Apulian cuisine is simple and genuine. The products of its land range from Tavoliere wheat to the blue fish of its seas (and beyond), to extra virgin olive oil and vegetables. All these products form the basis of the best typical Apulian dishes. Thinking of Apulia, how can one not think of the world-famous orecchiette pasta with turnip tops, the stuffed mussels and taralli and its well-known liqueurs such as the Apulian nocino.
Taralli
Taralli are an excellent accompaniment for an aperitif or a snack after a meal. The only problem is that they are like cherries, one pulls the other. There are flavoured in many ways, fennel, chilli, pepper, just to name a few of the most popular. This is the basic recipe, then you can customise it as you like.
Ingredients for the taralli
grams 300 of 00 flour
grams 89 of white wine
grams 60 of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
season to taste with fennel seeds, onion, chilli pepper etc.
Preparing the taralli
Form a well with the flour and in the centre add the oil, fennel seeds, salt and pepper and start kneading. Slowly add the wine and knead the dough until it is firm and elastic. Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes, after which you form cylinders of dough about 7 to 8 centimetres long and form the classic taralli shape, round, joining the two ends by overlapping them. When you have finished preparing the taralli, boil a pot of salted water and put in the taralli a few at a time, removing them as soon as they rise to the surface. At this point, the taralli are ready to be placed in a preheated oven at 200 degrees for about 30 minutes.
SGAGLIOZZE BARESI
A typical crispy and delicious Apulian appetiser made with fried polenta. In the old town centre of Bari they are fried in the streets especially in winter and go very well with cold meats and cheeses.
Ingredients for SGAGLIOZZE BARESI
400 grams of maize flour for polenta
one litre of water
salt to taste
seed oil for frying.
Preparation of the SGAGLIOZZE BARESI
To prepare the polenta, boil the water and pour in the maize flour following the instructions on the packet of maize for polenta. When cooked, however, it should be very dense. Transfer the polenta into a rectangular mould with very high sides and leave to cool completely for several hours. The polenta must become very dry otherwise it will not fry well. After this time, cut the polenta into slices of about one centimetre and fry in plenty of olive oil until golden brown. Let them dry on blotting paper and serve still hot.
Orecchiette with turnip tops
The best-known first course in Apulian tradition. Orecchiette are traditionally prepared at home, but can be found ready-made in all supermarkets. Following the recipe with turnip tops, I will also write the recipe for making orecchiette at home.
What you need for orecchiette with turnip greens
Grams 400 of turnip tops
grams 400 of orecchiette pasta
4 fillets of anchovies in oil
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 clove of garlic
fine salt, olive oil and chilli pepper to taste
Preparation of orecchiette pasta with turnip tops
In a pot with plenty of boiling water, cook the cleaned and washed turnip tops for about 2 minutes. Then put in the fresh orecchiette pasta which will cook in about 5 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the sauté by putting a little olive oil, the whole garlic (which must be removed when cooked), the coarsely chopped anchovy fillets in oil and a pinch of chilli pepper in a fairly large pan. After 5 minutes of cooking, add the turnip tops and orecchiette pasta, which have been cooked in the meantime, drained of their cooking water, to the pan. Stir gently adding the sweet paprika and serve hot.
Pugliese-style minestrone
Ingredients for the minestrone alla pugliese
grams 250 of tortiglioni pasta
800 grams turnip tops
2 onions
olive oil, grated pecorino cheese, chilli powder, salt and pepper to taste
Preparation of Pugliese-style minestrone
Clean the turnip tops, taking care to choose turnip tops with flowers, which are softer. Cook the turnip tops in plenty of salted water for about ten minutes, remove the larger stems and chop finely together with the onions. In a large saucepan with a few tablespoons of olive oil, sauté the onions and chopped turnip stalks for a few minutes, adding salt, pepper and a pinch of chilli powder. As soon as the onions are golden brown, add two litres of water and leave to boil for about an hour and a half. After this time, put the pasta and turnip tops and flowers into the pot. Cook the pasta until al dente and remove from the heat. Sprinkle the soup with grated pecorino cheese, season with salt and pepper and two or three tablespoons of seed oil. Serve not too hot.
Stuffed mussels Pugliese style
This is a quick and tasty second course that some also present as an appetiser, but it is so rich that it almost becomes a single dish.
