So, of course, it's okay to include Italian as well as Mediterranean food. There are 22 or 23 countries that are in the. Mediterranean and Greek food are often incorrectly referred to as the same thing, but technically they aren't. The Mediterranean style of cuisine is found in Mediterranean countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.
In short, Greek food is part of Mediterranean food, but not all Mediterranean food is Greek. Greek cuisine represents one of the many culinary styles and traditions of Mediterranean cuisine. Each country and region along the Mediterranean Sea offers unique flavors, ingredients and cooking methods to create a rich and diverse culinary experience. Mediterranean cuisine offers something for everyone, whether you like Greek moussaka or Italian pasta.
For an authentic taste of Mediterranean cuisine, check out the Aladdin takeaway menu or explore the catering menu for your next event. Many writers define the three main elements of cooking as olives, wheat and grapes, which produce olive oil, bread, pasta and wine; other writers deny that the diverse foods of the Mediterranean basin constitute a cuisine at all. A common definition of the geographical area covered, proposed by David, follows the distribution of the olive tree. Countries commonly associated with Mediterranean cuisine usually include those bordering the Mediterranean Sea, such as Greece, Italy, Morocco and Libya. Middle Eastern cuisine considers Western Asian countries, including Iraq, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait.
Some countries, such as Israel, Turkey and Lebanon, lie on both sides of the dividing line between the two regions and can be included in either region. The Mediterranean diet is inspired by the eating habits of Greece, Southern Italy and Spain in the 1940s and 1950s. It's not based on what people in the Mediterranean eat today. It is not based on all of Italy's regional diets, which are very varied, only on that of southern Italy.
It is important to keep these details in mind because the country, Italy, as a whole, is undoubtedly one of the healthiest in the world today, even though they don't eat as they did in the 1940s and 1950s, nor do they eat the same foods in every region of the country. From Gibraltar to the Bosphorus, through the Rhone Valley, through the large seaports of Marseille, Barcelona and Genoa, through Tunisia and Alexandria, covering all the islands of the Mediterranean, Corsica, Sicily, Sardinia, Crete, the Cyclades and Cyprus (where Byzantine influence is beginning to be felt), to the Greek mainland and the highly contested territories of Syria, Lebanon, Constantinople and Izmir. The cuisine of the area should not be confused with the Mediterranean diet, which became popular due to the apparent health benefits of a diet rich in olive oil, wheat and other grains, fruits, vegetables and a certain amount of seafood, but low in meat and dairy products. In contrast, Mediterranean cuisine, as a broader category, includes a much wider spectrum of cooking methods that vary by region. Moroccan cuisine, although often associated with North African cuisine, fits well into the Mediterranean diet due to its use of spices, vegetables and cereals.
The Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions are geographically close, which has cultivated similarities in their cuisines over the centuries. Mediterranean cuisine encompasses the ways in which these and other ingredients, including meat, are treated in the kitchen, regardless of whether they are healthy or not. The flavor and preparation of Mediterranean cuisine vary greatly depending on the region from which it originates. On the other hand, Mediterranean cuisine includes a variety of cooking methods, from grilling to baking and simmering in tajines. To try Mediterranean cuisine, you can visit local Mediterranean restaurants, try recipes at home, or explore Mediterranean food festivals.
Olive trees are commonly found throughout the Mediterranean region and the oil produced is an important export. Carol Helstosky, author of the book Food Culture in the Mediterranean (200), is one of the authors who use Mediterranean cuisine interchangeably with Mediterranean food. At the same time, the Mediterranean world in general adopts a more diverse range of techniques, from dry heat to humid heat, from fast cooking to slow cooking, each of which shapes the flavor and texture of the dish in unique ways. Both Greek and Mediterranean cuisines share dairy products, such as yogurt, cheese and milk, which are very common in both regions. This high fat intake, in relation to the low cases of heart disease in Italy, makes the Mediterranean diet the so-called “paradoxical diet”.
Italy, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and Morocco are just a few countries with well-established Mediterranean cuisine.
