Italian food earned its reputation the hard way, one region at a time. These are the twenty dishes that made it, each one tied to the city or region that still makes it best, with my own tested version of each.
1. Pizza Margherita Napoletana
The pizza that started it all: slow-fermented dough, San Marzano tomato, mozzarella and basil, baked hard and fast until the crust puffs and chars in spots.
Make it at home with our pizza margherita recipe.
2. Spaghetti alla Carbonara
Rome in four ingredients: guanciale, egg, Pecorino Romano and black pepper, emulsified with pasta water into a sauce with no cream anywhere near it.
Make it at home with our spaghetti alla carbonara recipe.
3. Tagliatelle al Ragù alla Bolognese
Fresh egg ribbons under a meat ragù that has done nothing but simmer for two hours. Emilia-Romagna at its most patient and most rewarding.
Make it at home with our tagliatelle al ragù recipe.
4. Lasagne Verdi alla Bolognese
Bologna's own lasagne: green spinach pasta, the same slow ragù, and béchamel standing in for the ricotta and mozzarella most other countries add.
Make it at home with our lasagne verdi recipe.
5. Trofie al Pesto Genovese
Liguria at its greenest: hand-twisted trofie coated in raw basil pesto, cooked together with potatoes and green beans in one pot.
Make it at home with our trofie al pesto recipe.
6. Spaghetti alle Vongole
A coastal classic served in bianco: small clams steamed open in garlic, oil and white wine, their own liquor doing all the work as the sauce.
Make it at home with our spaghetti alle vongole recipe.
7. Bucatini all'Amatriciana
Guanciale and chili rendered hard, tomato added after, tossed with hollow bucatini and a hard rain of Pecorino at the very end.
Make it at home with our amatriciana recipe.
8. Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe
Proof that three ingredients are enough: pasta, Pecorino Romano and black pepper, emulsified into a sauce with nothing but starchy water.
Make it at home with our cacio e pepe recipe.
9. Pasta alla Norma
Catania's tribute dish: fried eggplant folded through tomato sauce, finished with basil and a hard grating of dry, salted ricotta salata.
Make it at home with our pasta alla norma recipe.
10. Risotto alla Milanese
Milan's golden risotto: Carnaroli rice built ladle by ladle with broth, finished saffron-gold and loose enough to move like a wave.
Make it at home with our risotto alla milanese recipe.
11. Gnocchi alla Sorrentina
Potato gnocchi in a quick tomato sauce, blanketed in torn mozzarella and baked until it blisters. Sorrento by way of the home oven.
Make it at home with our gnocchi alla sorrentina recipe.
12. Parmigiana di Melanzane
Fried eggplant layered with tomato, mozzarella and Parmigiano like a lasagne, baked until it sets into slices. Better the next day.
Make it at home with our parmigiana di melanzane recipe.
13. Ossobuco alla Milanese
Veal shank braised low and slow until the meat gives with no resistance, finished with a sharp lemon-garlic gremolata to cut through the richness.
Make it at home with our ossobuco alla milanese recipe.
14. Bistecca alla Fiorentina
Florence's steak, deliberately plain: a thick bone-in T-bone grilled hard over a blazing fire, salt only, served rare.
Make it at home with our bistecca alla fiorentina recipe.
15. Polpo con Patate
Tender octopus and boiled potatoes, dressed warm in olive oil, lemon and parsley. A coastal antipasto from Naples to Sicily.
Make it at home with our polpo con patate recipe.
16. Arancini al Ragù
Sicily's fried rice balls: saffron rice packed around ragù and peas, breaded and fried until the shell shatters and the center stays soft.
Make it at home with our arancini al ragù recipe.
17. Focaccia Genovese
Liguria's bread: a wet, slow-risen dough dimpled by hand and doused in an oil-and-salt brine right before baking for that shiny, salty crust.
Make it at home with our focaccia genovese recipe.
18. Tiramisù Classico
Espresso-soaked savoiardi layered with a mascarpone and egg cream, dusted with cocoa only at the very end. No coffee liqueur required.
Make it at home with our tiramisù classico recipe.
19. Cannoli Siciliani
Crisp fried shells filled with sweetened, well-drained ricotta and dipped in chopped pistachio, best eaten within the hour they are filled.
Make it at home with our cannoli siciliani recipe.
20. Gelato al Pistacchio
Dense, milk-based gelato built on real pistachio paste, not food coloring, which is why it comes out muted green and actually tastes like pistachio.
Make it at home with our pistachio gelato recipe.