THE FIVE FOODS

Egg pasta beats pizza: this is the most popular Italian food among taste tourists

The results of the latest 'Report on Italian Food and Wine Tourism 2023', produced by the Italian Food and Wine Tourism Association, have been announced these days. This report assesses the knowledge of typical Italian products and dishes in the various regions of the country, and their knowledge by food and wine tourists.

What emerged is that pizza has lost its world popularity in favour of typical products from Emilia Romagna, such as stuffed tortellini, egg pasta and piadina. Campania remains one of the top regions along with Sicily.

However, many Italian excellences are well known abroad and among foreign tourists. Let us now take a look at the ranking produced by the Italian body, which photographs a situation in line with recent years.

Freepik
Egg pasta beats pizza: this is the most popular Italian food among taste tourists
The results of the latest 'Report on Italian Food and Wine Tourism 2023', produced by the Italian Food and Wine Tourism Association, have been announced these days. This report assesses the knowledge of typical Italian products and dishes in the various regions of the country, and their knowledge by food and wine tourists. What emerged is that pizza has lost its world popularity in favour of typical products from Emilia Romagna, such as stuffed 'tortellini', egg pasta and 'piadina'. Campania remains one of the top regions together with Sicily. However, many Italian excellences are well known abroad and among foreign tourists. Let us now take a look at the ranking produced by the Italian body, which photographs a situation in line with recent years.
Freepik
Egg pasta better than pizza
In the world, Neapolitan pizza is less well known than egg pasta. Obviously this is a statistic, but it denotes that the excellence of Emilia Romagna is surpassing, in popularity, the world's most famous food par excellence. These are the results of the 'Italian Food and Wine Tourism Report 2023', produced by the Italian Food and Wine Tourism Association. The study was carried out thanks to a survey, which was based on the percentage of respondents able to name at least one typical product per region. The results are interesting, although the top positions remain almost always the same.
Freepik
First place for Emilia Romagna
Emilia Romagna is the first region in Italy whose products are immediately associated as excellences of the territory (80% of those interviewed were able to do so). Specifically, for 39% the best known dish is 'tortellini', followed by fresh egg pasta and Romagna 'piadina' (17%).
Getty Images
Campania in second place
Campania, still an excellence in the world, has to settle for second place with 77%. According to the report, pizza is still very famous (37% of respondents immediately linked it to the region), followed by the delicious buffalo 'mozzarella' (18%).
Freepik
In third place is Sicily
Seventy-six percent of respondents recognized Sicily's typical products, bringing the region to the bottom step of the podium. The most famous typical product in the world remains the Sicilian "cannolo" (23%), followed by "arancine", fried rice balls stuffed, depending on the choice, with tomato, ham or cheese (18%).
Getty Images
Calabria and Lazio tied for fourth place
Both Calabria and Lazio tied for fourth place in this ranking with 73% of respondents recognising the areas' typical products. Calabria remains famous for its cold cuts and sausages, such as 'nduja'. Lazio remains famous for its first courses, such as pasta 'cacio' and pepe and above all the eternal pasta 'carbonara' (pictured).
freepik
Pesto remains very famous and popular
Liguria takes sixth place in this special ranking. In fact, more than half of the respondents were able to link "pesto" alla genovese to the region.
Freepik
Puglia seventh, then Lombardy
Right after Liguria with its pesto comes Puglia, the "heel" of the Italian boot, with at least 70 percent of respondents being able to name at least one typical product, with "orecchiette", a pasta format, in the first place. Right after Puglia comes Lombardy, whose most famous dish is saffron risotto, also known as "alla milanese" (pictured).
Freepik
Ninth Tuscany
Tuscany is in ninth place in this ranking. Most respondents were able to name Florentine steak (pictured) as typical of the region.
Di Shardan - Opera propria, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8549995
The foods of Sardinia are also well known
Sardinia ranks tenth, with tourists, somewhat surprisingly, being able to name two Sardinian specialities, namely 'carasau' bread (pictured), typical of the island and without yeast, and 'porceddu', a suckling pig cooked on a spit and typical of the hinterland and farmhouses. Pecorino cheese is also well known.
Di Lombroso - Opera propria, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63237900
A curiosity for foreigners, the bagna cauda at 11th place
Piedmont ranks 11th in the ranking, and 'bagna bauda' (pictured) is the best known dish. For the uninitiated, it is a cream of anchovies, garlic and peppers that is eaten in the Turin area. Proceeding in the ranking we find Trentino-Alto-Adige, an Alpine area, with 'canederli', large balls of various ingredients that can be eaten in broth or dry. The bottom rung is filled by Veneto, which for tourists is the home of wine.
Di Ra Boe / Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11440095
Abruzzo ranking turning point
In 14th place is Abruzzo, a region that marks the watershed between areas where at least half of the respondents are familiar with specialities and lesser-known areas. For Abruzzo, a region in central Italy, the best known dish is 'arrosticini' (pictured), skewers of sheep cooked on a special grill.
Freepik
Regions below 50 percent
Descending further and further to the bottom of the ranking, we find Friuli Venezia Giulia with wine considered an icon-product, followed by Valle d'Aosta where fondue (pictured) dominates, ready to compete with Switzerland.
By Manuela Zangara - Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17531319
Fourth to last, third to last and second to last place
We have really reached the bottom, with far less than half of the respondents able to name the products of these regions. So we find, in descending order, Umbria with truffle as the first known product, Marche with olives ascolane (pictured) and Basilicata with peperone crusco (crispy).
Di Peachyeung316 - Opera propria, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1074
Molise tail-end of Italy
Barely two out of 10 respondents were able to name any typical food of Molise. The most popular were, tied for the most, pasta, caciocavallo (it's a cheese, pictured) and wine.
Informativa ai sensi della Direttiva 2009/136/CE: questo sito utilizza solo cookie tecnici necessari alla navigazione da parte dell'utente in assenza dei quali il sito non potrebbe funzionare correttamente.