Palermo’s Street Foods. The Authentic Pani câ Meusa

Abstract

Street food is not a synonym of Mediterranean-Diet-related foods. An internationally recognised definition of street foods clearly identifies these products as ready-to-eat foods and beverages which are prepared and sold by different food business operators without an immobile location. Related features—including cheapness and nutritional contents—do not seem applicable to the Mediterranean Diet. Certain well-known Sicilian specialities, such as arancina, arancino, or sfincionello, are identified as street foods without connections between their presumptive safety/health and the current status of food produced and sold ‘on the road’. On the contrary, these foods are recognised as excellent ‘one-food’ solutions being able to supply the needed energy and many nutritional factors at the same time. In this ambit, the study of street foods in the world could show some surprise, especially with reference to particular social and geographical/historical areas. This Chapter concerns a specific street food which can be found only in Palermo, Sicily, although some similar recipe may be found in Southern Italy. Because of the important influence of many civilisations in Sicily and the pre-existing Hebraic traditions, the study of a peculiar Palermo’s sandwich—the pani câ meusa street food—is highly recommended by different viewpoints including history, possible ‘authenticity’ features, and identification of raw materials, preparation procedures, concomitant alternative recipes, and nutritional facts.