Any basic dish can sound sexier if you translate it into Italian. Fagioli su pane tostato, anyone?
Italian-American chef, writer and TV personality Giada De Laurentiis is known for stirring the pot both literally and figuratively.
Her ‘chocolate pasta movement’ from December 2024 raised a few questions over her culinary chops, with a glut of fans saying things along the lines of this one comment: “Giada, I love you like cooked food but this is a bridge too far.”
Now she’s back with a dish that has some stronger cultural roots than ‘I was the kid who had chocolate sandwiches for breakfast, so I don’t think it’s that weird’: pane e pomodoro.
Those of us with a little Italian bouncing around in our heads will likely recognise the bread and tomato elements of that dish and… well, yeah, that’s about it.
De Laurentiis during an interview with Jimmy Fallon (NBC / Contributor/Getty Images)
In a recent Instagram video, De Laurentiis treated her 2.4 million fans to a quick tutorial on making this classic Italian snack.
Starting out with two halves of a freshly-based baguette, De Laurentiis says it’s her ‘favourite summer meal’.
“You toast the bread and you rub it with fresh garlic,” says De Laurentiis in the video. “The toasted bread kinda absorbs all of the garlic. Then you put a little olive oil over the top. I just love it.
“Then we’re gonna do the tomato. So fresh,” she says, ostensibly missing the fact she’s pulling tomatoes out of a tin. “This is something we had all the time when I was growing up. It’s such an easy way to get a fresh light meal in the summer time.”
It turns out it isn’t just we pedants at FOODBible taking offence at the tinned toms, with the comments awash with fans saying the same thing.
“Favorite summer meal is canned tomatoes,” said one user.
“Canned tomatoes are NOT fresh,” said another. “You should know better.”
“I would use my garden tomatoes, got plenty coming out. Much tastier,” opined another who seems lucky enough to have their own tomato patch.
Of course, no comment section is completely one-sided.
“I always thought canned tomatoes are not fresh but when you think of it, these tomatoes were harvested in Italy when they are at their prime so it probably is a good idea to use the canned ones when tomatoes are not in season,” said one defender.
Another pointed out the likely reason why De Laurentiis opted for canned tomatoes: “I just noticed it’s her brand. That is why.”
All of this overshadows the point that pane e pomodoro is a cheap, easy and tasty snack, of course. If you haven’t had the pleasure, give it a spin.
Still, the debate highlights how emotionally attached people are to traditional dishes — especially when an Italian classic is involved. For some, pane e pomodoro is less about strict rules and more about simplicity, comfort, and making do with what’s on hand. De Laurentiis herself has often said that Italian cooking is rooted in practicality, not perfection. Whether made with sun-ripened garden tomatoes or a trusted tin from the pantry, the spirit of the dish remains the same: good bread, good oil, and honest flavors. And if nothing else, Giada’s post succeeded in sparking conversation — and reminding people that even the simplest food can carry deep cultural meaning.
