Where the word tarallo comes from is not known for certain, so over the years various hypotheses have been made. Its origins could come from different languages, and there are four theses that are most widely accepted:
- From the Greek “daratos”, a kind of bread
- From the Latin “torrere”, to toast
- From Old French “danal”, round bread
- From the Italian “tar”, meaning to wrap
While there is still little etymological clarity, it is known when the tarallo became widespread and why.
The two main places of origin are Campania, in the Naples area, and Puglia
As Matilde Serao recounts in one of her most famous works “Il ventre di Napoli” (The Belly of Naples), the Neapolitan bakers, not wanting to throw away the leavened dough left over from the production of bread, called “sfriddo”, started making this biscuit at the end of the 18th century, adding ‘nzogna“ lard and flavouring them with lots of pepper. They worked the dough with their skilful hands into two intertwined strips formed into a circle and knotted. They thus became a food for the poor. Over time they were enriched with other ingredients and in the early 1800s almonds were added.
As for the Apulian taralli variant, legend has it that a mother, having nothing to feed her children and having few ingredients in her pantry, prepared small circles of dough by simply kneading flour, oil and a pinch of salt. She closed them with a small knot at the end and baked them in the oven.
In the 1400s, peasant families used to offer this food accompanied by good wine as a sign of friendship and cordiality. In the 19th century, taralli dough was also used to make figures, real puppets that were used to decorate tables at wedding banquets and were eaten at the end of the meal with sweet wine.
It can therefore be said that the tarallo benefited everyone: the baker, who used the leftover bread dough with little effort, and the people, who bought it for little money (given the low production costs). The tarallo was a true blessing for the wallet, but also for the palate. It was consumed in taverns, where it was accompanied by wine that was often not very fine. On the one hand increasing consumption (the pepper made one thirsty), but on the other reducing its negative effects on otherwise empty stomachs.
Hand in hand with the spread of the tarallo, a new characteristic figure took hold, that of the “tarallaro”, i.e. the person who sold the taralli and walked the streets with a basket on his shoulders, shouting to attract attention and offering his products warm, because they were kept under a blanket. If he managed to keep the temperature high, the scents and fragrances were released at their best, inviting customers to buy.
Something very similar to what the Fiore bakery used to do at its second location in Andria, we have told you more about it in this article.
Over time, taralli spread to other regions in southern Italy and today their variants are recognised as traditional Italian food products.
