Cooking in Italian: secrets from the chef

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-18 00:05

Italian cuisine is perhaps the most popular in the world. Italians have their own dishes - "stars", which can be found on the menu of almost any restaurant. "Tiramisu", "carbonara paste", "panna cotta" - just these words make your mouth water. But at home all this turns out to be somehow wrong. Either the sauce is not correct, or the products from our stores are not good enough … Andrea Maestrelli, brand chef of the IL Patio restaurant chain, and Francesca Betti, an Italian housewife, gave Cleo a lesson in real Italian cuisine. And so, we begin to cook in Italian.

Flour dishes

Andrea Maestrelli:

- First of all, you need to make the right dough. It plays a major role in dishes such as pasta and pizza. Use sea salt, good water, and flour. Do not substitute vegetable oil for olive oil. Make sure that your pasta comes out al dente - that is, undercooked, firm. Italians never boil pasta until it is completely soft.

Here's an elementary recipe, 100% Italian: boil the pasta in salted water, add good olive oil, a little parmesan or pecorino cheese, sprinkle with freshly ground pepper. The freshness of the food makes a simple dish delicious!

Francesca Betty:

- When you buy a paste, pay attention to the composition. Real pasta is made from durum wheat flour. For example, from flour "Semol". On the packaging with the correct paste, you will find in the ingredients the phrase "durum flour" - this means that solid flour was used in the manufacture. It is hard flour that allows Italians to stay slim and graceful - hard pasta does not make you fat. If you want to bake pizza, look for premium flour - again from durum wheat.

Famous desserts

Andrea Maestrelli:

- In fact, the famous panna kota, tiramisu and sorbets are not as complicated as they seem. The key is to use good ingredients. Housewives often replace cream with milk, they buy not the best quality thickeners. This all affects the taste.

So panna cotta is easy to do. Boil milk, cream and some gelatin in a saucepan. Add vanilla - I recommend buying real vanilla sprigs, not powder. Pour the finished mixture into molds and send to the refrigerator to cool. Then add a sour or sugary accent - pour panna kotu with sour berry jam or sugary-sweet caramel syrup. That's all!

Francesca Betty:

- For the manufacture of creamy sauces, Italians use cream, butter and different types of cheeses - mascarpone, ricotta, mozzarella. Mozzarella, for example, is good on its own with sugar and fresh fruit. We add riccotta and mascarpone to tiramisu, cannoli, and various cakes.

Of all the Italian desserts, sorbets are the easiest to prepare - just chop fruits or berries in a blender, add lemon juice and sugar, and then freeze the mixture.

It is very simple, very tasty and very in Italian!

Salads

Francesca Betty:

- Usually Italians eat light mixtures of different types of green salad, seasoned with a few drops of vinegar or olive oil, or both. Combine arugula, iceberg lettuce, romano and lolla-rosso, top with a mixture of balsamic vinegar and good olive oil. You can also add tomatoes, red onions. A real Italian salad will come out, which Italians eat every day along with pasta.

Choosing oil

Francesca Betty:

- Italians use olive oil and butter in most of their dishes. While it is easy to deal with the varieties of butter, the selection of olive oil is somewhat complicated. On the oil label there are such words - "Extra virgin", "Virgin", "Pure", "Refined" or "Oil Pomace". In order not to get confused in the methods of pressing and processing, I will only say that "Extra virgin" and "Virgin" are premium oils, they are most suitable for salads and have a bright taste, "Refined" is ideal for frying and has a muted taste, and "Pomace" - added to baked goods. By the way, many Italians like to snack on a piece of fresh bread, dipping it in Extra virgin olive oil - with a drop of balsamic vinegar.

The right vinegar

Francesca Betty:

- Since the Middle Ages, Italians have been using balsamic vinegar in cooking. It is made from grapes, not wine - be careful not to confuse balsamic vinegar with wine vinegar. Balsamic vinegar goes well with salads and meat dishes. Sometimes it is even poured into desserts - usually in a mixture of fruits and berries. We we cook in italian, therefore, we take only original Italian ingredients.

The very same balsamic sauce, which is served in Italian restaurants, is very simple: it is enough to heat sugar, balsamic vinegar and red wine. In various variations, you can add lemon juice and olive oil to the sauce. I replace sugar with honey - I like it better.

Spices and condiments

Francesca Betty:

- Remember: the combination of olive oil, garlic, tomatoes and fresh basil always gives this unique, truly Italian taste. This sauce is suitable for pasta and pizza. If you wish, you can add ham, vegetables, minced meat to it - everything will turn out authentically.

The main herbs of Italian cuisine are the aforementioned basil (preferably green), thyme, tarragon, oregano and rosemary. As a seasoning, we often add dried tomatoes and olives, garlic and pine nuts to our dishes. The same "pesto" is very simple: you just need to crush garlic, basil, pine nuts and mix with extra virgin olive oil. Optionally, you can add Parmesan cheese, dried olives or tomatoes here. By the way, real "pesto" is not prepared in a blender, but in a mortar. Trust me, the difference will be tangible.

I recommend preparing Italian food with fresh herbs, rather than dried ones - this is how you get as close as possible to your favorite dishes from the restaurant.

Do you like Italian food?

	Oh sure!
	Some dishes.
	No, not very tasty.
	I like it, but I don't eat - you can get fat on pizzas and pasta.

The main secret

Andrea Maestrelli:

- Italy has a very diverse nature. Therefore, almost any type of meat and seafood can be used to make an Italian dish. The main thing is freshness and quality. And, of course, the passion with which you cook. Italians are cheerful and hot people, they cook with their characteristic temperament and enthusiasm. Believe me, bad mood and fatigue have a significant impact on taste. Personally, I always come to work happy!

Now we know a lot about the secrets of Italian cuisine - which means we can improvise!