World Culinary Arts

Sicily: The History

Sicily’s culinary history is deeply rooted in salt. The Phoenicians came to Sicily from Tunisia almost 3,000 years ago looking for tuna, and for the salt that they needed to preserve the magnificent fish. They settled close by these salt flats on the western coast of the island between Trapani and Marsala. Salt is harvested from the sea to this day using methods that are just a little modernized from how the ancient Phoenicians did it.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Sicily: Chef Carmelo Chiaramonte Demonstration

Back in his restaurant, Il Cociniero, in the hotel Katane Palace, Carmelo shows us how to make one of Sicily’s most important dishes: A baroque caponata. . . and caponata is one of the signature dishes of Sicily, made with eggplant, and peppers, and tomatoes, and many other ingredients depending on where in Sicily you find yourself. A baroque caponata has a lot more ingredients and. . . we’ll find out what they are. It’s a dish, Carmelo says, that brings together all the different influences on Sicilian cuisine, Arab, Norman, Spanish, and products that arrived after the discovery of America. No one knows what the word caponata means, but it’s related to pisto from Madrid and ratatouille from France in which there’s also this play between vegetables and agrodolce—sweet-sour. There are many variations, a winter version that uses vegetables from the mountains, a spring version that uses asparagus and peas, there’s a version that includes lamb, and even a version that adds lobster to the dish. This is a noble version, a late summer version, that requires 16 hours of preparation. It’s flavored with fresh mint, a little bit of raw garlic, and a few fried capers. Some people add green olives, and some add a little anchovy. What makes it baroque is the addition of other ingredients, like black eggs or drunken eggs, hardboiled eggs marinated in a mixture of 70% red wine and 30% aged wine vinegar; chocolate; and then I add certain seafoods, like these red shrimp, an anchovy, and a few mussels.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Sicily: Carmelo Chiaramonte: Market visit

In Sicilian markets like this one in Catania where we spent time with another top Sicilian chef, Carmelo Chiaramonte from the restaurant Il Cuciniere—the cook-- in Catania Carmelo orders his fruits and vegetables, like his fish, directly from the market, from suppliers who make sure he gets the best – and he knows the qualities of all this materia prima, as it’s called in Italian: This is what Carmelo calls “la stagione misteriosa” the mysterious season of fruits that mature when the weather turns cooler. In September, October, and November in Sicily a whole series of fruits start to mature only when it’s fresher. Apples and pears, but also pomegranates, sorb apples, arbutus berries, jujubes, chestnuts, walnuts—they have a very precise, late season character.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Sicily: Fresh Ingredients

It’s an extraordinary thing to us visitors, but in Sicily, ordinary people, trattoria cooks, home cooks, diners in simple restaurants, even school children, expect to find the quality and seasonality and variety that high-end restaurants take for granted.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Sicily: Chef Ciccio Sultano

One of Sicily’s most acclaimed chefs—and the only one with two Michelin stars—is Ciccio Sultano. At his elegant small restaurant Il Duomo in Ragusa he delivers the kind of simple chic food that would not be out of place on a restaurant menu in Milano—or Barcelona for that matter. But it’s always tied to the Sicilian seasons, Sicilian ingredients, Sicilian traditions.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Sicily: An Introduction

This is the Mediterranean, in the old language it meant the middle of the world “medi-terranea” – and that’s what it was for the ancients, the very center of the known world. Today it’s a delectable center of the culinary world, and at the center of that center is Sicily, right in the heart of the Mediterranean, the largest island, one of the most beautiful places and one of the most exciting regions – where it’s possible to experience the whole delicious panoply of what Mediterranean cuisine is all about.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/WCA/Sicily/

Banh Mi: Vietnamese Sandwich with a French Accent

Fusion food is nothing new. On the streets of Vietnam, sidewalk vendors sell a popular sandwich that reflects the country’s history in every bite. Banh mi, (Bahn Mee) Vietnam’s version of a baguette sandwich, shows the obvious influence of both China and France, countries that had a long presence here. Stop at a street cart some afternoon and treat yourself to a traditional banh mi. Made on an airy baguette spread with mayonnaise—that’s the French legacy—the banh mi includes a variety of Vietnamese charcuterie, depending on the maker and the customer. Chinese-style roast pork is customary, but a French-style pâté scented with star anise may be an option, too. Secret sauces are often part of the ritual, with the Vietnamese contribution last: crunchy onions, sliced chilies, fresh herbs and pickled vegetables. Without them, it’s not banh mi.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/wca/vietnam/

Vietnamese pho bo

In the early morning hours, on side streets and street corners, Hanoi’s hard-working cooks begin setting up their pho stations. A soup, a meal, a national treasure—pho is a widespread addiction. Many Vietnamese start the day with a steaming bowl of this divine noodle soup. Often mispronounced, but immediately appreciated, pho is pronounced like “fur” with a soft “r.” Once the broth is prepared, it takes only seconds to assemble—and not much longer to eat. Truly, pho is a fast food that even a dietitian can love.
Get Recipes and watch the full series with closed captioning at:
http://www.ciaprochef.com/wca/vietnam/