Contorni – Top 20 Italian side dishes

Italian side meals are the reflection of the country’s unlimited imagination with the abundance of edible plants offered all year. Contorni, or side meals, are constantly present on the Italian table, served to accompany and finish the main dish, however not just. The Italian gastronomic custom provides a wide variety of timeless and other more ingenious side meals thanks to the peninsula’s impressive biodiversity and abundant seasonal crop rotation.

Vegetarians and vegans have it simple in Italy

In Italy, embracing a vegetarian or vegan way of life comes naturally, much more so than in cultures like The United States and Canada and the UK, which have actually typically focused their diet plan around meat. Aside from beginners and after that pasta and rice which make up the “primo” initially course, individuals who have actually picked to not consume meat, poultry or fish can quickly switch in one, or more, of the numerous side meals constantly provide at mealtime in Italy. In this extensive list of popular vegetarian meals of Italy, numerous are sides.

Italian side meals

Amongst the most typical veggie side meals present on Italian tables are spuds and vegetables: simple active ingredients with a peasant past. In Italy, potatoes, which are cost effective and flexible, are prepared in a thousand various methods. Then, besides starring in soups and risottos, protein-rich vegetables like lentils, beans, fava beans, peas and chickpeas are similarly popular in the contorni page of the Italian menu. However beyond these 2 structure pillars, there is a whole universe of Italian side meals. A few of which you might be less acquainted with.

Raw, fried, grilled, roasted, stewed, packed or baked into tasty pies– here are our leading 20 Italian side meals.

Gratin cauliflower

While cauliflower is living a splendor minute, in Italy this has actually been an ageless traditional side meal for ages. This generally homemade Italian side meal is a winter season staple. The tasty crust that hides the bubbling, velvety heart of roasted florets, béchamel and Parmigiano is really routine forming. Include spices and herbs to individualize the outcome.

Stewed peppers

This sweet pepper side meal is a summertime classic. Typically made with sautéed bell peppers, onions, tomatoes and experienced with herbs and spices, every household makes their own variation. Perfect stacked onto bruschetta, peperonata can likewise function as a scrumptious vegetarian sauce for pasta.

Cianfotta

This Italian veggie side meal comparable to ratatouille passes numerous names (ciambotta, cianfrotta, and so on). It is a stew including a collection of summertime veggies like eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, and tomatoes. These are prepared in olive oil and seasoned with garlic, Mediterranean herbs, and a touch of vinegar.

Sautéed chicory

This timeless Roman side meal is preferred: bitter greens, generally chicory, sautéed in olive oil with garlic and chili till wilted and tender. It is a basic yet tasty enhance to meats that provides a balance of tastes with minor bitterness and spiciness.

Sliced up courgettes

The Neapolitan side meal includes very finely sliced summertime zucchini gently fried till golden. They are then soaked in a vinegar marinade with garlic, olive oil and mint. The resulting pickle is a wonderful mix of appetizing and fresh tastes, textures and scents with a far-off past.

Dragged broccoli

This side meal normal of central/southern Italy is when again an item of the country’s peasant cooking past. Broccoli rabe or broccolini are sautéed and tossed with garlic, olive oil, and chili flakes till tender. The somewhat bitter greens, fragrant garlic, and spicy chili flakes produces a delicious and punchy enhance to any main dish.

Beans all’ uccelletto

This hearty and soothing Tuscan side meal is made from cannellini beans prepared in a tomato sauce with garlic, fresh sage, and additional virgin olive oil. The velvety beans typically match grilled sausages.

Mushrooms

We have actually waxed poetic about sautéing chopped mushrooms. Tossed in a pan with additional virgin olive oil, garlic, parsley, and a splash of gewurztraminer till tender. The resulting earthy fall side meal is flexible and tasty, and amongst Italy’s most liked vegetarian dishes.

Spelled salad

Farro salad is a hearty and healthy Italian side meal. Prepared and cooled spelt grains combined with a variety of fresh seasonal veggies like sliced tomatoes, cucumbers. Insalata di farro ends up being a complete-meal meal when included with canned tuna, tough boiled eggs and cubed meats, like ham, rotisserie chicken or chopped turkey. The dressing can be easy olive oil and lemon juice, or a more structured vinaigrette.

