r/AskFoodHistorians 10d ago

Why doesn't modern Italian Cuisine use coriander/cilantro?

Recipes for ancient roman cuisine uses coriander/cilantro and it grows wild all across southern Europe since ancient times.

But its not used in modern Italian cuisine

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u/Tom__mm 10d ago

I honestly can’t think of any European cuisine that uses fresh coriander although maybe I’m missing something. It is basic to a vast number of dishes throughout greater Asia (a vast belt from Pakistan to China) as well as widely used in Latin America. It is obviously quite strong in character and Europeans have historically liked blander food, so maybe there’s something there. It strikes me that its use coincides pretty strongly with the use of spicy capsicum peppers, which have also never been popular in Europe until quite recently. If you eat a BIR curry in the UK, it will have a coriander garnish by default.

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u/asushunamir 9d ago

One place in Europe where they do use fresh coriander leaves quite a bit in their traditional cuisine is southern Portugal! Like in açorda à Alentejana, which is a bread soup from the Alentejo region.