Cuisine week brings taste of Italy to Amman

AMMAN — For the seventh consecutive year, “the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World” kicked off in Amman on Monday and runs through November 20.

The event, a project launched by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in 2016, aims to build on some of the key features of EXPO Milano 2015, such as sustainability, food safety, identity of territories and biodiversity.

Along with the concept of regeneration and innovation, these are the core of Rome’s candidacy to EXPO 2030, said a statement from the Italian embassy.

The theme chosen for this year’s edition of the Cuisine Week — “Conviviality, sustainability and innovation: The ingredients of Italian cuisine for the health of people and the protection of the planet” — puts a focus on the Mediterranean diet, a healthy and balanced diet that emphasises fresh, natural, locally grown and seasonal products.

The week, organised by the Italian embassy in Amman in cooperation with the local Italian Trade Agency and many other local partners, brings together eminent chefs from various parts of the Italian peninsula, as well as Italian restaurants in Jordan and academies of Italian cuisine. 

The initiative presents the culinary art as an opportunity for authentic sharing and dialogue between cultures, through which to promote the enhancement of the “solid and long-lasting Italian Jordanian relations”, as well as spreading both typical Italian cuisine and the culture and ideas behind it, read the statement.

From November 14 until 20 a special corner with Italian deli foods will be running both at “Select Foods Shoppe” and Cozmo Supermarket, the latter will be accompanied every day by a live cooking show done by several Italian chefs from 11am-1pm and from 5-7pm. 

Premiering on November 15 and running until the end of the month, a photographic exhibition curated by the Slow Food Association —“Gli Eroi del Cibo - Food Heroes” — will be freely accessible in Amman at Manara Arts & Culture. 

Chef Renato Bernardi, Ambassador of the Mediterranean Diet, gave a cooking class on rice followed by a dinner at the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts on the opening night.

Together with the Directors of the Cerealia Festival he is also meeting young Jordanian students, both in Amman and Aqaba, and giving a lecture on “conviviality, sustainability and innovation in the kitchen” aimed at promoting territories through typicality and enhancing local communities.

The second half of the week will also see a tribute paid to the Italian confectionery tradition, with events and tastings dedicated to ice cream and pastry.

In the full calendar of events, the promotion of renowned Italian products is intertwined with food education, with a view to engage the Jordanian population and spread knowledge about the origins of Italian products and culture.

The Italian Cuisine Week in Amman is designed to offer a multi-sensory degustation of Italian culinary treasures, enhancing intercultural dialogue and honouring the deep connection with Jordan, said the statement.