A panzerotto (; plural panzerotti , also known as panzarotto ), is a savory
turnover that originated in
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
Southern Italian cuisine which resembles a small
calzone
A calzone (, , ; "stocking" or "trouser") is an Italian oven-baked folded pizza, often described as a turnover, made with leavened dough. It originated in Naples in the 18th century. A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in ...
, both in shape and dough used for its preparation. The term usually applies to a fried turnover rather than an oven-baked pastry (i.e. a calzone),
though ''calzoni'' and ''panzerotti'' are often mistaken for each other.
[
]
Etymology
The noun ''panzerotto'' comes from a diminutive of ''panza'', a regional variation of Italian ''pancia'' ("belly
Belly may refer to:
Anatomy
* The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach
** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking
** Belly dance
* The fleshy, cen ...
, tummy"), referring to the distinctive swelling of the pastry which resembles a belly bloating.
Although etymologically related, the word () refers to a totally different dish from panzerotti, denoting a kind of ravioli
Ravioli (; singular: ''raviolo'', ) are a type of pasta comprising a filling enveloped in thin pasta dough. Usually served in broth or with a sauce, they originated as a traditional food in Italian cuisine. Ravioli are commonly square, though o ...
which is typical of Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
.
Panzerotti are also popular in the United States and Canada as well, where it is often called ''panzerotti'' or ''panzarotti'' as a singular noun (plural ''panzerotties''/''panzarotties'' or ''panzarottis''/''panzarottis'').
Italy
Panzerotti originated in Southern Italy
Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half.
The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the peop ...
and Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
, especially in the Apulia
it, Pugliese
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, demographic ...
n cuisine. They are basically small versions of ''calzoni
A calzone (, , ; "stocking" or "trouser") is an Italian oven-baked folded pizza, often described as a turnover, made with leavened dough. It originated in Naples in the 18th century. A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in a ...
'' but are usually fried rather than oven-baked, which is why they are also known as ''calzoni fritti'' ("fried calzones") or ''pizze fritte'' (" fried pizzas") in Italy, most typically in Campania
Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...
. In parts of Apulia, such as Molfetta
Molfetta (; Molfettese: ) is a town located in the northern side of the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy.
It has a well restored old city, and its own dialect.
History
The earliest local signs of permanent habitation are at ...
and Mola di Bari
Cathedral.
Mola di Bari, commonly referred to simply as Mola ( Barese: ), is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Bari, in the region of Apulia, in Southern Italy, on the Adriatic Sea.
In recent times, the town was best known for ...
(both in the Metropolitan City of Bari
The Metropolitan City of Bari ( it, Città Metropolitana di Bari) is a metropolitan city in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Bari. It replaced the Province of Bari and includes the city of Bari and some forty other municipali ...
), panzerotti also go by the name of '' frittelle'' or ''frittelli'' ("fritter
A fritter is a portion of meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables or other ingredients which have been Batter (cooking), battered or breading, breaded, or just a portion of dough without further ingredients, that is deep-frying, deep-fried. Fritters ar ...
s"), while in Brindisi
Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea.
Histo ...
they are known as ''fritte'' (a local variation of ''frittelle'').
The most common fillings for this turnover are tomato
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...
and mozzarella
Mozzarella (, ; nap, muzzarella ) is a southern Italian cheese traditionally made from Italian buffalo's milk by the pasta filata method.
Fresh mozzarella is generally white but when seasoned it turns to a light yellow depending on the anim ...
. Peeled whole tomatoes are drained and dried to be used as a filling, as using non-dried tomatoes will cause the dough to rip due to the moisture. Other fillings are onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...
s sauteed in olive oil
Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...
and seasoned with salted anchovies
An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water.
More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...
and capers
''Capparis spinosa'', the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers.
The plant is best known for the edible flower buds (capers), used as a seasoning ...
, or mortadella
Mortadella () is a large Italian cuisine, Italian sausage or luncheon meat (''salumi, salume'' ) made of finely hashed or ground heat-cured pork, which incorporates at least 15% small cubes of pork fat (principally the hard fat from the neck o ...
and provolone
Provolone (, ) is an Italian cheese. It is an aged ''pasta filata'' (stretched-curd) cheese originating in Campania near Vesuvius, where it is still produced in pear, sausage, or cone shapes long. Provolone-type cheeses are also produced in othe ...
cheese.
