MASTERCLASS WORDS ROBERTA MUIR FOOD PREPARATION RODNEY DUNN PHOTOGRAPHY CHRIS CHEN STYLING LYNSEY FRYERS Classic cucina . Australia’s top Italian restaurateurs nominate the regional 170 pasta dishes that are the heart and soul of Italian cooking. Pasta is still one of those dishes whose CAMPIDANESE ALLA MALLOREDUS essentials elude many cooks. With that in mind, and as a companion to this issue’s pasta cookbook, we invited some of the members of the Council of Italian Restaurants in Australia (CIRA) to take us through a few of Italy’s traditional pasta dishes. We’ve asked each chef to choose a speciality of their region. Lucio Galletto nominates Liguria’s trenette al pesto, Giovanni Pilu picks Sardinia’s malloredus alla Campidanese, Salvatore Pepe opts for Calabria’s rigatoni with nduja and prawns, and Massimo Bianchi and Armando Percuoco pick Rome’s BOWL IN PARCHMENT FROM BISON; FORK FROM SPENCE & LYDA. LYDA. & SPENCE FROM FORK BISON; FROM PARCHMENT IN BOWL spaghetti carbonara and Naples’ linguine Napoletana respectively. Rustic dishes all, yet followed to the PAGE THIS . letter, they are fine examples of the Italian way: excellent produce, cooked simply for maximum flavour. Barilla, Buitoni and De Cecco are reliably without being too hard. Fresh pasta good. Fresh pasta is now widely available cooks a lot quicker than dried pasta (as BUYING PASTA from speciality shops. it contains a lot more moisture), taking Pasta comes in two basic forms: only two or three minutes to float to the dried (more typical of southern Italy) PASTA SHAPES top of the water, the sign that it is ready. and fresh (more often associated with Italian cooks are particular about serving Cooking times for dried pasta vary and MERCURY HOMEWARE; ROAD COUNTRY FROM PLATTER MEDIUM TUXEDO TOP: FROM CLOCKWISE LYDA; & SPENCE FROM CHAIR GLASS FIBRE EAMES the north). Dried pasta is best used certain pasta shapes with certain sauces. the packets’ instructions should be for more robust (often tomato-based) Short pasta shapes such as penne, followed as a guide. It should, however, sauces while fresh pasta is best for rigatoni, or conchiglie are great with a be checked regularly during cooking. delicate sauces. Only buy dried pasta textured sauce, such as Bolognese ragù, Once it’s cooked, act quickly. Drain in that is made from durum wheat – a as they trap the chunks of sauce inside a large colander (reserving some of the particularly hard variety of wheat. their hollows. Long pasta is best with a cooking water to moisten the sauce if Under Italian law, no other wheat smooth sauce, such as a simple tomato need be), toss it through the sauce and variety may be used in pasta making. sauce or olive oil, garlic and chopped serve immediately. The best dried pastas, and the most parsley. Tiny pasta shapes such as risoni expensive, are extruded through are used for soup. EATING PASTA bronze rollers, which leave a rougher, Australians have become used to pasta more porous surface, which gives the COOKING PASTA served with a lot more sauce than would sauce a better surface to cling to. Some Pasta should always be cooked in plenty ever be served in Italy. Italians don’t eat of the best artisanal (bronze-extruded) of salted water, which has been brought their pasta swimming in a plate of sauce. pastas available in Australia, from to a rolling boil: four litres of water, The sauce is simply meant to dress the select delicatessens and specialty shops, at least, for every 500 grams of pasta. pasta to flavour it, not drown it. The MASSIMO BIANCHI, LUCIO GALLETTO, SALVATORE PEPE, ARMANDO PERCUOCO, GIOVANNI PILU GIOVANNI PERCUOCO, ARMANDO PEPE, SALVATORE GALLETTO, LUCIO BIANCHI, MASSIMO are Rustichella d’Abruzzo, Benedetto It should be cooked until it is al dente sauce should be mixed through the hot Cavalieri, Martelli and Giuseppe (literally ‘to the tooth’), which means pasta, so that every strand is coated, Cocco. Of the mass-produced pastas, it still has some resistance or bite to it, with the pasta served in warmed bowls.p GREY RECIPES FOOD; & WINE OF ART THE FROM FORK BOURKE; ON UP DOUG FROM SILVER-PLATED BOARDS, AUSTRALIA; MUD FLOOR OLD FROM FROM MADE PLATE BLACK TABLE TRESTLE HONEYBEE; FROM GLASS WINE LARGE BISON; FROM P SALAD) (WITH STOCKISTS BOWL TREE. BLACK BAY BARROW; THE & FROM WHEEL FROM GLASS SPOON WINE SERVING PERIGOLD FOOD; & WINE SATIN OF ART THE FROM DECANTER GLASS TREE; BAY THE FROM PEPPER) (HOLDING BOWL OLIVEWOOD HONEYBEE; FROM NAPKIN LINEN 118 GOURMET TRAVELLER MALLOREDUS ALLA CAMPIDANESE (recipe p122) p 118 GOURMET TRAVELLER MASTERCLASS Pesto is all about the strength of the sauce; it’s the amount of garlic used and the sharpness of the Pecorino. TRENETTE WITH PESTO GOURMET TRAVELLER 121 LUCIO GALLETTO, LUCIO’S “Basil originated in