20-08-2015

Couscous “alla Norma”

Domenico Della Salandra’s recipe, competing in the Cous Cous Fest 2015 in San Vito Lo Capo

Cous Cous Fest is an International festival dedica

Cous Cous Fest is an International festival dedicated to cultural integration through cultures, flavours and civilizations and celebrates couscous as the dish of peace. The 18th edition of the event will take place from 18th till 27th September in the traditional and beautiful setting of San Vito Lo Capo. Domenico Della Salandra will participate with this elegant and creative dish he presents today for us

I studied this dish for the Cous Cous Fest 2015 contest with the goal of giving couscous a more elegant and refined appearance. My idea was that Couscous, just like other raw materials, could be paired with innovative techniques and processes.

Couscous “alla Norma”

For the confit tomatoes
100g cherry tomatoes
zest of 1 orange
zest of 2 lemons
1 vanilla pod
1 cinnamon stick
Salt
Sarawak pepper
2 basil leaves
1 bunch of chives
1 bunch of thyme
1 scallion
1 unpeeled garlic bulb
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
Bake all the ingredients in a baking tin at 65°C for 6 hours

For the basil gel
250 g basil oil
20 g Glice
In a saucepan, bring the basil oil to 60°C then pour the Glice into it. Leave to cool and keep in the fridge

For the tomato water
3 kg date tomatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
4 basil leaves
Salt
Pepper
Cut the tomatoes into 4 slices and leave them to macerate with salt, pepper and extra virgin olive oil for 6 hours. Once the marinating process is completed, blend them, strain them into a Chinois sieve and let all the water from the tomatoes drip. This process will last about 6-7 hours. Once completed, keep the tomato water with the basil leaves in the fridge

Domenico Della Salandra

Domenico Della Salandra

For the dehydrated capers
Desalt the capers with water and Marsala wine. Drain them. Dry them and fry them for a few minutes in seed oil. Dry all the oil carefully and then leave the capers in the dehydrating machine for 5 hours at 55°C

For the couscous
Prepare a broth with onions, carrots, celery, 1 clove, 2 juniper berries, 1 star anise berry. Cook for 3 hours then strain. Add 2 g of turmeric to the broth plus 10 ml of olive oil and cook the couscous. Leave to cool and keep to a side.

For the ricotta
Select 300g of good ricotta with cow’s milk, add 100 ml of cream and twice the butter and 3 g of salt. Blend everything at the highest speed for 1 minute.

For the aubergines
Cut a 10x3 cm parallelepiped out of an aubergine. Put both the aubergine and the tomato water into a vacuum pack and seal at a pressure 70%. Repeat the procedure two more times (in this way, by osmosis, the aubergine will absorb all the water acquiring taste). Once the vacuum pack procedure is completed, bread the aubergine with eggs, flour and dip it twice into the couscous. Fry at 180°C in peanut oil for a few minutes.


Signature Dishes

by

Domenico Della Salandra