THE JOKE OF THE 7 FISHES

 

 

A fish tale that never existed!

It is that time of the year again when we join the rituals of celebrations, the religious observances of our family traditions and faith. Time ago I expressed my experience on “dipping olive oil”, that famed habit which everyone consider an Italian thing, and in fact very far from it, about 3000 miles. It’s an American-Italian habit which as grown from a meager oil sampling to a laughable concoction which includes balsamic vinegar, grated cheese, hot pepper seed, and whatever else the restaurant is offering for free. Maybe, sometimes the olive oil likes to be alone. Italians in the land of Italy do not dip bread in olive oil, they however, dip crusty country bread in olive oil without garlic, and other ingredients, only during the release of the new olive oil harvest. It is nothing more that an opportunity for family and friends to savor the new oil after about 30 days from its extraction to analyze the strength, clarity, perfume and overall aroma of the natural fat. Producers from town to town invite others to share the passion for good times, taste and township bragging rights. Olive oil plates do not appear in Italian restaurants in Italy, in fact there is a charge called “Il coperto” which is essentially a fee you get charged for bread and tablecloth, and would be much more costly if included olive oil at $ 12 € per liter. The next tale I would like to clear is about to happen again here at Christmas Eve. It is called “the seven fish”. Before I get into the historical details, I would like to share, that this habit we believe have inherited from our mother land, it is still a great display of our American-Italian heritage, part of our traditions, and for that symbolism alone it is certainly extremely important. However, it did not start that way. The Catholic rituals are  an important ingredient in our gastronomy. Many of the dishes we often prepare have a religious connection, a time of celebration, a vivid representation of our fate through food. We often prepare certain cookies just on Easter, other specialties are offered just in the period of Lent, many of them just on Sundays or other important family gatherings. I wonder what would make the church decide that on the eve of the birth of Jesus we should consume seven fishes, not eight, or four, but just seven? Through the years, I have heard many different versions, many of them false, without foundation or logic, but simply a product of human exaggeration. Seven days in a week, seven sacraments, seven children in a family, seven….. …what ever else someone decided to fabricate. The Catholic Church actually suggests that on the eve of Christmas, in preparation of the arrival of our Messiah, Catholics all over the world indulge in a diet of “Magro”, which means lean and often inexpensive foods. Consuming such specialties symbolizes the sacrifice we all offer on Christmas Eve. On Christmas day, however, the opposite happens. We celebrate the arrival of Jesus with the consumption of large amounts of foods, rich in flavors and we glutton passionately through our sweets to participate in the memorable event. In the region of Campania for instance; eel is consumed, usually fried, or stewed with a light tomato broth and bay leaves. The Campani folks prefer the female gender called “capitone” much fatter and oily. The consumption of eel is to represent the destruction of evil in our souls, as Satan is believed to appear in a form of a serpent. In the region of Umbria , the serpent is offered for consumption in a sweet delicacy format. Almonds and egg white are blended with sugar, then shaped in the form of a snake, and ultimately baked. In the Northern regions of the country, fish hardly appears, nor anyone is really interested because through the centuries it was never part of the holiday menu’, even even along the coastal areas. In the region of Abruzzo where I was born, we consume octopus, blended with small pasta in a form of soup, and occasionally followed by a stew of legumes and boiled chestnuts. If in fact consuming fish on Christmas Eve, gives us the feeling of sacrifice, when did we decide to buy lobsters, shrimp, scallops, salted cod, clams, etc, which come with a hefty price? It’s hardly a sacrifice, when we indulge in very expensive foods, on a night when the celebration it’s not about food, but on a sacred arrival which very often becomes totally secondary. It is become so much part of our social fabric that other non Catholics join in the food feast, not because of the religious meaning, but its display of culinary abundance. It is become so much of a business event that restaurants are open to accommodate those who really believe that the Catholic Church wrote this as a food holiday, and that the magic number is seven, and won’t be excommunicated if you surpass it. Do we actually think that on the eve of Christmas, Our Holy Father Benedict XVI will gather with all the cardinals in the Vatican Refectory and indulge in fried baccala’, snail salad, stuffed quahogs, fried capitone, and spaghetti with lobster diavolo, and then move near the fireplace to enjoy some roasted chestnuts and limoncello? Ultimately, however, I do feel that regardless on how it got started it is still a wonderful way to celebrate this solemn religious event, and certainly we all have the right to celebrate with whatever food we like, but always keep in mind that it is a tradition that was created by the immigrants in their new assimilation of America dining and folkloristic habits, such as Thanksgiving and 4^th of July.  Lastly, if you happen to be in Italy in your travel, please remember that the only thing you should do seven times, is visit the Vatican and stand at midnight in Via della Conciliazione while staring the cupola of Saint Peter. You will wonder if eating seven fishes is really that important.

CHEF WALTERS COOKING SCHOOL PROVIDENCE RI