Regardless of where you travel in the world, one thing will stay the same: food’s ability to bring people together.
Since the beginning of time, food has been one of humankind’s most important resources, both for sustenance and for fostering connection. Because of its ability to bring people together, food plays an important role in many cultures: It can set the mood for an important dinner, act as a demonstration of friendship or love, or provide comfort. Offered for the first time in winter 2025, Professor Marie Orton’s (Italian Language and Culture) Italian 499R course, Italian Culinary Tradition and National Identity, examines food’s role in Italian culture. Conducted completely in Italian, the class discusses qualms, debates, and changes surrounding Italian food and identity in order to help students develop a deeper understanding of Italian culture while evaluating food’s role in their own lives.
Eat Like an Italian
Italy’s geographic positioning in the Mediterranean has made it a prime spot for immigration, which has created a mix of cultures and peoples across every region of the peninsula. With so many different cultures influencing the country, Orton asks her students to consider two important questions: “What does it mean to be Italian?” and “Who gets to be Italian?”
As Orton has discovered, food traditions play a strong role in culture, yet some of the foods most commonly associated with Italy come from other countries. A prime example of this is carbonara: a pasta dish many Italians claim despite its origins in Chicago. Many scholars, including Orton, ask the question: “If this food originated in another country, what makes it Italian?”
Dozens of dishes have likewise become associated with Italy, including pizza, gelato, and pasta. However, much debate surrounds their origins and their validity as “Italian” food. Orton’s class takes part in these modern-day reactions regarding food, including the Slow Food movement—which encourages high-quality food and traditional cooking methods over fast food—and the yearslong lawsuit against Barilla for manufacturing pasta outside of Italy.
Learning about these movements and the discourses surrounding them helps students understand Italian values and perspectives on authenticity. “These issues are very public, they’re very complicated, [and] there are lots of feelings,” Orton explains. “[Italian food is] connected to identity; it’s connected to economics; it’s connected to politics. So, we’re looking at food in those manifestations, and we’re looking at the debates.”
Lessons in the Kitchen
Discussing food-related controversies, however, is only a fraction of what Orton’s class teaches students. At the conclusion of each unit, students have the opportunity to make and taste traditional Italian cuisine. So far, her class has handcrafted a variety of dishes, including ricotta, gnocchi, focaccia, and risotto, and has sampled vegetables common in the Mediterranean diet. This practice helps students experience the connection between authenticity and identity and to see popular dishes as outward manifestations of Italian culture.
Orton says, “The reason I wanted to talk about food in these ways is because, firstly, I love it. Secondly, I think it’s a way to get at all of these issues in very immediate ways, but also very personal ways because people really identify with their food.” While her students may not be Italian, Orton believes this class can help them to understand—and maybe even adopt—food practices from another culture that reflect their own values, ultimately transforming their mealtimes.
What Food Means to You
Though Orton’s class focuses specifically on Italian food, she believes that you can develop important insights about any culture from their food. “All cultures value some aspect of food,” Orton notes. In the College of Humanities, students can study food traditions in a variety of contexts in several food-centered classes, including a German class looking at popular German cuisine and a British Literature course examining important ingredients in literature.
Regardless of which class undergrads join, Orton believes that the ability to reflect on personal perceptions of food encourages purposeful and meaningful consumption. “For me, food is one way that I interact with the world,” she explains. “[It’s] how I make friends with people, what I do when I’m worried about something, how I resolve conflict . . . it’s my go-to for anything human.”
Learn more about BYU’s Italian program here.
