Today we will tell you everything about pizz e foje: what it is, when it is done, how, where and why
Pizz e foje is a lit fireplace.
It is a winter evening in Abruzzo.
It's family, it's friends, it's us.
Thanks to the lady Anna Domenica Di Matteo for letting us discover everything about this dish and for preparing one of the most traditional versions that is still under the cuoppo.
Thing
Pizz e foje is a poor dish of the Abruzzo peasant tradition. Pizz stands for a kind of pizza made with corn flour, which is then topped with foje, that is, vegetables. In the past it was mostly the wild ones that were found in the countryside, such as for example nettles is chicory; then cultivated vegetables such as turnips, turnip tops, cabbage, cabbages. "It is no coincidence that it is said that I did not understand a cabbage, because cabbage indicates many different types of vegetables, but always basic with three characteristics: green, winter and with leaves", explains Anna. Over time, together with the availability, the variants have also increased, so other ingredients have been added to pizz and foje, such as sardines, cruschi peppers or beans. In short, what is there. But it is certainly not a novelty that we have always tried to enrich corn-based dishes, such as polenta, especially when present continuously on the tables; and not only for a matter of taste, but also to vary a diet that, as is well known, has led to diseases such as pellagra.
When
Pizz e foje is done strictly in winter, with the first cold weather, usually between December and January. This is mainly for two reasons: the first is because winter season vegetables are used; the second is because it is a dish that is prepared on the fire when the fireplace is on. In the past, it was much more often, Anna tells us, “at least once a week at least! Today things have changed, if it is done once a year it is already a lot ".
Such as
Initially pizz e foje is prepared like polenta, that is, by cooking corn flour in boiling water. Once ready, roll out the dough with a thickness of about one centimeter on a baking tray or pan depending on the type of cooking. In the past the pizz it was cooked directly on the stone or on the bricks of the fireplace, under the cuoppo, which is a kind of aluminum lid covered with embers. But today there are practically no more fireplaces in the houses, which is why pizz e foje is being prepared less and less or, even worse, jokes Anna, at oven. "But it comes with another flavor, it's just another thing! At best it should be done grilled or grilled . The vegetables, on the other hand, are cooked separately with oil, garlic and chilli. Finally, the union between the two parts of the dish takes place: the pizz, hard and crunchy, it is broken directly on the plate, where it mixes, softens and gives flavor on contact with foje and other ingredients.
Where is it
Although all the Abruzzo docs know pizz and foje, this dish is widespread above all in one area of the region. This is the province of Chieti, in particular of Lanciano and in the mountain areas, where it is colder. Then over time it also spread elsewhere, but this remains its area of origin.
Why
But why should this dish continue to be prepared? First of all because it means being together, because it is a dish with a strong social charge, which is never eaten alone, but always with more people. This is why it is prepared only on special occasions, such as special evenings, events or anniversaries. «Today it is mainly an aperitif, which is made more out of desire than out of necessity. And then because it is the excuse to drink one of the great Abruzzo wines all together: in the past with a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, of course; but today the producers of Villamagna recommend something lighter, as an aperitif, like a Pecorino or a Cerasuolo, which lightens and refreshes the intense flavors of pizz and foje.
For all these reasons this it is an emblematic dish, witness and symbol of the passing and changing of times, since we remember that fire and cooking on the fire mean first of all waiting.
This recipe has already been read 1251 times!