Northern vs Southern Italian food, which one is better? It sounds like a simple question… but in Italy, it’s not.
Because here’s the truth. Italian food is not one cuisine. It’s a collection of completely different regional traditions, each shaped by climate, history, and local ingredients. Travel just a few hours across the country and everything changes, from the pasta you eat to the way it’s cooked.
In this guide, I’m going to show you the real difference between Northern and Southern Italian cuisine. No stereotypes. No shortcuts. Just authentic traditions, simple explanations, and a few strong opinions along the way.
💯 Follow this link to read the article about North vs South Pasta Differences:
Northern vs Southern Italian Food: What’s the Real Difference?
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⏱️⏱️TIMECODES⏱️⏱️
0:00 Introduction to Northern vs Southern Italian Food
0:54 Northern Italian Food: Rich, Comforting, and Satisfying
3:29 Central and Southern Italian Food, Fresh and Simple
6:30 Abruzzo Breaks the Rule, Egg Pasta in the South
7:50 Lasagna, The Perfect Northern vs Southern Example
9:24 Which Is Better, Northern or Southern Italian Food?
11:24 Discovering Italy, Why Exploring Hidden Places Matters
12:47 Final Thoughts, The Beauty of Italian Cuisine
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🎬 #VincenzosPlate is a YouTube channel with a focus on cooking, determined to teach the world, one video recipe at a time that you don’t need to be a professional chef to impress friends, family and yourself with mouth-watering #ItalianFoodRecipes right out of your very own kitchen whilst having a laugh (and a glass of vino!).
25 Comments
I guess im a central Italy fan. Fusion of the two. I love a traditional bolognese, never made a spinach pasta. But not a fan of meatballs in my lasagna. Best advice i give ppl traveling to different countries for food is simple. Find locals no matter where are and you can trust. Ask them what restaurants they eat at. I've been on six continents and if you trust the ppl you talk to, they will point you away from tourist locations and to the true regional flavors.
Hello from the SF Bay Area! Given that my mother was born and raised in Italy—-Southern Italy (Nola to be precise), I would have to say that my heart belongs to southern cuisine since it’s what I grew up with. I’m relatively new to your channel and have been loving your videos and am really looking forward to your upcoming cookbook🇮🇹🌻
Thank You for the interesting video, I must confess, I'm partial to southern Italian cooking style & pastas , But Yes, if Bolognese then wide shape egg pasta is a must or sometimes good carefully cooked Polenta to accompagne meat based sauces or sausages
If I have to pick a favourite, it wil have to be linguine alle vongole. But please don’t take away my porcini risotto with truffle.
My friend whose family lives just outside of Torino has introduced me to some wonderful homemade Italian liquors over the years. I would enjoy seeing a video such as this one showcasing some of the various wines, beers, and spirits of your home country!
Among your very best videos! For me, definitely the south.
My family mostly hales from Southern Italy, but we embrace the ones from the north as well. Our lasagne has tons of itty bitty meatballs when we put it on the table and our polenta has Sunday gravy on it. BUT I have two favorite dishes: Clams and Linguine and cheese ravioli with Marinara sauce. Thank you for such a beautiful video. 🤗
Grazie Vincenzo, Grazie.
Bellissimo video, la passione che ci hai messo e' piu' gloriosa del latte che piange dalla mozzarella! 🙂
Thank you, Vincenzo, Thank you.
Wonderful video, the passion is even better than the milk from the mozzarella cheese! 🙂
I have another question, too:before you start making videos about Italian dishes, you were also an actor , so my question is : When did u start acting in flims, and who inspired you to be an actor?
Ringrazie maestro.
Great video, great info. You really know what you’re talking about
Very interesting. A real trip around Italy with great food explanations. Thank you so much.
I love the Caccio e Pepe, guess its from Rome, or central Italy. The most simple and tasty pasta i know. Its sad that its really hard to find good Pecorino here.
Grandissimo Vincenzo E Meglio Mangiare In Tutti i Regioni D Italia daijeeee ❤🍝
North or South?
Frankly, I don't care!
Anyway, I made "la Genovese" the other day, with 1,5kg Ossobuco, 200g Guanciale, more Sofrito than you normally use, and a bit over 2kg onion..
WHY have I never made that before??
Couldn't find the "right" pasta-type,but our local "luxury supermarket" has introduced their "own" brand of imported pasta, called "Omhu" (roughly translates to "Care" in English), a I.G.P. Pasta di Gragnano.
They are selling it at a heavily discounted "Introduction price", so I got 2x500g of "Fusillata Casareccia", for 30DKR, or 4€!
That is an absolutely insane low price for a pasta of this quality!!
Since my father was from Chiusaforte Friuli and my mother is from Lipari (Isole Eolie) Sicily, I have to say 50/50 on this one
I love the food from both regions equally – best of both worlds!
I’m sad I don’t have an Italian grandma to make me all these foods. Need to go to Italy and find myself an Italian grandma lol
I have one question: what is the idea behind serving spaghetti with vongole or cozze still in their shells? I understand that it looks good and fresh, but when you have de-shelled all the clams, your pasta is cold, and the empty shells take half the space of your plate…that's the experience I've made several times
Really loved the food of Pesaro/Urbino Le Marche, home of my ancestors where I visited this past year on my first ever trip to Italy! Very memorable and delicious home cooked meals with relatives well as wonderful meals out. I ate Crescia con erbe selvatiche e formaggio almost everyday for lunch! My other regional favorites were the breadcrumb and parmigiana 'pasta' Passetelli, and of course homemade tagliatelle with a typical simple tomato sauce of the region. Another specialty of the region that I loved was a rustic pasta square square and lentil dish and can't forget the locally dug truffles in pastas, cheeses and other dishes.
I just don't get those tourists ordering in a continental Florence a meal with fish or seafood, instead of opting for i.e. duck ragu, beans and other regional foods. Each region is specific and has its own delicatessen. It is up to us to discover and appreciate them.
I love all Italian food. My family is from Basilicata, so I am biased to the South. My grandfather and grandmother were from there, and came to the US at the beginning of the 20th Century. They always made great tasting food from the south of Italy. I have since moved back to Europe (though not Italy) and enjoy that I can get all kinds of Italian foods that I could not get in the US. The genuine articles. I have only been to Italy once, but it felt like home, especially in Matera. Planning on going back to Italy again and again.
Do you honestly believe I could choose?!? Southern Italian/Sicilian heritage but spent lots of time in the north, I must eat both! Often!
When I was touring through Tuscany and Umbria, what struck me most was those little villages, and all life was built around a central square. It gave a sense of community I've always envied since. It made me look differently at Italy's passion for preserving their way of life, because it is different and well worth preserving. The food and the recipes come from that sense of locality. Not just what that area allowes you to grow, but also what recipes are passed on locally to get the best out of the produce and taking pride in those local recipes as cultural heritage.
Did you ignore Sardinia because it has all of it?
Wow , what a italian cuisine story❤ i would glad to see more of this types of videos. I am not a big fan of sweets , but i would like to see a north/south desserts comparation, volentieri