Languages are alive- they arise organically and evolve. How many other commonly used terms in English or any language for that matter can trace their origins to a mistake or a misinterpretation? Many, many I am sure. Italian American food and even customs, while they are based on aspects from the mother country, are uniquely American and were born out of the realities and limitations of living in North America.
They evolved over time and became something unique and separate from what exists in Italy. I will call it gravy, and I will defend my fellow Italian Americans who call it sauce. Our family calls it sauce or sugo, not gravy, but we are Italian-Canadian, not Italian-American. My grandparents called it gravy so we called it gravy.
To our friends we called it sauce so they would understand. I taught my kids gravy the way my parents taught me and my parents and I are born native Californians this is where my grandparents immigrated to. When I was a boy my parents 1st gen Americans both of whose parents were from Naples [dad] and Bari [mom] called meat sauce gravy, largely because my father did.
Somewhere along the way my mom stopped calling meat sauce gravy and started calling it meat sauce to differentiate it from marinara sauce.
My dad also dropped the word and if it slipped out my mom commented on it. Mom copied that and all was well even though it was her passion to use only Redpack canned tomatoes from California for her sauces. The confusion lies here. Where anyone is going wrong by calling a sauce a gravy is when we are talking a marinara, which has no meat. It gets even more confusing when you think of Bolognese. Its sauce! Hmm, thanks for that info.
My grandparents were right off the boat, and always called it gravy. I guess that answers why they did. So we grew up also calling it gravy. I do remember my pop saying.. God I love my Italian heritage! From what gather the first and second generation italian dont call it gravy.
Its usally the 3 rd up generations! Gravy belongs on turkey for me but i dont care what people call it. Gravy is that brown stuff you pour on turkey and mashed potatoes. Found out different. She never called tomato-based sauce gravy, though. My family called it gravy and so does the Italian-American family in the book.
Simple, right? Guess not. All of my Italian-American friends call it gravy, as well. If anyone wants to support a fellow Italian-American, the book is available on Amazon.
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Skip to content Search for: Search Close. Close Menu. So… Where did the term come from? Should I call it Sauce or Gravy? Tell us already!
There is really no right or wrong answer. Sources Image: Marinara [Flikr]. Share this: Tweet. Like this: Like Loading Ken from Norristown, PA Loading This is exactly what the article explains, there is no word for gravy in Italian Loading The Irish hmmmmm Loading Gravy WHAT!!!!!!!!!
Yes Thank you! Like the Italian-American people and their foodways, neither will die out any time soon. Dina M. Make the pledge and become a member of Italian Sons and Daughters of America today! Share your favorite recipe , and we may feature it on our website. Although, it should be noted, she also has a recipe for the type of gravy that people put on the Thanksgiving turkey called No Fail Gravy.
In the UK and its former colonies, gravy refers to any meat-based sauce. Americans generally lost the distinction between meat-based and non-meat-based over time, but certain regions held onto it — including when talking about Italian food. Ranalli told Slate that regions that say they pour gravy over their pasta include Philadelphia, the Bronx, east Boston , and Chicago.
So, when they made a thick sauce that they poured over a meal, they called it gravy. Later generations often used sauce, the term more popular when they were growing up. Sauce is the more common term. The word makes sense, as it directly translates to salsa, which Italians use more often. As an Italian-American living in Pennsylvania , I thought she might be familiar with the term. Instead, she said salsa is best for a tomato-based sauce.
We use cookies for analytics tracking and advertising from our partners. You tell us! Sarah Griesemer Asbury Park Press. Show Caption. Hide Caption. Do you call it sauce, gravy, marinara or spaghetti sauce?
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