A Neapolitan pizza would be incomplete without oregano. This plant is native to the temperate and subtropical regions of Eurasia, but it grows wild as far north as central Scandinavia and the northern parts of the former USSR as well as in North America.
Most aromatic, however, are the plants that grow on the sunny limestone hillsides of southern Italy. No doubt this is the result not only of suitable soil and climate but also of natural selection which came up with the right variety, for this species includes a great many forms.
Though a traditional flavouring of Italian cookery, oregano is widely used throughout Europe and is commonly available in shops. It is one of the most widely-used seasonings in Mexico, perhaps because it grows wild there too. It is generally used dried, even though the fresh herb has a more penetrating flavour. It is very good togethei- with tomatoes, cheese, vegetables (especially beans), meat and fish.
Pickled green olives are prepared from unripe fruits, black olives from ripe fruits. Both may he added to cold hors d'ceuvres and salads, as well as to hot dishes, mainly to roast poultry, cooked vegetables and Italian pizza. Not only the pickled olives but also the fine oil obtained by pressing the ripe fruits is a flavouring. It is yellowish to greenish and has a very delicate flavour and aroma.
Parsley is a biennial herb native to the Mediterranean region. It is propagated by seeds that germinate several weeks after sowing. A leafy rosette is formed in the first year; this may be picked from June until winter. The second year it produces a flowering stem up to I m (3 ft) high and after the seeds have ripened it dies.
The type species from which the currently cultivated varieties are derived was already grown in Europe and Asia Minor for its oily seeds in the Stone Age. The opium poppy made its appearance in the first century A.D. and its cultivation, this time for its narcotic effects, rapidly spread to Italy, Egypt and Arabia, and later in the 9th century farther east to Iran, India and China.
Most aromatic, however, are the plants that grow on the sunny limestone hillsides of southern Italy. No doubt this is the result not only of suitable soil and climate but also of natural selection which came up with the right variety, for this species includes a great many forms.
Though a traditional flavouring of Italian cookery, oregano is widely used throughout Europe and is commonly available in shops. It is one of the most widely-used seasonings in Mexico, perhaps because it grows wild there too. It is generally used dried, even though the fresh herb has a more penetrating flavour. It is very good togethei- with tomatoes, cheese, vegetables (especially beans), meat and fish.
Pickled green olives are prepared from unripe fruits, black olives from ripe fruits. Both may he added to cold hors d'ceuvres and salads, as well as to hot dishes, mainly to roast poultry, cooked vegetables and Italian pizza. Not only the pickled olives but also the fine oil obtained by pressing the ripe fruits is a flavouring. It is yellowish to greenish and has a very delicate flavour and aroma.
Parsley is a biennial herb native to the Mediterranean region. It is propagated by seeds that germinate several weeks after sowing. A leafy rosette is formed in the first year; this may be picked from June until winter. The second year it produces a flowering stem up to I m (3 ft) high and after the seeds have ripened it dies.
The type species from which the currently cultivated varieties are derived was already grown in Europe and Asia Minor for its oily seeds in the Stone Age. The opium poppy made its appearance in the first century A.D. and its cultivation, this time for its narcotic effects, rapidly spread to Italy, Egypt and Arabia, and later in the 9th century farther east to Iran, India and China.
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