A Toronto historian traced Italian immigration to the United States and Canada point by point by sampling more than 710 pizzas for his doctoral thesis.
“Food history is always a very accessible and interesting way for people to go back in time and start researching the past,” University of York researcher Alexander Hughes told the Toronto Star on Thursday.
He used pizza as a “lens” to study the development of the cities of Toronto and Buffalo between 1950 and 1990, through this dish that was initially limited to Italian households but has nevertheless become the popular food found on every street corner today is.
In this way, the researcher was able to observe the development of the two cities, which had many things in common in the 1950s, such as the proportion of Italian immigrants and their economic performance.
However, if Toronto quickly became a “prosperous and multicultural metropolis with strong economic output” – which was quickly reflected in many high-end or franchised pizza restaurants – Buffalo remained dominated by small family restaurants, particularly affected by “industrialization and ongoing population loss.” suffered. he said.
[NEW] We sat down with pizza historian Alexander Hughes to talk about his work chronicling the history of pizza in the US and Canada and what is being done to preserve this piece of our history. Get ready for a big dose of food history in today’s episode: https://t.co/7duIJJybpN
— PreserveCast (@preservecast) January 31, 2022
No less than 712 spikes
Although it wasn’t necessary for the American history student to eat a slice at each of the 712 historic pizzerias he visited, the thirty-something decided to turn his thesis into a taste experience and record his progress.
“I actually became lactose intolerant during the project. I don’t know if it’s because I ate too much pizza or just getting old,” he said, adding that it wasn’t enough to slow his quest.
Instead, he began taking lactase enzyme supplements regularly to alleviate the problem.
Today, the 30-year-old still enjoys a slice of pizza here and there, even if he claims to have drastically reduced the pace. your favorite? Il Paesano Pizzeria, is located in Etobicoke, Toronto.
“Unfortunately, you can’t taste the past,” he admitted. Even if I eat in these pizzerias, it’s not necessarily what was served in the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s. I’m sure the recipes have changed over time.”