THE FUNDAMENTAL TECHNIQUES OF
CLASSIC ITALIAN CUISINE THE INTERNATIONAL CULINARY CENTER with Cesare Casella and Stephanie Lyness
Contents Foreword TK Introduction TK Acknowledgments TK The Flavors of Italy TK
Part I: Recipes
Part II: Lessons
Antipasti TK Introduction to Cheese-Making: Formaggi TK Stocks and Some Basic Italian Sauces: Fondi e Salse TK 4 Rustic Bean Soups: Minestre e Fagioli TK 5 Pasta TK 6 Gnocchi TK 7 Risotto and Polenta TK 8 Eggs: Uova TK 9 Breads and Flatbreads: Pizze, Calzone, Focacce, e Grissini TK 10 Poultry and Game Birds: Pollame e Selvaggina TK 11 Beef and Veal: Vitello TK 12 Organ Meats: Frattaglie TK 13 Pork: Maiale TK 14 Lamb and Rabbit: Agnello e Coniglio TK 15 Fish and Shellfish: Pesce e Frutti di Mare TK 16 Vegetables and Salads: Contorni e Insalate TK 17 Tarts and Doughs: Crostate e Paste per Dolci TK 18 Traditional Italian Desserts: Biscotti, Cannoli, Bomboloni, e Pastiera TK 19 Cakes: Pan di Spagna, Zuccotto, e Torte TK 20 Meringues, Mousses, and Confections: Meringhe, Budini, e Torrone TK 21 Frozen Desserts: Gelati, Sorbetti, e Granite TK
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1 2 3
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Introduction to the Professional Italian Kitchen TK Working with Vegetables TK Cheese-Making TK Working with Stocks and Sauces TK Working with Dried Legumes TK Working with Pasta TK Working with Gnocchi TK Working with Risotto and Polenta TK Working with Eggs TK Working with Yeast Doughs (Sweet and Savory) TK Working with Poultry TK Working with Beef and Veal TK Working with Organ Meats TK Working with Pork TK Working with Lamb and Rabbit TK Working with Fish TK Working with Shellfish TK Working with Pastry Doughs TK Working with Creams and Custards TK Working with Egg Foams TK Working with Meringues and Mousses TK Working with Frozen Desserts TK
Bibliography TK Conversion Charts TK Index TK
part i
Focaccia Focaccia
breads and flatbreads
Makes one bread, the size of a half sheet pan or a 43-by-30½-centimeter (17-by12-inch) rimmed baking sheet Focaccia is a soft flatbread, usually baked in a rectangular shape. At its simplest, focaccia is brushed with oil and sprinkled with coarse salt, although it is not unusual to find it topped with herbs, cheese, and/or vegetables. The topping is typically lighter than for pizza. Although focaccia may be made with a pizza dough, focaccia doughs usually contains a higher volume of olive oil, producing a crisp but moist textured bread with a rich olive-oil taste. Focaccia dough is dimpled with the fingertips before baking to create the signature crevices that collect oil or bits of topping.
Press the dough into an oiled, half-sheet pan or 43-by30½-centimeter (17-by-12-inch) rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the surface with oil and sprinkle aggressively with the coarse sea salt (at least 20 grams / 1 tablespoon). Cover with plastic wrap and let rise again until almost doubled, about 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 177°C (350°F). Center a rack in the oven. Press indentations into the surface of the focaccia with oiled fingertips. Bake (cuocere in forno) until the focaccia is golden brown on top, about 25 minutes.
Ingredients
Focaccia con Cipolle
550 grams (4½ cups) all-purpose flour 10 grams (1¾ teaspoons) coarse salt 7 grams (2¼ teaspoons / 1 packet) active dry yeast 300 milliliters (1¼ cups) warm water 3 grams (¾ teaspoon) sugar 150 milliliters ( 2⁄3 cup) olive oil, plus extra for drizzling Very coarse sea salt, such as Maldon, as needed
Focaccia with Onion
Combine the flour, salt, yeast, water, sugar, and oil in a bowl and mix with clean hands until the dough comes together. Knead on a lightly floured work surface until the dough becomes smooth, velvety, and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, then oil the top to prevent a crust from forming. Cover with plastic wrap.
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Let the dough rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. To make the dough a day ahead, let it rise 30 minutes, press it down with the heels of your hand to de-gas, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Return to room temperature before proceeding.
