Italian restaurants across the world have been asked to make donations for every plate served of the pasta dish named after Amatrice, a small town in the Apennine mountains about seventy miles north of Rome and one of the worst hit by the recent devastating earthquake.
Several independent efforts have been created to use the town's signature dish — spaghetti all' amatriciana. What is it? Mostly tomato, with diced pork cheek, sheep's milk cheese and a touch of spicy chilli.
Before the quake struck, Amatrice was set to host the fiftieth anniversary celebration of all' amatriciana. Relief efforts focused on the dish have united pasta lovers and enthusiasts on social media who are trying to organise a virtual sagra (festival), planning to share images online and donate to help quake victims.
Carlo Petrini, president of Slow Food and Terra Madre, has launched an appeal to support the people affected by the earthquake from today and in the future with a one-year campaign. ‘With a symbolic dish of the gastronomic history of Amatrice, we hope to spread the values of solidarity and sharing all over the world and the typical of the farming culture it was born from.’
