#italian
46 viral recipes tagged #italian.
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Cacio e Pepe — Roman Pecorino & Black Pepper Pasta
Three ingredients, four minutes, every variable on a knife edge. Tonnarelli, pecorino romano, and an obscene amount of fresh black pepper.
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Lasagne alla Bolognese
The real Bolognese lasagne: layers of fresh egg pasta (ideally green spinach sheets), a long-simmered ragù, silky béchamel, and parmesan, baked until the edges crisp and the centre is molten. A Sunday institution from Emilia-Romagna.
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Pizza Margherita — Neapolitan Pizza at Home
The original Neapolitan pizza: a slow-fermented dough stretched thin, topped simply with San Marzano tomato, fresh mozzarella, and basil, baked as hot as your oven goes until the crust blisters. Three toppings, total respect for the dough.
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Risotto alla Milanese — Saffron Risotto
Milan's golden risotto, stained and perfumed with saffron and finished with a generous mantecatura of butter and Parmigiano. Traditionally made with beef bone marrow and a rich meat stock, it's the classic partner to osso buco — but it's a glorious dish in its own right: creamy, glossy and all'onda (rippling like a wave).
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Spaghetti alla Carbonara — Roman Egg & Guanciale Pasta
The real Roman carbonara: no cream, ever. Just crisp guanciale, egg yolks, Pecorino Romano and a storm of black pepper, emulsified with starchy pasta water into a glossy, clinging sauce. Four ingredients, perfect technique — the whole dish lives or dies on not scrambling the eggs.
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Tiramisù — Classic Italian Coffee Dessert
Italy's most famous dessert: layers of espresso-soaked savoiardi under a cloud of mascarpone cream, dusted with bitter cocoa. No baking, no gelatine — just a silky zabaglione-style cream, good coffee and an overnight rest in the fridge. 'Tiramisù' means 'pick me up' — and it does.
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Parmigiana di Melanzane — Baked Eggplant Parmesan
Southern Italy's great vegetable bake: layers of fried aubergine, rich tomato sauce, torn mozzarella and grated Parmigiano, baked until bubbling and golden. Comforting, meat-free and even better the next day, it's a Sunday-table classic claimed proudly by Campania, Sicily and beyond.
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Potato Gnocchi — Pillowy Italian Dumplings
Soft, pillowy potato dumplings from northern Italy: just floury potatoes, a little flour and egg, worked gently into a dough, rolled, cut and ridged. The secret is a light hand — too much flour or working makes them heavy. Boiled until they bob to the surface and tossed with tomato-basil sauce or sage butter, they're tender, comforting and quick to cook.
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Bucatini all'Amatriciana — Roman Tomato & Guanciale Pasta
One of Rome's four great pastas: crisp guanciale and a quick tomato sauce sharpened with peperoncino and finished with sharp Pecorino Romano. Born in the town of Amatrice, it's bold, porky and just-spicy — proof that four or five great ingredients beat a long list. Traditionally tossed with bucatini, the thick hollow spaghetti that catches the sauce.
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Focaccia — Italian Olive Oil Bread
Italy's golden olive-oil bread: a wet, slow-risen dough drenched in good olive oil, dimpled all over with your fingers, scattered with rosemary and flaky salt, and baked until crisp-bottomed and pillowy within. Forgiving, deeply satisfying and endlessly adaptable — proof that flour, water, salt, yeast and great oil can make something extraordinary.
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Bruschetta — Italian Grilled Bread with Tomato
Italy's perfect antipasto: thick slices of country bread grilled until charred, rubbed with a raw garlic clove, drizzled with good olive oil, and — in the classic version — heaped with diced ripe tomato and basil. It began as a way to taste new olive oil on toasted bread; the magic is in great bread, great oil and great tomatoes, and almost no cooking.
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Insalata Caprese — Tomato, Mozzarella & Basil Salad
The salad that captures an Italian summer in three ingredients: ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil, arranged in the red-white-green of the Italian flag, dressed simply with good olive oil and salt. From the island of Capri, it's barely a recipe — which is exactly why it lives or dies on the quality of the tomatoes, the mozzarella and the oil.
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Lasagne alla Bolognese — Classic Baked Lasagna
The great baked pasta of Emilia-Romagna: layers of fresh egg pasta with a long-simmered ragù alla bolognese, silky béchamel and Parmigiano, baked until the edges crisp and the centre is meltingly rich. A proper lasagne is a project — but the slow ragù and the béchamel-not-ricotta layering are what make it taste like Bologna rather than a casserole.
