Among gastronomic disputes in Italy, one of the most heated and difficult debates to resolve regards the recipe for eggplant parmigiana. In fact, the origins of this extraordinary dish are quite dubious: It is disputed by Sicily, Naples, and Parma. What’s the truth? Let’s take a journey back in time.
Where does the word ‘parmigiana’ come from?
The eggplant arrived in Italy during the 15th century – when the Arabs brought it from India. This part of the story already takes us to Sicily: According to this thesis, the city of Parma has nothing to do with it – not even the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. This version states that the term actually derives from the Sicilian word ‘parmiciana,’ the little wooden strips that form a shutter – recalling the partially overlapping arrangment of fried eggplant used in the dish.
That’s not all, though; others claim that the term ‘parmigiana’ comes directly from ‘petronciana,’ a term of Persian origin used for the eggplant when it first arrived in Southern Europe, before becoming the more Italian ‘mela insana’ (or ‘unhealthy apple’ in English). To support this thesis, we can cite no Artusi, who at the end of the 19th century officially gave it its current name. In any case, the primitive Sicilian parmigiana must have been a dish very similar to the Turkish moussaka, made of eggplants fried in oil and sprinkled with pecorino cheese and other seasonings. A fascinating and realistic thesis, though undocumented: At that time, ‘parmigiana’ was only hinted at by Simone de'Prodenzani, but the recipe did not reach us.
Parmigiana at court
The first historical evidence of the parmigiana is found in “Cuoco galante” (1733) by Vincenzo Corrado, a cook from Puglia who served the most important aristocratic families of 18th century in Naples. In his recipe, however, Corrado uses zucchini instead of eggplant – fried in lard, seasoned with parmesan cheese and butter and baked in the oven. More similar to today's recipe is the one described in 1839 by Ippolito Cavalcanti in his “Cusina casarinola co la lengua napolitana” that explains: "You will fry the eggplants and then arrange them in a baking pan layer by layer with the cheese, basil and stew broth or with tomato sauce and you will let them stew.”
The ducal history of the parmigiana
The use of parmesan cheese – that probably arrived at a later stage as an alternative to pecorino cheese (plus the Neapolitan addition of mozzarella) – and the apparently clear reference to the Emilian city of Parma gives us reason to lean towards the birth of eggplant parmigiana having occurred in Parma. And that's not all: In the 15th and 16th centuries, "cooking the Parmigiani way" was a phrase that referred to the custom of preparing vegetables in layers. Just as you would with eggplant parmigiana. Meanwhile, from the 17th century onwards, "cooking Parmigiana style" simply became synonymous with the use of the famous cheese in recipe books.
What a riddle!
In short, a fine riddle to solve! However, the current diffusion of the dish, the eggplant imported from the Arabs and all the smaller clues left behind by history suggest a Sicilian origin – with a subsequent landing in Naples as a natural consequence of the Neapolitan domination of the island (similar to orice and almond paste, as well). And then there’s a further connection with the Bourbons, the dynasty of Spanish origin: Before arriving in Naples in 1734 (for a complex game of dynastic alliances), the area was first governed by the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. In short, maybe the Sicilians and the Parmigiani met in Naples to create the great classic that is the parmigiana!
Pictures by Giandomenico Frassi and Beatrice Prada