Asia and Africa but it is present all over the Mediterranean, and found a habitat in Italy in the climate and soil of Liguria,” explains Sydney’s Lucio Galletto. “It is there that the best of many varieties grow, and the Ligurian people learnt quickly how to use it gastronomically in the noblest way: pesto. This symbol of Ligurian cucina has very ancient origins: its roots are in an oriental sauce (Arabic or Persian) that was based on a mixture of pine nuts and fresh acidic cheese. Throughout the centuries, oil and basil were added to these ingredients, and the fresh cheese was substituted with grated parmesan and Pecorino because of the abundance of these ingredients in the region. The great debate is about the strength of the sauce: the amount of garlic used and the sharpness of the Pecorino. In the Riviera di Levante, near the Tuscan border (where this recipe is from), it is quite a mild sauce, and traditionally served with a durum TABLE, AS BEFORE; NAPKIN FROM SPENCE & LYDA; TALL SALT GRINDER FROM MITCHELL MITCHELL FROM GRINDER SALT TALL LYDA; & SPENCE FROM NAPKIN BEFORE; AS TABLE, wheat pasta such as trenette or spaghetti, with green beans and potatoes. Other types of pasta that can be served with pesto include trofie (little dumplings of wheat and chestnut flour, without egg) or gnocchi, RIGATONI WITH NDUJA mandili de sea (‘silk handkerchiefs’; very fine AND PRAWNS fresh rag pasta). Purists may insist on using a stone mortar and a wooden pestle, but today almost everybody uses a blender, which gives 3 Drain pasta, beans and potatoes, RIGATONI WITH NDUJA AND PRAWNS excellent results. It is essential, however, not reserving some of the cooking water. Place Serves 4 to overheat the oil, as this ruins the aroma of pesto into a large mixing bowl and combine 320 gm dried rigatoni RIGATONI WITH NDUJA AND PRAWNS AND NDUJA WITH RIGATONI the basil, so minimum speed and frequent with pasta, 2 tbsp reserved cooking water, 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil pauses for cooling are necessary.” beans, potatoes and butter. The sauce is 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped used only ‘a crudo’, that is, not cooked, so 20 medium green prawns, peeled when adding to pasta it must be mixed off 250 gm cherry tomatoes, coarsely chopped TRENETTE WITH PESTO the heat. Serve immediately. 1 cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley Serves 6 Note Trenette is a narrow, flat pasta, thicker leaves, coarsely chopped 300 gm green beans, trimmed than linguine, that is traditionally served 8 basil leaves, coarsely torn 1 large waxy potato (such as Desiree), with pesto. Nduja peeled and diced 200 gm coppa 400 gm dried trenette (see note) 140 gm pork back fat (lardo) 40 basil leaves SALVATORE PEPE, 2 tbsp sweet smoked paprika 1 clove of garlic CIBO ESPRESSO ¼ cup dried chilli flakes 1 50 gm ( /3 cup) pine nuts “Nduja is a very hot chilli paste originally 2 tbsp sea salt 2 tbsp finely grated parmesan made with pork offal and is typical of the 1 tbsp finely grated Pecorino Sardo southern Italian region of Calabria,” says 1 For nduja, coarsely chop coppa and fat. 60 ml (¼ cup) extra-virgin olive oil Adelaide’s Salvatore Pepe. “The distinctive Add remaining ingredients and pass through 2 tsp butter flavour of the Calabrian version comes from a mincer or food processor on a fine setting chilli that has been slow-dried in a wood or finely chop with a knife. Nduja will keep 1 Bring a large pot of salted water to the oven, imparting a smoky flavour. The finished refrigerated for about one week. Makes boil, add beans and potatoes and return to paste is encased in intestine and cured like about 250gm. the boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. a cacciatore sausage. The fiery spread can 2 Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling 2 Meanwhile, carefully wash basil leaves be used to give heat and flavour to just about salted water until al dente. and pat dry. Place garlic and a pinch of sea 3 Heat olive oil in a frying pan, add garlic BACKGROUND PAINTED IN ‘JAGUAR’ FROM PORTER’S PAINTS; BACKGROUND PAINT EFFECT BY REBECCA NEILL; TABLE, AS BEFORE; BENTWOOD CHAIR FROM DOUG UP ON BOURKE; BYRON PLATE FROM FROM PLATE BYRON BOURKE; ON UP DOUG FROM CHAIR BENTWOOD BEFORE; AS TABLE, NEILL; REBECCA BY EFFECT PAINT BACKGROUND PAINTS; PORTER’S FROM ‘JAGUAR’ IN PAINTED BACKGROUND any dish from crostini to pasta. Nowadays, salt in a mortar and, using a pestle, crush to the paste is made using better cuts of meat and sauté over low heat until golden, add ¼ a paste, add basil and continue pounding, and although there are as many ‘secret’ cup nduja and sauté for 5 minutes or until it then add pine nuts and cheeses and pound recipes as there are butchers in Calabria, melts.