Spaghetti and meatballs is an Italian-American dish consisting of spaghetti, tomato sauce and meatballs. Originally inspired by similar dishes from southern Italy, the modern version of spaghetti and meatballs was developed by Italian immigrants in the USA. However, combinations of pasta with meat date back at least to the Middle Ages, and pasta (including long pasta) dishes with tomato sauce and different kinds of meatballs are documented in certain Italian regions and in modern Italian cookbooks as ''maccheroni alle polpette'' (translated as "spaghetti with meatballs") and ''maccheroni alla chitarra con polpette'', though these dishes are often found only in particular regions and towns. They are especially popular in certain areas of

Southern Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...

, from where most

Italian immigrants The Italian diaspora is the large-scale emigration of Italians from Italy. There were two major Italian diasporas in Italian history. The first diaspora began around 1880, two decades after the Risorgimento, Unification of Italy, and ended in the ...

to the United States emigrated, though generally the version served in Southern Italy features smaller meatballs than the current Italian-American and Italian immigrant version.

History

Spaghetti and meatballs was popular among

in New York City, who had access to a more plentiful meat supply than in Italy. * In 1888,

Juliet Corson Juliet Corson (January 14, 1841 – June 18, 1897) was a leader in cookery education in the latter half of the 19th century in the United States.James, Edward T., et al''Notable American Women, 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary'' Vol. II, p ...

of New York published a recipe for pasta with meatballs and tomato sauce. * In 1909 a recipe for "Beef Balls with Spaghetti" appeared in American Cookery, Volume 13. * The National Pasta Association (originally named the National Macaroni Manufacturers Association) published a recipe for spaghetti with meatballs in the 1920s. * In 1931 Venice Maid in New Jersey was selling canned "spaghetti with meatballs in sauce". * In 1938 the exact phrase "spaghetti and meatballs" appeared in a list of canned foods produced by

Ettore Boiardi Ettore Boiardi (October 22, 1897 – June 21, 1985), better known by the Anglicized name Hector Boyardee, was an Italian-American chef, famous for his eponymous brand of food products, named Chef Boyardee. Early life Boiardi was born in Pia ...

, later known as Chef Boyardee, in Milton, Pa. Italian writers and chefs often mock the dish as pseudo-Italian or non-Italian, because in Italy meatballs are smaller and are only served with egg-based, baked pasta. However, various kinds of pasta with meat are part of the culinary tradition of

Abruzzo Abruzzo (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Abruzzese Neapolitan, Abbrùzze , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; nap, label=Sabino dialect, Aquilano, Abbrùzzu; #History, historically Abruzzi) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy wi ...

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

, Sicily, and other parts of southern Italy. A recipe for rigatoni with meatballs is in '' Il cucchiaio d'argento'' (''The Silver Spoon''), a comprehensive Italian cookbook. In Abruzzo, ''chitarra alla teramana'' is a standard first course made with ''

spaghetti alla chitarra ''Spaghetti alla chitarra'' (), also known as ''maccheroni alla chitarra'', is a variety of egg pasta typical of the Abruzzo region in Italy, with a square cross section about 2–3 mm thick. ''Tonnarelli'' are a similar pasta from Lazio. ' ...

'', small meatballs (''polpettine'' or ''pallottine''), and a meat or vegetable ragù. Spaghetti alla chitarra con pallottine (Teramo)

Other dishes that have similarities to spaghetti and meatballs include ''pasta seduta'' 'seated pasta' and ''maccaroni azzese'' in Apulia. Some baked pasta dishes from Apulia combine pasta and meat where meatballs,

mortadella Mortadella () is a large Italian cuisine, Italian sausage or luncheon meat (''salumi, salume'' ) made of finely hashed or ground heat-cured pork, which incorporates at least 15% small cubes of pork fat (principally the hard fat from the neck o ...

, or salami are baked with

rigatoni Rigatoni () are a form of tube-shaped pasta of varying lengths and diameters originating in Italy. They are larger than penne and ziti, and sometimes slightly curved. If so, they are not as curved as elbow macaroni. Rigatoni characteristical ...

, tomato sauce, and mozzarella, then covered with a pastry top."Pasta asciutta alla pugliese", in Touring Club of Italy, ''La cucina del Bel Paese'', p. 292 Other pasta recipes include slices of meat rolled up with cheese, cured meats and herbs (''involtini'' in Italian) and braciole ("bra'zhul" in Italian-American and Italian-Australian slang) that are cooked within sauce but pulled out to be served as a second course. File:Spicy Meatballs and Spaghetti.jpg, Spaghetti and spicy meatballs, homemade File:Spaghetti and meatballs (cropped).jpg, Restaurant presentation of spaghetti and meatballs with Parmesan cheese.

References

External links

Spaghetti and meatballs recipe on All Recipes.com
{{Pasta dishes Spaghetti dishes Meatballs Italian-American cuisine Cuisine of New York City Italian-American culture in New York City

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links