There's no official legislation outlawing the presence of fish and cheese on the same plate, but for many Italians — and those of us who would wish to remain in their gastronomic good graces — there is no greater offense. To finish a fish-focused pasta with parmigiano would have many an Italian nonna rising from their graves to deliver a hefty slap on the wrist.
As a cheesemonger, I can't help but wonder about the origins of this great, unspoken assumption, and who among us actually abides by it? And regardless of whether or not you have an opinion one way or the other on the matter, you probably can't deny that the topic can be very heavily and hotly debated.
There are several explanations for the traditionally Italian mentality to keep cheese far away from fish dishes:
• Most fish has a delicate, mild flavor. Fish should taste of the sea, and should be consumed as close to the catch as possible to ensure this. And it should be served simply, for the same reason. The rich, salty flavors of cheese can too easily overwhelm the flavors of fish, forcing a contrast not only in intensity of flavor, but also a sacrifice of the integrity of both ingredients. Grated cheese over a fish pasta is considered either extraneous, excessive, or demeaning.
• It's very possible that tradition has dictated this rule more than anything else. Great Italian cheesemaking regions like Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, and Lombardy are largely — if not completely — landlocked, making them conducive to dairying, while Liguria, and Puglia, whose cuisines are largely fish-focused, are coastal. You could say that form follows function in this case, in the same way that in wine and food pairings, often what grows together goes together.
• There may actually be historical reasoning behind this largely-accepted rule. For many centuries, meat and dairy consumption were forbidden for religious reasons on every Friday. On that day, fish became the logical replacement for meat, and since cheese was also restricted, the two foods evolved distinctly from one another. A possible explanation.
• There are many exceptions to the "rule," and I'm sure many of us are "offenders." Anchovies on pizza is something that comes immediately to mind, although I'm not sure how popular this is in Italy. And I did find a recipe for a pasta with anchovies and parmigiano reggiano by Marcella Hazan, an exceptionally headstrong authority on traditional Italian cuisine. Sicily and Sardinia both have very strong cheesemaking traditions, despite their seaside geography.
Any cheese-loving thoughts on this matter? Do you quell or indulge your temptation to top your linguine alle vongole with pecorino?
Related: Good Fish, Bad Fish: How to Inspect Fish for Freshness
(Image: Flickr user mac1co licensed under Creative Commons)
My only thoughts on this topic are this: If you don't like cheese and seafood for reasons that are meaningful (taste, religion, lactose intolerance, etc) then ok, fine, its your call.
If on the other hand you're not doing so simply because that's always the way its been done (or in this case not done) and there's no justifiable reason for it, then that just seems a bit silly.
I'm not a big fan of seafood and cheese, but there are times that the combination is excellent. Shrimp parm is the first thought that comes to mind. Linguine with clams and a bit of grated cheese. Flounder with spinach and feta. Salmon, spinach, and feta fritatta. Ok, there are a number of items I like with seafood and cheese.
view Plaid Ninja's profile
My mom used to bake orange roughy topped with sliced tomato, spinach and gruyere cheese in a creamy wine sauce. It works pretty well.
McDonald's has mastered the fish/cheese combo with their filet-of-fish. Ok mastered is the wrong word. I guess fish and cheese are the wrong words as well. I digress...
Steamed mussels in a winey tomato broth with goat cheese whisked in at the last moment is pretty good.
I say, if it tastes good then by golly go for it.
view art's profile
I'm from Greece, and people here have the same tradition. I think it may be due to the fact that fish/seafood is particularly prone to spoiling, and cheese, having been made through a process that involves bacteria, can result to fish/seafood spoiling quicker than normal. At least, that's what I presumed from all the warnings I heard from my grandmother on that matter.
view lopi.'s profile
My mom (who would be 101 were she alive) was Italian, and since she did all the cooking, we ate Italian. Also being Catholic, we had seafood every Friday, long after Rome said it was OK to eat meat. And my mom, who stood over us with the threat of a smack if we didn't drink our milk, never served milk with seafood. When we asked why, all she ever said was, "It'll make you sick. Everybody knows that." I cannot imagine why it would have made us sick, but maybe it's the same thing with seafood and cheese. An Italian old wives tale?