A different recipe for panzerotti is ''panzerotti di patate'' ("potato panzerottis"), a specialty from Salento
Salento ( Salentino: ''Salentu'', Salentino Griko: ''Σαλέντο'') is a cultural, historical and geographic region at the southern end of the administrative region of Apulia in Southern Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the Italian Peninsula ...
which consists of mashed potato
Mashed potato or mashed potatoes (American and Canadian English), colloquially known as mash (British English), is a dish made by mashing boiled or steamed potatoes, usually with added milk, butter, salt and pepper. It is generally served as a ...
croquette
A croquette is a deep-fried roll consisting of a thick binder combined with a filling, which is breaded and deep-fried; it is served as a side dish, a snack, or fast food worldwide.
The binder is typically a thick béchamel or brown sauce, m ...
s rather than panzerotti as the term is most typically intended.
North America
Panzerotti are also consumed in North America, where they were imported by Southern Italian immigrants at the time of the Italian diaspora
, image = Map of the Italian Diaspora in the World.svg
, image_caption = Map of the Italian diaspora in the world
, population = worldwide
, popplace = Brazil, Argentina, United States, France, Colombia, Canada, P ...
.
As for their shape and texture, they can come in various sizes, and are usually semicircular. They consist of a pocket of dough filled with varying amounts of melted mozzarella cheese
Mozzarella (, ; nap, muzzarella ) is a southern Italian cheese traditionally made from Italian buffalo's milk by the pasta filata method.
Fresh mozzarella is generally white but when seasoned it turns to a light yellow depending on the anim ...
, tomato sauce and any reasonable number of fillings, which is then folded over and deep-fried. Panzerotti rise during this process, creating a pocket containing a considerable amount of steam which should be partially released prior to eating.
Canada
Since the mid-1960s, panzerotti have been a popular fast food
Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredien ...
item in Canada. Commercialized frozen versions are called Pizza Pockets or Pizza Pops
Pizza Pops are a Canadian calzone-type snack produced by Pillsbury. Pizza Pops are sold both pre-cooked and frozen. Typically, they can be reheated in a microwave oven. However, they may also be cooked in a conventional oven.
History
Pizz ...
.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
is a Canadian hub for panzerotti production in Canada and worldwide, where Naleway Foods has been dubbed the second-largest processor of pierogies and panzerottis in Canada.
See also
*Calzone
A calzone (, , ; "stocking" or "trouser") is an Italian oven-baked folded pizza, often described as a turnover, made with leavened dough. It originated in Naples in the 18th century. A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in ...
*Chebureki
Chebureki;
via russian: чебурек, cheburek, which is single form;
plural one is russian: чебуреки, chebureki;
see also wikt:чебурек, name=, group= are deep-fried turnovers with a filling of ground or minced meat and onions. ...
*Deep-fried pizza
Deep-fried pizza is a dish consisting of a pizza that instead of being baked in an oven is deep-fried, resulting in a different flavour and nutritional profile. This technique is known in both Scotland and Italy, but there are numerous differe ...
*Hot Pockets
Hot Pockets is an American brand of microwaveable turnovers generally containing one or more types of cheese, meat, or vegetables. Hot Pockets was founded by the Chef America Inc. Since April 20, 2002, they have been produced by Nestlé.
H ...
*Pizza Pops
Pizza Pops are a Canadian calzone-type snack produced by Pillsbury. Pizza Pops are sold both pre-cooked and frozen. Typically, they can be reheated in a microwave oven. However, they may also be cooked in a conventional oven.
History
Pizz ...
*Pizza puff
A pizza puff is a deep-fried dough pocket filled with cheese, tomato sauce, and other pizza ingredients such as sausage or pepperoni. Indigenous to Chicago, pizza puffs can be found at many casual dining restaurants there.
Pizza puffs are sim ...
*Pizza rolls
Pizza snack rolls (also called pizza rolls, pizza bites, pizza snacks, or pizza poppers) are a frozen food product consisting of bite-sized breaded pizza pockets with an interior of tomato sauce, imitation cheese and various pizza toppings. They ...
*Stromboli
Stromboli ( , ; scn, Struògnuli ) is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the north coast of Sicily, containing Mount Stromboli, one of the four active volcanoes in Italy. It is one of the eight Aeolian Islands, a volcanic arc north of Sici ...
*U' pastizz 'rtunnar
U' pastizz 'rtunnar, commonly known as pastizz, is a baked turnover (food), turnover with a savoury filling, typical of the Italian Basilicata region.
Meaning
It is a Basilicata, Lucanian dialect noun, roughly translated in "The pastry of Rotonde ...
References
{{Street food
Cuisine of Apulia
Italian-American cuisine
Food and drink in New Jersey
Calzones
Street food
Pizza styles
Deep fried foods
Street food in Italy