Follow the first four steps in the recipe for Focaccia on page TK. Press the dough into an oiled half-sheet pan or 43-by-30½-centimeter (17-by-12-inch) rimmed baking sheet. Cover with plastic warp and let rise again until almost doubled in volume. While the focaccia is rising and the oven preheating, cook 500 grams (4¼ cups) sliced red onion in 60 milliliters (¼ cup) olive oil until softened and beginning to caramelize, about 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let cool. Drizzle the surface of the focaccia with oil and sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon salt. Press indentations in the surface of the focaccia with oiled fingertips.
part i
Insalata di Mare
30 milliliters (2 tablespoons) red wine vinegar Coarse salt ½ lemon
Seafood Salad
antipasti
Serves 4 Every region with access to seafood boasts a version of this salad; this recipe demonstrates a basic method that may be adjusted according to market availability and the personal preferences of the chef. The key is to choose a balance of textures and flavors so that no one element overwhelms the others. The sweetness of the shellfish is balanced by the acidity of lemon juice, the shellfish broth, and olive oil. All of the seafood, with the exception of the mollusks that are opened in a bit of water, is poached separately in a court bouillon, a vegetable stock acidulated with white wine, lemon juice, and/or vinegar, to respect individual cooking times. (See “Le Tecniche: Affogare” on page TK for a discussion of poaching seafood. Step-by-step photos for cleaning seafood can be found on pages TK–TK; see “Working with Dried Beans and Peas” on page TK for step-by-step instructions on cleaning, soaking, and cooking beans).
Ingredients For the court bouillon: 50 grams (2 ounces) red onion, cut into 2½-centimeter (1-inch) pieces (1⁄3 cup) 50 grams (2 ounces) celery, cut into 2½-centimeter (1-inch) pieces (1⁄3 cup) 20 grams (¾ ounce) carrot, cut into 2½-centimeter (1-inch) pieces (¼ cup) Fresh thyme sprigs Fresh Italian parsley sprigs Fresh basil sprigs 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
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For the salad: 20 grams (¼ cup) roasted and thinly julienned red bell pepper (4 centimeters / 1½ inches long) 20 grams (¼ cup) finely diced celery 30 grams (¼ cup) pitted black olives, preferably taggiasca, quartered lengthwise 30 grams (¼ cup) pitted green olives, such as Gaeta, quartered lengthwise Pinch of red pepper flakes Coarse salt 110 grams (¼ pound) small shrimp, peeled, deveined, and halved lengthwise 75 milliliters (5 tablespoons) olive oil, plus extra for serving Two U-10 sea scallops (55 grams / 2 ounces total), cleaned of crescent-shaped muscle (see “Shucking Scallops,” page TK) and halved or quartered, depending on size 1 whole small squid (110 grams / 4 ounces), cleaned, body cut into tubes 1 centimeter (3⁄8 inch) thick 9 mussels, scrubbed and debearded 9 Manila clams, scrubbed 15 grams (1 tablespoon) diced red onion, marinated in red wine vinegar to cover for at least 1 hour 100 grams (½ cup) peeled, seeded, and diced tomato 3 grams (1 tablespoon) chopped fresh Italian parsley 15 to 30 milliliters (1 to 2 tablespoons) lemon juice (from ½ to 1 lemon) Freshly ground white pepper 240 grams (1½ cups) cooked white beans Baby arugula, small basil leaves, or other greens, for garnish
Make the court bouillon: Wrap the vegetables, herbs, and peppercorns in cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine. In a large saucepan, add 3½ liters (3¾ quarts) water, the vinegar, and the cheesecloth bag; bring to a simmer (sobbollire) and cook 45 minutes. Discard the cheesecloth bag.
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Bistecchine di Maiale in Padella
Season the pork with salt and pepper to taste, place in a container with the garlic and rosemary, drizzle with a little oil, and massage the seasonings into the meat. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour, or overnight.
Sauteed Pork Chops
Preheat the oven to 232°C (450°F).
Serves 4 For this recipe, pork chops are marinated in olive oil, garlic, and rosemary. Once the chops are sautéed, the pan is deglazed with wine and the chops finish cooking in the oven. A quick pan sauce is made with the pan drippings and stock. Radicchio Trevisano Brasato (braised radicchio) on page TK makes a delicious contorno. Cooking times for the chops are approximate because pork chops cook differently, depending on where they are cut from the animal: Cut from the shoulder end, they take longer to cook but the meat is often more tender. In Italy, pork chops are traditionally cooked to medium. (See “Preparing Pork Chops for Sauté” on page TK for step-by-step instructions.) Chef’s Notes
Ingredients
Olives are not pitted because pitting will break the flesh and release too strong an olive taste into the sauce.
