If you have not heard anything about this kitchen, then it is worth warning that where the island of Sicily begins, the diet ends. Tuna, arancini, couscous, cannoli are very tasty and very high-calorie dishes, and cheeses are so delicious that you can’t drag them away from their ears.
Here is such Sicilian cuisine. Therefore, every time, returning from a trip, many tourists look sadly at the scales. It is impossible to resist the temptations abounding in local cooking. No wonder it is called the "explosive mixture" of Arab, Jewish, Spanish, French and Greek traditions.
Features
Perhaps the most important ingredient is eggplant. Locals are so fond of this vegetable that they add it to almost every dish: pasta, meatballs, stew (caponata), casserole.
No less popular are anchovies, wild fennel (an analog of dill). Many recipes also add onions, capers, garlic and, of course, aromatic herbs that are grown in abundance on the island:
- basil;
- sage;
- parsley;
- laurel;
- oregano;
- mint;
- rosemary.
Sicilian cuisine also uses pine nuts and raisins (Arab influence).
Proximity to the sea instilled in the local population a love of fish. They serve it both in raw and in cooked form. In the latter case, season with various spices: with olive oil, breadcrumbs, garlic, oranges, capers and olives.
The triumph of taste: what to try in Sicily
When you come here for the first time, be sure to start familiarizing yourself with local culinary on the street or, in modern terms, try street food. The city of Palermo is especially famous for its riot of taste, which is included in the list of 5 cities in the world that differ from the rest in the amount of street food. Be sure to try bread with spleen and pancakes.
Also, visiting Sicily, be sure to order the following dishes in local eateries:
- Arancini - rice balls with filling.
- Sfincione - a traditional pizza island.
- Calia e simenza - a dish of pumpkin and chickpea seeds.
- Vastedda, Scacciata, Scaccia - closed cakes.
- Cipollina - a dish based on puff pastry, ham, tomato sauce, onions and mozzarella.
- Frittelle - pancakes, as a rule, cook them on holidays.
Antipasti and much more
Traditionally, a meal in Sicily, as well as in Italy, begins with appetizers. Then they serve the first dish, then the second and dessert. The most popular antipasti include:
- Caponata is a stew of eggplant and other seasonal vegetables.
- Insalata di arance - orange salad.
- Parmigiana di melanzane - eggplant casserole.
- Gâteau di patate - potato pie (French influence).
- Alici crude al limone - fresh anchovies with lemon.
- Bruschette alla siciliana - bruschetta with vegetables.
- Frittata is a cold omelet.
As you know, in Italy, pizza is the No. 1 dish. It is customary to cook it for lunch and never for dinner. The hallmark of Sicilian cuisine, in particular Catania, is Pasta alla Norma, which is served with eggplant, ripe tomato and salted ricotta sauce. Another traditional dish of the island is Pasta alla Siciliana. Here, the main ingredients are capers, dill, sardines, raisins, peppers and pine nuts. Among the exotic options for pasta are especially distinguished:
- Pasta con I Ricci with sea urchins.
- Spaghetti al nero di seppia is a popular black pasta (cuttlefish spaghetti). Be careful: the soiled clothes practically do not wash!
The second most popular (after pasta) are cereals. The leading position, of course, is risotto. By the way, rice is now not the most common ingredient on the island. But this was not always the case, Aragonese and Arabs at one time cultivated this product on an industrial scale.
Of the second dishes of Sicilian cuisine are required to tasting:
- Arrosto panato - fried crackers.
- Bastaddi affucati - meat casserole with cauliflower.
- Falsomagro - ground beef roll, a mixture of Sicilian cheeses and salami.
- Meatballs with fennel.
Where without sweet
And finally, desserts! Without them, the kitchen would not be complete. Perhaps the most unusual and vivid culinary experience of visiting the island is its sweets! Here is a list of the most popular and, of course, delicious:
- Cassata - biscuit dough covered with glaze and decorated with candied fruit.
- Cannoli - tubes with ricotta cream.
- Rollò Nisseni - the finest chocolate, nougat and marzipan roll.
- Totò Siciliani - cookies with icing.
- Granite is a frozen fruit juice.
