Italian Cooking Master Class

• 
• Servings
  2
• Prep
  120 m
• Cook
  120 m

Recipe By: Otao kitchen

Italian Cooking Master Class

Melanzane Alla Involtini Parmigiana - Eggplant and Ricotta Cooked with Tomato Sauce
Pappardelle - Fresh Egg Pasta
Ragu Al Genovese -Stewed Beef Chuck 
Pork Tonnato 

🍆 Polpette di Melanzane - Eggplant and Cheese Cooked in Tomato Sauce 

This is a slightly different variation than the original, but it has a wonderful and soft texture. 

Serves: 2

Preparation time: 20 minutes 

Execution time: 20 minutes 

INGREDIENTS

For the Polpettes: 

• 55g panko bread crumbs

• 180g roasted eggplant flesh (1pc) eggplant 

• 1 whole egg

• 50g ricotta, crumbled

• 60ml olive oil 

• ½ tsp salt 

• ¼ tsp black pepper 

• 35g parmigiano, grated 

• 1 clove of garlic, minced 

• For the tomato sauce: 

• ½ clove of garlic, minced 

• 300ml tomato passata 

• ½ tsp sugar 

• ¼ tsp salt 

• 2 sprigs basil, picked

METHOD 

1. Preheat an oven to 190C. Pierce a few holes in the skin of the eggplant using the tip of a knife or a fork, so it doesn’t explode during cooking. Bake the eggplant for 30-45 minutes or until the flesh is completely soft. 

2. Immediately afterwards, place the eggplant in a covered pot, and let them steam for 2 hours until soft. 

3. Remove the skin from the eggplant and place the flesh inside of a mixing bowl along with the ricotta, the whole egg, grated parmigiano, parsley, flour, half of the chopped garlic, olive oil and bread crumbs. 

4. With lightly oiled hands, shape the mixture into 8 round patties and press them until they hold together. 

5. Heat a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat. Place a tbsp of olive oil in the pan and gently fry the dumplings for 3-4 minutes, turning them way through until they are an even golden brown on both sides. Lower the heat. Add in the other half of the chopped garlic to the pan and gently saute until it is lightly cooked. 

6. Add in the tomato passata and simmer for about 1 minute or until the sauce has slightly reduced. If the sauce has thickened too much before the 2 minutes is up, add in a splash or so of water, as necessary. Season the sauce with a little salt and sugar. Grate a little bit of parmigiano into the cheese. And place half of the basil into the sauce. 

7. Serve with and garnish with the remaining freshly grated parmigiano and basil on top. 

🍲Pasta All'uovo Pappardelle- Egg Pasta

This simple and rich pasta is a base recipe that can be used to form all sorts of shapes. Wrapped up, it can be stored in the freezer for up to a month. 

This simple and rich pasta is a base recipe that can be used to form all sorts of shapes. Wrapped up, it can be stored in the freezer for up to a month. Try to look for good-quality eggs with a rich yellow yolk. 

INGREDIENTS 

• 185g Tipo 00 pasta flour 

• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 -1 tsp water (optional) 

METHOD 

1. Place the flour in a mixing bowl, making a well in the centre of the flour. 

2. Place the eggs and extra virgin olive oil into the centre. 

3. Using a fork or chopstick, slowly incorporate the egg mixture into the flour until it begins to clump up forming lumps. 

4. Transfer the dough to the surface of your work station and knead the dough for 5-10 minutes or until the dough is smooth and tacky. 

5. Cover the dough in cling film and let it rest for 30-40 minutes, or overnight in the fridge.

6. Roll the pasta dough through a pasta roller until the 2nd thinnest setting. 

7. Or roll with a rolling pin until it is thin enough to see light clearly poking through it. 

8. Cook the pasta in boiling water that has been salted with 1 tbsp of salt per 2L. Cook the pasta for 6-7 minutes.  

🥩Ragu Al Genovese - Genoa Stewed Beef

This style of ragu doesn’t have much tomato in it. It’s sweetness and flavour come mostly from carrot, onion and a generous splash of white wine. 

