THE ITALIAN MINESTRA MARITATA: A CULINARY WEDDING
There are traditional dishes that can never be missed at the table of the Campania people during the holidays of Christmas and Easter, such as the so-called minestra maritata (that is wedding soup). It is one of the many tasty "poor" dishes, which beautifully combines meat and vegetables in an unmissable recipe.
by Barbara Iovine
If you take a trip to the Amalfi Coast during the Christmas period, you will realize how many typical, particular, and especially traditional dishes are cooked for the occasion. Among the most authentic recipes, there is undoubtedly the so-called wedding soup: a typical delicacy not only of Christmas, but also of Easter, whose recipe has been transmitted from generation to generation. But where does its name come from? The expression comes from the Neapolitan dialect “minestra maritata” and means exactly 'married soup', which is a reference to the great combination - or “marriage” - of meat and vegetables: a marriage of truly excellent flavors.
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The ancient recipe: how was the wedding soup born?
'A menesta mmaretata, as it is called in dialect, has ancient and unclear origins. A very similar recipe appeared as early as 1200 with a Spanish dish called “olla podrida”, consisting of chorizo and legumes. Maybe the Spanish diffused the recipe during the years of their domination, first in Naples and then also in the Lombardia region, but it is not certain. Another hypothesis is that the Neapolitans made a new version of the Hispanic recipe. Probably it was just the poverty to suggest the combination between seasonal vegetables and pork, that existed for a long time anyway. It was common to put together the leftover meat and the field greens to give more substance and provide proteins sufficient to fight hunger: it is a slightly fatty dish, but still very nutritious and economical, which was born from the union of Campania’s greens and the less valuable cuts of beef, pork, and chicken.
The dish spread in the 16th century as a "Neapolitan-style soup of leaves" (“minestra di foglie alla napoletana”), and the ancient recipe involved the use of the pig's foot, the ear, the ham bone, the pig’s rind, and the “doglia” (a sausage also known as "salame pezzente", “beggar salami”, since it is made by processing the hog maw), for flavor.
Nowadays, the recipe has been changed due to the difficulty in finding some ingredients and also because it is desirable a combination of slightly less fatty meats and common greens.
The current recipe
Although it has always been considered a poor recipe, the combination of the flavors creates a greedy and genuine dish. Many families claim the originality of its recipe, even if they made some changes over the years, for example adding or removing some ingredients such as eggs and pine nuts, not present in modern reinterpretations of this soup.
To cook the wedding soup, you will need a few simple ingredients and the secret lies in mixing them in the best way: sweet vegetables, such as endive, must balance the bitter ones, such as broccoli, same goes for the balance between fatty and lean meats. This is the only way to enhance the flavors and make a happy marriage in the kitchen!
As anticipated, the recipe of popular origin has many variations, it changes from city to city and from family to family: everyone chooses the vegetables and meat they prefer.
Below I propose that of my family.
The procedure is not complicated, just a little long, especially for the preparation of the vegetables that must first be cooked individually.
Ingredients for 4 (large) portions
Chicory 500 gr
Endive 500 gr
Savoy cabbage
Kale 1
Pork bones
Beef 400 gr
Pork (4 ribs)
Chicken 400 gr
Sausage 1
Onion 1
Carrots 1
Celery 1 stalk
Salt to taste
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Parmesan to taste
Instructions
Blanch the vegetables individually, as each vegetable has a different cooking time, with oil, salt, and water as required. Always use the same pot and cook them in succession. Once they are all cooked, mix them all together in the same pot and let them rest.
Put all the meats together in a saucepan and cook in water with celery, onion, carrot, salt, and oil. Once cooked, drain them, cut them into pieces, and then add them to the vegetables. Season them and let them rest. Finally, sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.
The minestra maritata. Ph by lucianopignataro.it
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- It is possible to serve the soup with toasted bread or, as it was done years ago, with the "scagliuozzi", typical little pieces of fried polenta (cornmeal).
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