food markets, cooking ingredients, cooking schools, beverages, dining and restaurants. Salerno is the runner-up.

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Test yourself

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