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Osso Buco alla Milanese — Braised Veal Shanks
Milan's great braise: thick cross-cut veal shanks browned and slowly simmered with soffritto, white wine and broth until the meat is fork-tender and the marrow in the bone turns silky. Finished with gremolata — a bright hit of raw lemon zest, garlic and parsley — osso buco alla Milanese is traditionally served with saffron risotto (risotto alla Milanese). It's elegant, deeply savoury winter food that rewards a long, gentle cook.
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Saltimbocca alla Romana — Veal with Prosciutto & Sage
Rome's quick, elegant classic whose name means 'jumps in the mouth': thin veal escalopes each topped with a slice of prosciutto and a sage leaf, pan-fried in butter and finished with a quick white wine pan sauce. Saltimbocca alla Romana is ready in minutes and tastes far more luxurious than the effort — the salty prosciutto, fragrant sage and tender veal in a glossy buttery sauce are a perfect, restrained trio.
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Minestrone — Italian Vegetable & Bean Soup
Italy's great soup of the cucina povera: a hearty, ever-changing pot of seasonal vegetables, beans and a little pasta or rice, built on a slow-cooked soffritto and simmered until everything is tender and the broth is rich and savoury. Minestrone has no fixed recipe — it's a celebration of whatever the garden and pantry offer — but the soffritto base, a Parmesan rind in the pot, and a finish of good olive oil and grated cheese turn humble vegetables into something deeply comforting.
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Panna Cotta — Italian Set Cream Dessert
Northern Italy's silkiest dessert: sweetened cream gently infused with vanilla and just set with a little gelatine into a delicate, trembling, melt-in-the-mouth cream that's barely held together. 'Panna cotta' means 'cooked cream', and the whole art is using the minimum gelatine for that perfect wobble — not a firm jelly. Turned out and pooled with a fruit coulis or caramel, it's effortlessly elegant, made ahead, and endlessly adaptable in flavour.
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Arancini — Sicilian Stuffed Fried Rice Balls
Sicily's golden street-food jewels: balls of saffron risotto-style rice wrapped around a molten filling — classically a ragù of meat and peas with mozzarella, or ham and cheese — then crumbed and deep-fried until crisp and deep gold. Their name means 'little oranges', for their colour and shape. Crack the crunchy shell and the rice gives way to a savoury, cheesy, sometimes oozing centre. Found in every Sicilian bar and bakery, arancini are the perfect way to transform rice into something irresistible — crisp outside, creamy and rich within.
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Alfredo Sauce
The original Roman Alfredo is not a cream sauce at all: it's an emulsion of nothing but butter, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and starchy pasta water, whipped against hot fettuccine until it turns glossy and clings to every strand. Done right, it's silkier and more savory than any cream version — and it comes together in the time it takes the pasta to cook.
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Baked Ziti
Tubes of ziti bound in a long-simmered tomato sauce, layered with ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan, then baked until the edges char and the center pulls in long, molten strands. This is the Sunday-supper version: saucy, deeply seasoned, and built to feed a crowd or a lasagna-shaped hole in your week.
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Fettuccine Alfredo
The real Roman original: a glossy, three-ingredient emulsion of butter, young Parmigiano-Reggiano, and starchy pasta water tossed through fresh egg fettuccine — no cream anywhere. Done right it's silk that clings to every strand, richer-tasting than any cream sauce and ready in the time it takes the pasta to cook.
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Marinara Sauce
A pure, garlicky Neapolitan tomato sauce built on just six ingredients, simmered until the tomatoes collapse into a glossy, bright-red sauce with real body. No onions, no meat, no sugar - just the clean, sun-warm taste of good tomatoes coaxed out with garlic, olive oil, and torn basil.
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Creamy Polenta
Coarse cornmeal simmered low and slow, then whisked with butter and Parmigiano until it pours like warm silk. This is the northern Italian version worth the stir: sweet corn flavor, a glossy sheen, and enough body to cradle a braise or hold a puddle of good olive oil.
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Spaghetti Aglio e Olio
Spaghetti aglio e olio is Naples' answer to a five-ingredient midnight supper: al dente spaghetti tossed in warm, garlic-infused olive oil sparked with chili and fresh parsley. Slowly cooking sliced garlic until pale gold keeps it sweet rather than bitter, while a splash of starchy pasta water emulsifies the oil into a glossy sauce that clings to every strand. It's fast, pantry-friendly, and endlessly satisfying.
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Italian Seasoning
Homemade Italian seasoning is a dry blend of Mediterranean herbs — basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, and sage — that you stir together in minutes and keep on the shelf for months. Crushing the woodier herbs makes the mix fluffy and even, so a single pinch tastes balanced instead of stray rosemary needles or a clump of oregano. Because it starts from whole-leaf dried herbs rather than pre-ground dust, the aroma stays brighter and greener than anything from a jar.