Ingredients for Apulian-style stuffed mussels
grams 800 of mussels
grams 150 of grated pecorino cheese
grams 150 of breadcrumbs or bread crumbs
4 eggs
2 cloves of garlic
half a small onion
plenty of chopped parsley
400 grams of tomato puree or chopped peeled tomatoes
olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.
Preparation of the stuffed mussels
Wash the mussels carefully with a hard brush and open the shells with a knife. Keep the water from the mussels to further flavour the sauce. Wet the breadcrumbs and squeeze them well, and with this prepare a mixture by adding the whole eggs, the grated pecorino cheese, a clove of garlic and the parsley chopped very finely. The mixture should be compact. Use this mixture to fill the shells of the mussels and then close them tightly.
Now let's prepare the sauce for cooking the stuffed mussels.
In a rather large saucepan with a few tablespoons of olive oil, sauté the finely chopped onion and a whole crushed garlic (this should be removed at the end of cooking). Now add the tomato puree or chopped peeled tomatoes and cook for about twenty minutes. Add the mussels and the mussel water, cook for a further 20 minutes and serve hot.
Octopus A PIGNATA
This is an old Salento recipe that owes its name to the pignatta, which is the earthenware pot where octopus is usually cooked in Puglia.
What you need for the octopus A PIGNATA
1 octopus or small octopus for about 1 kg
grams 350 of peeled chopped tomatoes
grams 500 potatoes
1 clove of garlic
1 small onion
chopped parsley one tablespoon
2 bay leaves
salt pepper and olive oil to taste
Preparation of the PIGNATA octopus
Clean the octopus or meatballs very well, then cut them into not very small pieces.
In a few tablespoons of oil, in the earthenware pot, brown the finely chopped onion and the whole garlic (which should then be removed when cooked). Add the peeled chopped tomatoes and cook for a few minutes.
Add the chopped octopus, together with the chopped parsley and the 2 bay leaves. Adjust the salt and pepper and cook very slowly for about an hour and a half with the lid on. The octopus produces a lot of water when cooking so there should be no problem with cooking. Halfway through cooking, add the potatoes, which should be peeled and cut into pieces. After this time, cook the octopus for another twenty minutes without the lid to allow the sauce to reduce a little. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve hot.
Apulian Nocino
Nocino is a typical Apulian liqueur made from walnuts. It is well known both in Italy and around the world. It is a bitter with digestive properties.
Ingredients for Apulian nocino
half a litre of 95 degree alcohol
half a kilogram of walnuts
1 nutmeg
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
the peel of half a lemon
grams 150 of sugar
grams 100 of water
Preparing the Apulian nocino
In a very large glass container put the walnuts that have been cut into pieces together with the lemon peel, cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon stick. Now add the 95 degree alcohol and immediately close the container to prevent the alcohol from evaporating. Leave to infuse for 40 days in a cool, dry and possibly ventilated place.
After this time, boil the water with the sugar to prepare a syrup that will be added to the liqueur once it has cooled completely. Stir and filter before bottling the liqueur. This should be left for several months before being enjoyed, usually 3 or 4.
Pasticciotto leccese
A typical Salento sweet, very tasty because it is filled with custard.
Ingredients for Leccese pasticciotti
grams 500 flour
grams 200 sugar
grams 200 of butter
2 whole eggs
the grated rind of half a lemon (for the shortcrust pastry)
half a litre of whole milk
5 egg yolks
grams 80 of flour
the grated peel of half a lemon
grams 170 of sugar (for the custard)
Preparation of Leccese pasticciotti
Let's prepare the shortcrust pastry for the pasticciotti. In a bowl, combine the flour with the sugar, the room temperature butter cut into small pieces, the two beaten eggs and the grated peel of half a lemon. Knead the dough on a pastry board to obtain a firm and elastic dough. Wrap the dough in transparent plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 50 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the custard. Using an electric whisk, whip the egg yolks with the sugar, add the flour and the grated peel of half a lemon. In a saucepan, cook the egg and sugar mixture with the milk until it comes to the boil. As soon as it boils, place the mixture in a bowl to cool completely.
To make these cakes you need special moulds (they are oval aluminium moulds).
Take the shortcrust pastry and after kneading it a little with your hands, roll it out into a sheet about half a centimetre thick. From this pastry sheet cut oval pieces a little larger than the moulds where you will put the piece to cover the bottom and the edges. Now fill each pastry mould with custard and cover it with more pieces of pastry to close it. Beat an egg and brush the surface of the pasticciotti with it before placing them in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.
