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Tomatoes Aren’t Actually Italian
How an imported fruit became the face of modern Italian cuisine
Modern Italian food is flush with the use of juicy red tomatoes. The tomato seems to be everywhere from Caprese salad to pizza and pasta with red sauce. These are some of the most iconic Italian dishes available today and they have made their way around the globe as ambassadors for Italian food. It makes one beg the question:
What is more Italian than the tomato?
It turns out, quite a lot actually.
Tomatoes aren’t really Italian at all. They are an imported fruit that did not begin to catch on as a staple in Italian cuisine until the late 19th century. In fact, tomatoes originated in North America and they have no natural relatives in the Old World that can be compared to the tomatoes we all know and love today.
How did a New World fruit become an Old World staple?
The importation of the tomato
The tomato began being imported from North America by the Spanish in the 16th century. At first, it was an oddity that did not start coming over in large…
