I Love Italian Regional Cooking - Pairing The Marches Cuisine With White Wine
Great Marches food, fine local or other white wine...The Marches (sometimes called The Marche) is a relatively isolated hilly or mountainous area located on the Adriatic Sea. This lovely is relatively unknown to tourists, all the more reason to go, especially if you are looking to visit the real Italy.
Start your meal with Zuppa di Fagioli (Bean Soup), a fairly simple dish especially if you use prepared beans. Other ingredients include lard, celery, and tomato sauce. Serve with an Italian Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.
You'll love this fish soup/stew.
Brodetto all'anconetana (Fish Soup Ancona style) is a fancier first course that readily serves as a main meal. This isn’t surprising when you consider that it comprises a dozen varieties of fish and seafood. Typically this dish includes crostone, a slice of toast placed at the bottom of the bowl, which is eaten at the end of this glorious specialty. The classic wine pairing is the local Verdicchio di Matelica DOC or Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC. Make sure that you get a good one.
I can’t help but think that our next dish isn’t as tempting as the Brodetto but many people like it. I’m talking about dried Cod Fish in Potacchio that includes tomatoes, salted anchovies, dry white wine, and some other ingredients. Suggested wine pairings include an Italian Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc.
Casa Pazzi, near Ancona on the Adriatic Coast.
If you feel like more fish, you should try Orate all’Anconetana (Sea Bream Ancona style). Sea Bream are also known as porgies. This recipe calls for salted anchovies, popular in The Marches if not in my neighborhood, eggs, white wine, and several other ingredients. Enjoy this dish with the local Vedicchio or a Cinque Terre DOC from Liguria.
Petti di Pollo Trifolati (Chicken Breasts with Truffles) make a fine alternative to all this fish and seafood. This delicacy includes a white truffle, cognac, cured ham, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, and other goodies. Many people serve this dish on spinach. The suggested wine pairing is an Italian Sauvignon Blanc.
About the Author
Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would rather just drink fine Italian, French, or other wine, accompanied by the right foods and spend time with his wife and family. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. Check out his global wine website at www.theworldwidewine.com with his weekly column reviewing $10 wines and his new sections writing about (theory) and tasting (practice) organic and kosher wines. Check out his Italian wine website at www.theitalianwineconnection.com.
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