view 39520expat's profile
perhaps it evolved because strong cheese could mask the taste of bad fish, leading to illness.
view thinkingwoman's profile
I knew a chef from Naples, and he would say that a fish never sees a cow and vice versa, so why would you put the two together?
view Fingernail's profile
The Times magazine had a good article on this topic a while ago.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/30/magazine/30food-t.html?scp=1&sq=seafood%20cheese&st=cse
Personally, I don't like to put cheese directly on fish, but I frequently like shrimp on cheese-based dishes, like polenta.
view ottan's profile
regardless of the topic- that picture seriously grosses me out.
view squeakycat's profile
I'm with Art- Filet o' Fish! And better yet, the fish sandwiches from White Castle. If White Castle does it, you know it is right.
But, seriously, Scandanavians mix fish and cream all the time, so why not cheese?
view Kassie's profile
My mother's family is Italian, so, in general we didn't eat fish and cheese together. The one exception was Tuna Noodle Casserole, but I'm not sure that "cheese product" really counts.
In general, it just seems a little wrong - and a little gross! - to put cheese on fish. On the other hand, butter on fish (or shellfish) is delicious!
view jarobinson1's profile
If grated Romano on Garlic Olive Oil Shrimp and Pasta is wrong, I don't wanna be right!!
view kimmyt's profile
Tuna melt. Love them.
I concur about the photo above - not looking very appetizing to me.
view Nikita's profile
i'm with Nikita. A good tuna melt rocks my world... although my mom, who nonna was sicilian said fish should never go with fish, its just gross.
In the Amazon rainforest, in the North of Brazil, they make an amazing fish gratin with plantain banana, milk cream and shoestring potatoes with cilantro. Topped with mozzarella. The fish is the dourado - freshwater and mean. This is one of my favorites in local cuisine.
Maybe the amazon people are onto something.
view sweetie's profile
Could it have anything to do with kosher tradition? I realize Italy is not exactly Jewish, but those laws come from the Old Testament....
view ratita's profile
Except that kosher allows for it, since fish is pareve. Its funny.. a bagel with cream cheese and lox or whitefish or sable is perfectly normal. Yet I distinctly remember being weirded out by tuna melts as a kid, and refuse to eat one now. However, when i tasted a Sea Delico pizza from Pizzaria Uno one day, my whole concept of melted cheese and fish changed, and now I can't have clam sauce without at least parm.
view cheflaura's profile
Tuna melts aren't Italian! (they are delicious)
Italian cooking is all about regions, some of them micro-regions. Over the years native Italians I have met are often not familiar with the cuisine of regions other than their own, or have no interest in eating it. I definitely think this has to do with landlocked dairy/cheese regions being separate from fishing regions. It probably just "tastes funny" to native eaters.
view Charlotte's profile
I've never really thought about it before, but sometimes I will put parmesan in a breadcrumb coating for baking fish.
In Norway I had something called fiskegrateng, that was like macaroni and chese, with cod, and a breadcrumb crush. It was delicious. Recipes vary.
view Melissa A.'s profile
Pizza with anchovies is one of the most popular pizzas in Italy, but anchovies are hardly considered "fish". I mean, they don't taste like fish, or look like fish. They're just like a condiment. Whatever. The no cheese rule applies to other kinds of dishes too, like penne all'arrabbiata, spaghetti aglio&olio, and seafood risottos.
view Sol's profile
Being Swedish this no cheese and fish seems a bit weird. Pickled (salted) herring and cheese is a classic combination on a traditional smörgåsbord (for example). But Italian fish dishes may be a bit subtler and cheese could maybe overwhelm them...
I'm not sure the French share this no-fish-and-cheese thing with the Italians either - I had very good mussels in a maroilles cheese sauce last week in Lille.
view linaa's profile