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Parmesan Garlic Orzo
This Parmesan garlic orzo is a one-pan Italian side that cooks risotto-style: the little rice-shaped pasta is toasted in butter until nutty, then simmered in garlicky broth so each grain stays tender and separate in a glossy, creamy sauce. Finished off the heat with a generous handful of Parmesan and an optional splash of cream, it lands somewhere between a pilaf and a risotto — rich, savory, and ready in about half an hour.
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Baked Manicotti
Baked manicotti is the ultimate Italian-American comfort dish: wide pasta tubes packed with a creamy, herb-flecked ricotta-and-mozzarella filling, blanketed in marinara, and baked until the top is bubbling and golden. Whole-milk ricotta and a quick homemade sauce keep the filling rich but never watery, while a foil-then-uncovered bake gives you tender pasta with a browned, cheesy crown. It's a make-ahead-friendly crowd-pleaser that comes together with pantry staples.
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Balsamic Glaze
Balsamic glaze is simply balsamic vinegar simmered down to a glossy, pourable syrup — deeply savory-sweet with a bright tang that softens as it thickens. A whisper of brown sugar rounds out inexpensive supermarket vinegar and helps the glaze cling to whatever you drizzle it over. Because the syrup keeps thickening as it cools, pulling it off the heat while it still looks a little loose is the whole trick.
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Italian Meatballs
Tender, juicy meatballs made from equal parts beef and pork, bound with a milk-soaked bread panade, Parmigiano, garlic, and parsley, then browned and gently simmered in a bright crushed-tomato sauce. The panade keeps the interior soft while browning builds savory depth, and finishing them in the sauce lets the meatballs stay moist while flavoring the sauce as they cook. It is honest, weeknight-friendly comfort food that tastes like it took all day.
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Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
A weeknight-friendly pot of spaghetti in a rich, slow-simmered tomato and ground beef sauce that clings to every strand. Browning the beef until it forms deep, savory bits and toasting the tomato paste before the tomatoes go in builds a sauce that tastes long-cooked in well under an hour. It is cozy, garlicky, and just tangy enough, with fresh basil and Parmesan to finish.
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Chicken Milanese
Chicken Milanese is the Italian answer to a perfect weeknight cutlet: chicken breast pounded thin, coated in Parmesan-spiked breadcrumbs, and shallow-fried in olive oil and butter until deeply golden and shatteringly crisp. Pounding the meat to an even 6 mm means it cooks through in the same few minutes the crust needs to brown, so you get juicy chicken and crackly coating in one pass. A squeeze of lemon and a pile of peppery arugula cut the richness and make it taste like a trattoria plate.
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Chicken Piccata
Chicken piccata is the Italian-American weeknight hero: thin, golden-crusted chicken cutlets draped in a glossy pan sauce of lemon, white wine, butter, and briny capers. The light flour dredge does double duty — it browns into a delicate crust and then thickens the sauce as the pan drippings dissolve. Because the cutlets are pounded thin, they cook in minutes and stay juicy under all that bright, buttery sauce.
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Rigatoni al Segreto
Rigatoni al Segreto is the famous "secret sauce" pasta from New York's old-school Italian dining rooms: a simple tomato-basil sauce blended silky, then finished off the heat with cold butter and a flurry of Parmigiano-Reggiano. The secret is technique, not exotic ingredients — emulsifying butter into the smooth sauce turns it glossy, rich, and almost creamy without any cream. Finishing the rigatoni in the pan lets the wide tubes drink up the sauce and trap it inside, so every bite is coated in and out.
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Vodka Sauce
Vodka sauce is the Italian-American classic that turns canned tomatoes, a splash of vodka, and a pour of cream into a silky, blush-pink sauce that clings to every ridge of pasta. Caramelizing the tomato paste until it turns brick red builds deep, almost roasted sweetness, while the vodka lifts the tomatoes' brightest aromas and helps the cream and tomato emulsify into one glossy sauce instead of two separate layers. It comes together in one pan in about 45 minutes and tastes like it simmered all afternoon.
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Stracciatella Soup
Stracciatella is Rome's answer to egg drop soup: golden chicken broth laced with tender shreds of Parmigiano-enriched egg, warmed with nutmeg and a whisper of lemon zest. The "little rags" (stracciatella means exactly that) form because you stream the egg mixture into barely simmering broth and let it set for a moment before stirring — pour into boiling broth and you get cloudy wisps instead. A spoonful of semolina in the eggs is the old Roman trick that gives the rags body, so they stay silky rather than dissolving.
