Tiella of Gaeta
The tiella is a gastronomic specialty typical of the city of Gaeta with the “Denominazione Comunale d’Origine” mark awarded by the Municipality of Gaeta in 2005.
The tiella is composed of two thin circular layers of dough, placed one on the other, closed along the edges by compression. The filling is usually made of land or sea products or both.
Tradition wants the tiella filled with: octopus, squid, escarole, spinach and cod, zucchini, onions, anchovies, sardines, mussels and other variations.
A good tiella must be moist in the filling, and soft and not soaked in the outer paste, which must be thin. It must also be well cooked in the lower sheet.
The tiella should traditionally be placed in a tin-plated copper pan that distributes the heat evenly.
The tiella was born as a single dish appreciated by farmers and fishermen to allow them to have a dish that could be stored for several days. It is said that already at the time of the Bourbons some of them were admirers; subsequently his memory is linked to the consumption of gaetans who left for America to emigrate in search of fortune
