When you go to a restaurant and you order a plate of pasta or risotto, do you ever wonder how they get it to taste so good? Most food in a restaurant takes so good, because most of the dishes have a good balance of salt, fat and acid.
But how do you make delicious Italian food at home? It may seem challenging, but most of it comes down to respecting the ingredients and not cooking the shit out of stuff.
It’s hard for me to eat Italian food in most restaurants. Since I grew up with it and I lived there a decade ago, I’m pretty particular about it and would rather just cook it at home. Cooking Italian food at home is relaxed and filling, but also easy to screw up. It’s deceivingly simple and with one move, can be totally ruined.
I’m going to start off by going through a few staple ingredients that are part of most Italian dishes. They give flavour, body and balance and are needed to complete the dishes. After that, I’ll go through a few of my favourite techniques that will sure be a good way for you to remember the tips.
Staple ingredients:
Garlic-Garlic is a staple of Italian cooking. It makes food rich in flavour and is super good for you, so chances are it will be seen in every recipe. When cooking the garlic use oil and butter at the same time, it helps not to burn the garlic and get rid of that bitter flavour
Olive oil-The fat of the central and Southern regions of Italy is also used greatly in the Northern cuisine as well. Olive trees line the whole countryside, between the vineyards and the other crops. It can range from very good quality to absolute crap. Sometimes olive oil you purchase at the grocery store is just fine too; just try to stay away from the really cheap stuff.
Parmesan cheese-The king of Italian cheeses, is a staple in most Northern and Central dishes. Parmesan gives food a rich and nutty flavour. It binds pasta and risotto and gives an umami sensation to your mouth.
Butter-The fat of the North is your best friend when making risotto and pasta. It can be used at the start or as a finishing ingredient. It brings sauces together and the dishes a rich flavour.
Anchovy paste-An ingredient that sneaks it way into a lot of regional dishes without the eater knowing. This salty and briny flavoured tube packs a lot of punch. It builds an immense amount of flavour just like mushrooms do and create complexity in the competed dish.
Anchovy paste-An ingredient that sneaks it way into a lot of regional dishes without the eater knowing. This salty and briny flavoured tube packs a lot of punch. It builds an immense amount of flavour just like mushrooms do and create complexity in the competed dish.
And now for a couple tips to not screw up an Italian dish:
#1 Don’t overcook your pasta and risotto. I know it may be challenging and you may be confused as to when is the right time to strain it. All you have to do is taste it! If you can still feel some of the stability of the wheat or the grain or the rice, it’s done. Please don’t cook it past al dente. It makes me really sad.
#2 Use pasta water and stock whenever you can. Pasta water and stock are you best friends. Use them to adjust your sauces and consistency of what you are making.
#3 Add a little butter at the end or olive oil to finish the dish and make it shinny
#4 Use fresh herbs whenever you can to up the flavour of your dishes. Think about what you can grow at home to have available for cooking dishes.
So next time you're cooking, you're going to kill it right? Exactly! Just try it out and see how it goes. Let me know!
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