Pantesca salad

This revitalizing Sicilian summertime side meal from the island of Pantelleria is made with steamed potatoes, sliced tomatoes, chopped onions, regional capers, and fresh basil. The salad is dressed with just a thread of additional virgin olive oil. Dynamic and delicious Insalata Pantesca records the essence of the island.

Stewed lentils

Stewed lentils prepared with a delicious mirepoix (sautéed onions, carrots, celery) is a winter season should in Italy. Garlic, tomatoes, water and bay leaves likewise enter the bubbling pot till the little brown lentils hurt. The outcome is a hearty and nourishing side meal that’s typically acted as a total meal dish.

Puntarelle

Punchy is an understatement, and puntarelle are not for the faint of heart. Yet, this Roman side meal, made from a particular kind of chicory called “Cicoria catalogna” is significantly popular. Just crisp, curly and bitter puntarelle stalks are utilized, and dressed with a tasty and garlicky anchovy vinaigrette, leading to an ideal omplement to the abundant and fatty main dishes of Roman food.

Vignarola

Vignarola is a Roman side meal that commemorates the tastes of spring. It’s a collection of fresh veggies like artichokes, fava beans, peas and romaine lettuce. Romans carefully prepare the greens in additional virgin olive oil with garlic, onions and pancetta till tender and aromatic.

Fennel and orange salad

This is a Sicilian side meal that integrates crisp and revitalizing fennel and the tang of regional oranges. The salad is sprinkled with additional virgin olive oil and included with purple olives and very finely sliced red onions. The outcome is a wonderful salad that’s popular in the seaside food of Trapani.

Escarole with raisins and pine nuts

Escarole is among the primary active ingredients of southern Italian food. It’s typically discovered in different soup dishes together with beans, potatoes and even as a filling for tasty pies. Scarola con uvetta e pinoli is a standard Neapolitan meal. The escarole is dragged around in a pan with olive oil and garlic and included with plump raisins and pine nuts. The bittersweet escarole is wonderfully stabilized with the raisins and the nutty crunch of the pinenuts.

Potatoes In Tecia

The tecia is the earthenware pot this dish was generally prepared in. Nowadays the Italian side meal from Trieste is made in a fry pan. The dish includes very finely sliced potatoes fried in lard or additional virgin olive oil with onions and pancetta till tender and golden. Skilled with salt and newly ground black pepper, leading to a basic yet delicious potato casserole delighted in along with grilled pork.

Tyrolean sauerkraut

This Italian meal from Alto Adige showcases the area’s Austrian impact. Sauerkraut prepared with juniper berries, caraway seeds, smoked pancetta, and in some cases apples. This meal represents the cultural mix of the area; it’s a delicious and appetizing side meal that sets well with hearty franks, canederli (comparable to matzo balls) and other regional mains.

Riganata potatoes

This conventional southern Italian meal becomes part of the peasant custom of Basilicata. Economical and filling potatoes were orginally baked by farmers in a pan called “ruota” which was covered in kitchen area towels to keep the meal warm till mealtime in the fields. Sliced up potatoes are layered with onions, tomatoes, grated pecorino cheese, oregano and pieces of stagnant bread on the surface area. This provides a crisp crust from which the meal takes its name: raganate is a dialectal shift of the word “gratinate” (au gratin). Nevertheless the term is prevalent in other southern Italian areas (” raganate” or “arraganate”) likewise utilized to suggest foods seasoned with oregano.

Support salad

This conventional Neapolitan meal suggests “support salad,” and it’s a side meal generally served on Christmas Eve and Christmas day. The meal is a mix of veggies like steamed cauliflower, marinaded papaccella peppers, giardiniera (marinaded carrots, gherkins, pearl onions, sweet peppers and celery). Tossed with olives, anchovies and vinegar: this produces a tasty and briny mouthful that includes a burst of dynamic color and texture.

Friggitelli

These little Italian green peppers comparable to shishitos are pan fried till blistered and tender. They are merely experienced with flaky salt and taken pleasure in as a delicious side with grilled sausages. Furthermore, friggitelli set well with fresh mozzarella and even swordfish or tuna steaks, including a pop of color and a tip of sweet taste.

What’s your preferred Italian side meal?