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Spaghetti all'Assassina
Spaghetti all'assassina is Bari's famously "burnt" pasta: raw spaghetti seared directly in a garlicky, chili-laced tomato base, then fed ladles of hot tomato broth like a risotto. Because the noodles never see a pot of boiling water, their starch toasts and caramelizes against the skillet, giving you strands that are chewy in the middle and crackling, smoky, and mahogany-charred at the edges. It is fiery, a little dramatic, and unlike any other tomato pasta you have made.
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Homemade Mascarpone Cheese
Mascarpone is Italy's silkiest fresh cheese — a thick, spoonable cream with a gentle sweetness and none of cream cheese's tang. This version needs just heavy cream and a squeeze of lemon juice: warming the cream to 85°C lets the acid tighten its proteins into a lush, velvety curd, and an overnight drain through cheesecloth turns it dense enough to hold a peak. It costs a fraction of store-bought and tastes noticeably fresher in tiramisu, frostings, or simply spooned over berries.
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Spaghetti alla Nerano
Spaghetti alla Nerano is the Amalfi Coast dish that turns a pile of humble zucchini into a silky, deeply savory pasta — the one that became famous as the "stanley tucci zucchini pasta" after his Searching for Italy episode. Thin zucchini coins are fried until golden and jammy, rested so their flavor concentrates, then melted into starchy pasta water with Provolone del Monaco, butter, and basil. The vigorous off-heat toss (mantecatura) is what binds oil, cheese, and starch into a glossy cream with no actual cream in sight.
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Mushroom Risotto
A deeply savory Italian classic: arborio rice simmered slowly in porcini-infused broth until each grain is creamy outside and just al dente at the center. Searing the fresh mushrooms separately first, instead of steaming them in the rice, keeps them browned and meaty, while the porcini soaking liquid gives the whole pot layers of woodsy flavor. A final off-heat swirl of butter and Parmigiano brings it all together into a glossy, spoonable risotto.
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Antipasto Salad
Antipasto salad takes everything you love about an Italian antipasto platter — salty salami, creamy mozzarella, briny olives, tangy artichokes and pepperoncini — and tosses it over crisp romaine with a punchy red wine vinaigrette. The trick is marinating the meats, cheeses, and jarred vegetables in half the dressing first, so every hearty bite is seasoned through while the lettuce stays crunchy. It comes together in about half an hour with zero cooking, which makes it a reliable main-course salad or the first dish to disappear at a potluck.
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Homemade Italian Sausage
Bulk Italian sausage made from scratch: cold ground pork kneaded with toasted fennel, garlic, paprika, and a splash of red wine vinegar until it turns springy and tacky. A short cure in the fridge lets the salt and spices penetrate, so every bite tastes like good salumeria sausage instead of seasoned ground meat. No casings, no stuffer — just a bowl, your hands, and a hot skillet.
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Cafe Latte
A cafe latte is Italy's gentlest espresso drink: a double shot stretched with warm milk and capped with a thin, silky layer of microfoam. Heating the milk to just 55-65°C keeps its natural sweetness intact, so the drink tastes rounder and creamier than the same coffee with cold milk stirred in. You do not need a fancy machine — a moka pot and a French press (or even a lidded jar) get you a genuinely velvety latte at home.
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Fried Eggplant
Golden, crackly rounds of eggplant in a Parmesan-flecked breadcrumb crust, fried the way Italian home cooks make melanzane fritte. Salting the slices first pulls out excess water, so the inside cooks to a silky, custard-like softness instead of soaking up oil. A classic flour-egg-breadcrumb coating fried in hot olive oil keeps every piece crisp, light, and never greasy.
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One-Pan Orecchiette Pasta
Little ear-shaped orecchiette simmer right in the skillet with browned Italian sausage and chicken broth, so the pasta releases its starch into the pan and builds its own silky, clingy sauce — no separate pot, no draining. Peppery arugula wilts in at the end, and a handful of Parmesan plus a squeeze of lemon pulls the whole thing into a glossy, savory weeknight dinner in about 40 minutes.
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Linguine with Clam Sauce
A briny, garlicky white clam sauce that comes together in the time it takes the linguine to boil, using pantry-friendly canned clams plus bottled clam juice for real depth. The trick is finishing the pasta in the simmering sauce so the starch pulls everything into a glossy coating, then adding the clams off the heat at the very end so they stay tender instead of turning rubbery. It tastes like a coastal trattoria dinner from a weeknight pantry.
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Homemade Four-Cheese Ravioli
Silky egg-pasta pillows stuffed with a creamy blend of ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Gorgonzola, finished in sage-scented butter. Draining the ricotta and binding the filling with a single yolk keeps it lush but firm, so the ravioli seal cleanly and never turn watery. Rolling the dough thin enough to read a headline through it gives you tender pasta that cooks in under four minutes.
italianpastavegetarian