'Portico': Jewish feasting and history in Rome - review

When Leah Koenig was a 22-year-old college graduate in 2004, she traveled to Tuscany to spend a month at an organic winery, planning to learn about sustainable viticulture. On that trip, she visited Rome and fell in love with the Coliseum, the Sistine Chapel, “the labyrinth of tiny streets,” and the food. Her brief foray into the Jewish Ghetto whet her appetite for Italian Jewish history, culture, and food.

When she returned five years later on her honeymoon, she and her husband “wound our way up and down Via del Portico di Ottavia’s smooth cobblestones, eating our weight in fried artichokes.” She adds, “My connection to my Jewish heritage was more fully developed, and my interest in the link between food and Jewish history was in full bloom.” This love affair in Rome led to a professional career “studying and sharing Jewish cuisines from around the world.”

Koenig’s latest cookbook, her seventh, is Portico: Cooking and Feasting in Rome’s Jewish Kitchen, named after the remains of the ancient structure in Rome known as Portico d’Ottavia (Ottavia’s Porch), built in the 1st century BCE by emperor Augustus in honor of his sister. Over time, it has served as a Roman temple, library, open-air art museum, and public square. 

In the 12th century, it became the home of a fish market, which operated until 1871. Koenig notes that this market was “a major source of nutrition for Rome’s Jews during the Ghetto period.” She describes the portico as “the most iconic structure in the Jewish Ghetto neighborhood” and knew from the earliest stages of researching the book that “portico” would appear in the title.

Koenig has wisely included photographer Kristin Teig in Portico; her exquisite photographs of food markets, streets scenes, shops, people, and dishes appear throughout the book. Photos and recipes are interspersed with historical facts, as well as informative descriptions of Rome’s past and present Jewish culinary scene.

The history of the Jews in Rome

KOENIG BEGINS by chronicling Rome’s Jewish history, including the arrival of Jews in four distinct periods. The first wave of Jews arrived to Rome in the 2nd century BCE as diplomatic envoys of Judah Maccabee. The Italkim (Italians) came next, after Hadrian destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE. Jews from Spain, Portugal, and southern Italy fled to northern Italian cities in 1492 during the Spanish Inquisition. 

Nearly 500 years later, in 1967, Jews from Libya settled in Rome, as conditions for Jews in Arab countries became difficult in the wake of the Six Day War. Each of these historic events influenced Roman Jewish cuisine, and Koenig places each of her recipes into historical and cultural context.

That third group of Jews faced difficult times as “papal attitudes toward the Jews tended to oscillate between tolerance and distaste.” Things got even worse in 1555 when Pope Paul IV created the Roman Ghetto, an enclosed “four-block wide gated slum in one of the city’s most undesirable, and virtually uninhabitable, locations” where the Jews were forced to live. The ghetto was kept locked from dusk until dawn each day; men were forced to wear yellow hats, and women yellow kerchiefs.

This fascinating and not always glorious history is significant, as it impacted on food selection and preparation. For example, by papal decree, Jews were not permitted to purchase larger species of fish. As a result, Jewish families were forced to live on fish scraps (heads and spines) and on smaller fish like mackerel, sardines, and anchovies. As a result, the community became creative in preparing foods like endive and anchovy pies and anchovy stews. 

In addition, the cheaper “throwaway” parts of animals were utilized and “simmered into enticing dishes,” sometimes with ingredients such as sautéed onions, artichokes, and lamb entrails. A wide range of dishes were also created from the abundance of locally produced olive oil.

Today, there are an estimated 16,000 Jews in Rome. Fortunately, fish, meat, and produce are in abundance, and culinary choices are essentially limitless.

KOENIG LISTS 20 staples for a Roman pantry, which includes anchovies, olive oil, and ricotta cheese, as well as baccala (salt cod), carne secca (cured meats), casalino tomatoes, cicora (similar to dandelion greens), and sour cherry jam. The recipes in Portico include substitutions for ingredients that are hard to find or out of season.

Of course, no Roman kitchen is complete without artichokes, especially the regionally grown purple and green variety. Koenig devotes eight pages to every facet of artichokes, including how to clean them, and a fascinating kosher controversy that arose around the beloved Roman Jewish staple food.

Portico is divided into six sections: Vegetables; Soups; Fritters; Pasta and Rice; Main Dishes; and Sweets. We challenged ourselves with preparing a multi-course Roman Jewish Shabbat dinner which included appetizers, sides, a main dish, and dessert. The recipes proved straightforward and relatively easy to follow.

We made concia (Silky Marinated Zucchini), which involved slicing zucchini into long strips, frying them in olive oil (a bit messy), marinating in vinegar (we used less than directed due to personal preference), and tossing with garlic and whatever fresh herbs we had on hand. The result was a deeply flavorful, deceptively simple dish that was a delicious appetizer at dinner – and even more tasty served the next day on the Roman flatbread we prepared from a foolproof, easy-to handle dough.

We used plum instead of casalin tomatoes for the pomodori a mezza (Roasted Tomato Halves) and were mesmerized by the caramelized flavor of the slow-baked tomato and garlic dish. We were able to source cipollini onions for the Cipollini al Forno – another dish that emphasized the sweetness of a slow-roasted vegetables prepared in a simple and elegant way.

We roasted a mixture of seasonal vegetables such as eggplant, zucchini, and potatoes for the Verdure al Forno, a colorful side dish that turned out perfectly cooked. The Pollo con Peperoni (Chicken with Peppers) had just a few ingredients but yielded a bright, tasty main dish with a delicious sauce.

WE ALSO had the opportunity to prepare the Malignane Scinicate (Stewed Eggplant and Onions), which Koenig modernized from a traditional Roman Ghetto dish by adding tomato, vinegar, and herbs. The dish was easy to prepare and was a flavorful addition to our lunch, served alongside the zucchini with the Roman flatbread. 

We also enjoyed Cershi Bel Hal (Garlicky Pumpkin Spread). We substituted butternut squash, and found the spicy and sweet dish to be a truly unique way to prepare this humble vegetable. It is one of the recipes in Portico derived from the Libyan-Jewish community of Rome.

We prepared three types of cookies for dessert: the Roman classics Pizza Ebraica (Dried Fruit and Nut Bar Cookies); Amaretti (Chewy Almond Cookies); and the Chocolate Orange Cookies inspired by a contemporary Roman kosher bakery. The instructions for these were clear and easy to follow, and yielded sweet accompaniments to hot mint tea. We didn’t have a chance to try the cakes (almond, semolina) and pies (sour cherry, chocolate ricotta), but they look tempting.

We’d love to try some of the soups, meat, fish and dairy dishes in the very near future when we use Portico again. Pasta squares and spinach in broth (with clear instructions for rolling out and cutting the pasta into squares), beef brisket stracotto, whole roasted fish with raisins and pine nuts, and, of course, eggplant Parmesan are high up on the list.

Portico is a delightful addition to any cookbook shelf, offering clear directions for preparing unique, flavorful dishes from relatively simple ingredients. But it is much more than a cookbook – it also a coffee-table book offering rich photography, historical facts, insight into aspects of Jewish culture not well known outside of Rome, and inspiration for your next trip. Be prepared to buy two copies: one for the kitchen likely to get food stained from overuse, and one for the coffee table to show friends. 

• PORTICO: COOKING AND FEASTING IN ROME’S JEWISH KITCHEN
• By Leah Koenig
• W. W. Norton & Company
• 336 pages; $29