Marcella Hazan -- Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

Tomatoe Sauces - "Never cook a (tomato) sauce in a covered pan, or it will emerge with a bland, steamed, weakly formulated taste."

Fresh Tomatoes - "If there is a choice, the most desirable tomato for cooking is the plum tomato.

Canned Tomatoes - "Look for whole, peeled plum tomatoes of the San Marzano variety imported from Italy."

Pasta - " There is not the slightest justification for preferring homemade pasta to the factory-made. They are seldom interchangeable, but in terms of absolute quality, they are fully equal."

Factory-made Pasta - "Should have a faintly rough surface, and an exceptionally compact body that maintains its firmness in cooking while swelling considerably in size. Best for olive oil based sauces such as seafood sauces and light, vegetable sauces and some butter-based sauces."

Homemade Pasta - " Not as chewy as good factory pasta. It has a delicate consistency and feels light and buoyant in the mouth. Has the capacity of absorbing sauces deeply, particularly the ones based on butter and those containing cream."

Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese - "No other cheese can claim, in the same measure the qualities and the way this cheese tastes and performs in cooking. Made from a process that is unchanged in seven centuries and a name that is stringently protected by law." Try to buy a slice cut from a wheel to preserve its special qualities. Never buy it grated."

Olive Oil - "There is a broad range of aromas and flavors available. Experiment with a view of choosing the oil that best supports one's own style of cooking. Regardless of which oil is selected look for the following tasting characteristics such as sensations of liveliness, freshness and lightness. Avoid oils that taste of fat, feel sticky or earthy or has moldy odors." Only buy cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil."

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Jules Silver
“Where sauce is the art and the essence of fine cooking.”
888-560-3562 or 303-337-4445

 

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