Tiella facts for kids
Tiella is a special dish from Italy that often uses potatoes, rice, onions, and mussels. Sometimes, other ingredients are added too! There are different kinds of tiella, and some might even have other types of seafood. The round, oven-safe dish where tiella is traditionally cooked is also called a "tiella." This tasty dish is a big part of the food culture in Apulia, which is in southern Italy. You can also find it in coastal areas of Calabria.
In Gaeta, a town in Lazio, Italy, tiella is a unique local dish. It's made like a pocket sandwich and often filled with seafood like octopus inside a kind of pastry. Other Italian dishes are also called "tiella," like some casseroles and stews.
Contents
What is Tiella?
Tiella is a delicious Italian dish that's often baked in an oven. It's known for being a hearty meal, especially in the Apulia region of Italy. Think of it like a big, comforting casserole!
Tiella with Potatoes, Rice, Onions, and Mussels
This is a very common type of tiella. The main ingredients are potatoes, rice, onions, and mussels. But chefs often add other things to make it even more flavorful!
Ingredients and How It's Made
Besides the main ingredients, people might add tomatoes, artichokes, courgettes (which are like small zucchinis), garlic, white wine, celery, parsley, bread crumbs, and cheese like Pecorino. It's usually baked in an oven until it's golden and bubbly. Some people say it looks a bit like paella, which is a famous Spanish rice dish.
Sometimes, people make tiella without rice. The mussels are usually served still in their half shells. They might even be steamed a little before being added to the dish for baking.
Tiella is known as a "hearty dish" because it's very filling and satisfying. In Apulia, where it's very popular, they often use fresh vegetables grown right there. Apulian tiella usually has lots of potatoes in it!
The Special Cooking Dish
Traditionally, tiella is cooked in a round dish made of terracotta or glazed earthenware. This special dish is also called a "tiella"! Today, people sometimes use metal pans too, but the traditional earthenware dish is still very popular.
Different Kinds of Tiella
In the Apulia region, tiella often has rice and potatoes. They might steam the mussels with white wine and add Pecorino cheese, bread crumbs, and parsley.
Some versions of tiella are made with other types of seafood, like sardines, instead of mussels.
Other Tiella Dishes
The name "tiella" is used for other Italian dishes too! For example, there's an Abruzzan tiella that's a casserole made with potatoes and eggplant. There's also an Apulian stew called Tiella di Agnello, which means "lamb tiella." This stew is made with lamb, potatoes, and onions.
Both of these dishes can also be cooked in the special earthenware tiella dish. When making Tiella di Agnello, all the raw ingredients are placed in layers in the dish. This makes the top layer crispy and delicious, while the bottom layer stays soft and soaks up all the yummy juices!
Where Did Tiella Come From?
Tiella first appeared in Italy a long, long time ago when Spain ruled southern Italy. Because of this, some people say tiella reminds them of Spanish rule. A food writer named Waverly Root once said that tiella is "one of the few Spanish dishes which have been taken into the Italian repertory." He even thought it might be a distant relative of paella!
Potatoes first came to Italian cooking in the 1500s. This was a time when Spain had a lot of influence in Italy, which helps explain how a dish like tiella might have Spanish roots.
