Why is bread in Florence eaten without salt?
Among the most curious And discuss the gastronomic traditions of Central Italyand in particular of the Tuscanythere is that of bread without saleor the “silly bread” or “bland bread“. A simple product eaten all over the world that in Florence they cook without adding salt. In reality this characteristic embraces the wholeTuscan-Emilian Apennines: in most cases people are surprised in the negative but they are there of the reasons behind the choice of Tuscans which led to the production of a bread without sale. Among the most fascinating reasons there is one in particular that makes Florentines proud because it is part of the secular rivalry with the Pisans: let’s see in detail why in Tuscany bread is made without sale.
“You will try, yes, how the bread of others knows how to sell”
The bread without sale is the perfect marriage with Tuscan cuisine, tasty tradition. The absence of salt in the bread goes perfectly with cured meats and preparations of Tuscan gastronomy creating a perfect equilibrium of flavors. However, we want to be clear: there was a moment when even in Florence bread was cooked with salt. Everything changes in the Middle Ages for a whole series of reasons, probably linked together. There are three plausible hypotheses:
- The most popular hypothesis a Florencethe hypothesis that makes the heart beat in the chest of the Florentines, it is closely related to history: it seems that the use of bread without sale dates back to XII century with Pisa come Maritime Republic of first order. In the war with Florence he decides to “involve” the sale. The Pisans think of some imposed on really high sales for Florentines only than to answer by starting to produce bread without salt. A real act of rebellion come the Boston Tea Party of the American Revolution. The same Dante Alighieriin the eighteenth canto of Paradise, he wrote about life in exile outside the walls of Florence, including the salty bread between the hardness of the experience: “You will try as the bread of others tastes of salt”;
- the second hypothesis exonerates the Pisans and indeed, He accuses the Florentine rulers of greed: taxes on anything, for any occasion, trying to get rich as possible. Taxes even more “salty”, precisely, on salt. We “tasted” this greed in the 90s with the masterpiece signed by Massimo Troisi And Roberto Benigni, “We just have to cry”: “Who are you? Where do you come from? What are you bringing? Where are you going? A florin!”, With the scene repeated over and over again. We don’t know how much the historical quote was intended or was it just a pleasant coincidence but the two geniuses of cinema have the situation of taxes in Tuscany is perfectly framed of that period. According to this theory, the salt would have disappeared from the recipes of the bakeries because, in this case, the salt would have risen too much price of the panel;
- the last thesis is exquisitely gastronomic: meats, soups, typical dishes such as cured meats, lampredotto, ribollita, Tuscan ham, are all extremely savory products that need a neutral contrast to fully enjoy the Tuscan taste.
The real reasons who pushed the Tuscans to this “innovation” are still unknown today. We do not know if the choices are really attributable to these stories that we have told why there is no written test.
It is possible that the three are hypotheses all right, are somewhat interchangeable and that, all together, give the most certain picture of the situation. On the other hand, in Lucca, Massa, Carrara and Pisa, bread is made with salt and, coincidentally, these cities are not part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Even the extremely serious taxation is an undeniable point of the Florence of the ‘500, the same goes for the contrast between the sciapo and salty on the table. Unlike so many other stories you may have read, in this case we have three different versions that may all be right.
Bread without sales in the rest of Italy
The Tuscans carry the “bad name” but they are not the only ones to make bland bread. At the border there is theUmbria which for centuries has focused on salt-free leavened products. In this case, however, we have reasons for a certain date, ending up in the history books. Everything is due to the pontiff Pope Paul IIIone of the most influential in history: his is the foundation of Society of Jesus on the proposal of Ignatius of Loyola and the calling of the crucial Council of Trent. To find new funds in a delicate moment in ecclesiastical events increases taxes throughout the Papal Statetreading his hand with one sales tax that just does not go down to the Umbrians. In 1540 Perugia rises and makes the “sales war“: the Umbrian capital would have badly lost the war but the Perugians do not leave the pope bent on impositions anyway and should start making leavened products without bread, a tradition still alive today.
Also in this case the gastronomic reasons must be added to the simply economic reasons: Umbria shares a part of traditions at the table with Tuscany, on all those of salami very full of flavor. A commission of events led to this singular choice by the Apennine bakers.
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