4 pork chops (2 to 4 centimeters / ¾ to 1½ inches thick), trimmed, bones cleaned of meat (frenched), connective tissue slit at edges of chops Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper 8 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed with the heel of the hand 4 sprigs (15 centimeters / 6 inches long) fresh rosemary, cut in half 45 milliliters (3 tablespoons) olive, grapeseed, or canola oil, plus a little for marinating 125 milliliters (½ cup) dry white wine 60 grams (¾ cup) black olives, with the pits (see Chef’s Notes) 100 milliliters (scant ½ cup) vegetable stock, plus 250 milliliters (1 cup) stock or water for deglazing 1 recipe Radicchio Trevisano Brasato (page TK) (optional)
The garlic and rosemary are added to the pan after the pork so that they won’t burn.
In a large, ovenproof skillet (padella), heat the oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Remove the garlic and rosemary from the chops; reserve. Add the chops to the pan and brown (rosolare), 3 to 4 minutes on each side. A few minutes into the cooking, add the garlic and rosemary to the pan. When the garlic turns golden brown, place the garlic and rosemary on top of the chops to prevent burning. When the chops are well browned, pour off the fat. Deglaze (deglassare) the pan with the wine, turning the pork in the wine. Add the olives and cook to reduce the wine by about half. Add the 100 milliliters (scant ½ cup) vegetable stock. Place the pan in the oven and roast (arrostire) the chops, turning once, until the pork is cooked to medium doneness, 5 to 10 minutes, depending on the cut. Remove the chops from the pan and deglaze the pan with the 250 milliliters (1 cup) stock or water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and reduce to the consistency of a sauce. Serve the pork with the sauce and the radicchio, if desired.
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part i
Lasagne di Carne Lasagne with Meat Ragù Serves 8
pasta
This version of lasagne is layered with Ragù di Carne, besciamella (which serves to bind and moisten the layers), and grated Grana Padano. In southern Italy, lasagne is often made with mozzarella or ricotta, sometimes in place of the besciamella. This recipe uses green pasta (traditional in Emilia-Romagna), but plain egg pasta may be used, or a combination of the two. (See pages TK and TK, respectively, for step-by-step instructions for making green pasta and rolling pasta. See page TK for a discussion of “Besciamella.”)
on the pasta machine. Cut the dough strips into 8-by13-centimeter (3-by-5-inch) rectangles. Place in a single layer on the prepared sheet pan, and dust with more semolina. Place a sheet of parchment on top, sprinkle with semolina, and continue rolling, cutting, and layering pasta strips in this way, placing a sheet of parchment between layers. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Assemble the lasagne: Bring a large pot (pentola) of salted water to a boil. Prepare a container of ice water. Working in small batches, cook the pasta rectangles in the boiling water to al dente, 1 to 2 minutes. Use a pasta basket or spider (ragno) to transfer the cooked pasta to a sheet pan or other shallow dish to cool. (Add a little bit of the ice water and some oil to prevent the pasta from sticking together.) Drain and pat dry on paper towels. Repeat with all the pasta.
Ingredients Preheat the oven to 191°C (375°F).
Chef’s Notes Pasta dough may be rolled and cut into rectangles, then covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight. Lasagne may also be assembled and baked in individual ring molds, as might be done for restaurant service. Rewarm in the oven if necessary and turn out onto plates.
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Semolina, for the sheet pan 1 recipe Pasta Verde (page TK), refrigerated 30 minutes, and brought to room temperature 1 double recipe Besciamella (page TK), made with 60 grams (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, 60 grams (4 tablespoons) all-purpose flour, 1 liter (4¼ cups) milk, coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper, and freshly ground nutmeg; surface dotted with butter 1 recipe Ragù di Carne (page TK) 100 grams (1 cup) finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano 30 grams (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter
Butter a half hotel pan or a 21-by-21-centimeter (8-by8-inch) baking dish. Spread the bottom with a thin layer of besciamella. Cover with a single layer of pasta, cutting the rectangles to fit exactly with just a little overlap at the seams. Spread with a thin layer of meat sauce, top with a thin layer of besciamella, and sprinkle with grated cheese. Cover with a second layer of pasta. Continue this layering process, beginning with the pasta and ending with the cheese, to make 3 more layers. Dot with butter.
Roll the pasta verde dough: Sprinkle a parchment paper–lined baking sheet with semolina. Follow the instructions in the recipe for Pasta all'Uovo on page TK to roll the dough to the next-to-thinnest setting
Bake until the top of the lasagne is golden, about 20 minutes. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes to firm up before cutting; lasagne cuts more easily when slightly cooled.