Serves: 2 

Preparation Time: 20 minutes 

Execution Time: 1 hour 20 minutes 

INGREDIENTS 

For the simmered the beef: 

• 280g beef chuck or brisket, cubed (yields about 250g) 

• 300ml water

For the ragu: 

• 1 large brown onion diced 

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 100ml dry white wine

• ½ (100g) carrot, diced 

• 25g pancetta, diced 

• 1 bay leaf

• 300g tomato passata

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

• 40ml stock if necessary. 

• ½ tsp salt 

• ¼ tsp black pepper

To garnish: 

• 40g grated Parmigiano Reggiano

• 1 sprig of parsley, chopped  or 2 torn basil leaves 

• 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil 

METHOD 

1. To simmer the beef, preheat an oven to 160C. Place the beef in an oven-proof dish with enough water to cover it by about 60%. Cover the dish with aluminium foil and bake it for 3-4 hours or until tender when pierced with a fork. 

2. To prepare the ragu, preheat the olive oil to the pot until it is warm and add the pancetta and cook for 1-2 minutes until the pancetta begins to brown on the sides. Be careful not to burn the bottom of the pot. 

3. Add the onions, carrots and the bay leaves. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions and carrots soften- for about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomato passata and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

4. Deglaze the pot with white wine, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon to release all of the caramelised bits stuck to the surface of the pot. 

5. Add the simmered beef chuck to the pot. Simmer for 5-7 minutes or until the liquid thickens to the consistency of thickened cream. 

6. To prepare the pasta: 

7. Mix the ragu with cooked pasta and heat it in a pot over low heat for 2-3 minutes so that pasta warms up, and the sauce is absorbed into the noodles. Add a splash of pasta water if the sauce looks too dry and mix quite well to release the starch into the sauce. Grate a generous amount of parmigiano reggiano into the pan but make sure the mixture still looks creamy. Garnish with a little drizzle of olive oil and more grated cheese, and chopped parsley or fresh basil leaves. 

🍖 Pork Tonnato- Pork Tenderloin with Tuna Sauce 

This preparation 

Serves: 2 

Preparation Time: 20 minutes 

Execution Time: 30 minutes 

INGREDIENTS

• 300g pork tenderloin 

• ½ tsp salt (or 1.2% of its weight) 

Tonnato Sauce: 

• 100ml olive oil 

• 100g tuna in olive oil 

• 2 anchovies 

• ½ lemon, juiced

• 1 tsp dijon mustard

• 1 egg- Sous vide 1 hour @63C

For garnish: 

• 3 sprigs parsley, picked 

• 1 radish sliced thinly 

• 40g fennel, shaved, soaked in cold water 

• 1 tsp capers, drained 

METHOD

1. To prepare the pork tenderloin, season the pork with salt and place it in an airtight bag. Allow it to rest for 20 minutes. Sous vide the pork tenderloin, for 4 hours at 53C. Cool down the pork immediately in an ice bath. Alternatively, remove the pork from the bag and bake the pork at 135C for 2 hours or until cooked through. 

2. Prepare an ice bath. Preheat a skillet over medium heat- season the pork lightly with salt and pepper. sear to pork tenderloin to get a little bit of a crust. Cool down the pork in the ice bath.

3. To prepare the tonnato sauce, you can optionally pasteurise the egg by cooking it sous vide at 64C for 1 hour. Afterwards, separate the yolk from the egg white and place the egg yolk in a food processor along with the lemon juice, salt, and dijon mustard. Pulse the machine and gradually add in the olive oil to emulsify. 

4. In a mortar and pestle, grind together the tuna and anchovies until they form a paste almost. Remove from the mortar and pestle. Add the mayonnaise into the bowl of the mortar. Slowly incorporate the tuna and anchovies into the mayonnaise mixture until it is emulsified. 

5. To plate the dish, slice the pork very thinly and place the slices on a plate. Spoon generous amounts of the sauce over the slices. Garnish with the thinly shaved fennel, radish capers and parsley leaves. 

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Printed From otaokitchen.com.au 12/04/2024