- Almond cakes.
- Marzipan fruits.
- Kubbaita - a dessert made of nougat, candied fruit, caramel sugar and nuts. It is mainly cooked for Christmas.
- Cassatella diSant'Agata - a delicacy in the form of a female breast symbolizes the agony of St. Agatha, with whom the Romans cut off the bust.
Business card of Sicilian cuisine: recipe with photo
Pasta alla Norma is not just pasta, but a real triumph of a harmonious combination of Mediterranean tastes. Start cooking with the sauce, for which you need to take a small amount of olive oil and fry in it 2 slices of garlic and 100 g of meat diced with small cubes. As soon as they hiss, we introduce 300 g of chopped overripe tomatoes and simmer on the fire for at least 2 hours. Yes, yes, it takes so much time for the meat to give its juice.
While preparing the sauce, we will deal with four eggplants. First cut them along. Then the side parts into longitudinal strips, and the rest - in cubes.
We proceed to the most crucial moment in the preparation of Sicilian dishes. Heat olive oil in a pan and fry the eggplant. Once the strips have a golden hue, quickly transfer the ingredient to a paper towel, allowing excess fat to drain.
We return to the sauce. 15 minutes before the end of the stew add 250 g of tomato, mix. After a quarter hour, the sauce will be ready. It's time to start the paste.
Throw a pound of penne into boiling salted water. It is important that the products float freely in water, that is, take larger dishes. We wait 4-5 minutes, and then every 30 seconds we check readiness. Ideally, the paste should be hard inside, but not fragile.
At the end, the fun part is: add the penne to a bright burgundy incredibly fragrant sauce, mix gently and add the golden eggplant. Stir well for the last time and remove from heat.
Popular second course
Describing recipes for Sicilian cuisine, you must definitely talk about the preparation of risotto. For cooking, select round grain rice. Popular long-grain varieties are not suitable, because after steaming they become dry and crumbly, and we need to achieve stickiness and juiciness.
So, to begin with, in a thick-bottomed pan, melt 50 g of butter and fry the finely chopped onion until transparent. Rinse thoroughly and be sure to dry 350 g of rice, add to the pan and let it warm. In a separate pan, boil 1.2 liters of meat broth with a glass of dry white wine. After boiling, reduce the heat, but do not remove from the stove. As soon as the rice becomes “glassy”, pour half a glass of hot broth and stirring constantly, let it soak completely. Then add the broth so that its volume is 2 times more than rice. Salt and pepper, increase the heat and simmer, not forgetting to stir the dish periodically. If necessary, pour in a little broth.
Before serving, add 50 g of butter, sprinkle with 100 g of grated parmesan, mix and arrange in plates.
Sicilian cuisine in Moscow
Reading about the culinary traditions of the island is not as pleasant as trying. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you go to Italy to make sure the taste of the dishes described earlier. But to help you understand the charm of being in this country, we will give some useful tips:
- Look for restaurants away from the center and popular tourist destinations. Only in remote corners can you enjoy delicious and inexpensive local cuisine.
- Be sure to visit the farm.
- Do not bypass the markets: buy fruits, fish, vegetables.
- Be sure to try street food in Palermo.
- Do not be greedy and get a gastro tour. The trained guides will tell and show the farms and production, so that you try only the best dishes and products.
And for those who do not have the opportunity to leave for Sicily, we suggest visiting one of the most popular institutions in the capital, specializing in this cuisine - La Bottega Siciliana (Okhotny Ryad, 2). This is not just a restaurant, but also a pizzeria, ice cream parlor and pastry shop. The joint project of Igor Vitoshinsky and the Sicilian Nino Graziano became famous not only for his amazing wine list, but also for two Italians who cook classic Sicilian dishes.
What to try:
- Talopini with crushed almonds, shrimp and zucchini - 960 rubles.
- Carpaccio from artichokes with arugula and parmesan - 2 100 rubles.
- Cassato in Sicilian - 590 rubles.
Be sure to start your meal with olives and freshly baked bread, which tastes better if you dip it in olive oil. And don't forget about the wine! What is an Italian meal without this wonderful drink? Buon appetito, friends!