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Ahhh, Sicily
By Andrew Zimmern on September 16, 2008 11:13 AM | Permalink | 45 Comments
Sicily was beyond being the bomb. We had more fun, ate better, laughed longer and enjoyed ourselves more on this trip than on any other in recent memory. Arriving in Palermo is a gas, the stunning blue sea, the cream colored cliffs and bobbing boats look almost as good from the air as they do up close and personal. We checked into our hotel and got down to some serious eating.
The cuisine of Sicily is uniquely different from any other Italian region, strongly influenced by the Greeks, the Romans, the Arabs, the Normans, the French and the Spanish, each conqueror and wayfarer have strongly left their influence on the foods of Sicily. These foreign civilizations converged on Sicily throughout it's history and brought with them new ingredients, customs and food traditions that remained long after they left. Blend these foreign techniques with simple ingredients and the traditional respect for seasonal eating and you know all you need to about Sicilian cuisine.
We hit the Vucciria and Ballaro Markets first, food freak heaven. Bottarga, babbaluci,stigghiole (braided grilled innards of all kinds, mostly intestine), caldume, and cento pelli, all the the little offal treats that the Sicilians cant get enough of are on display. But form an eaters standpoitn the fresh lemons, the tomatoes the tuna, the grilled baby pigs, the artichokes, the bread.....can you feel me? How a bout the scincifone, a thick, spongy Sicilian pizza topped with tomato sauce, onions, salted sardines and caciocavallo cheese, baked in large rectangular tins and sold by the piece in the streets. Or the smell of grilled fennel sausage on every corner...wow.
Later in the afternoon we checked out some some traditional Sicilian fried foods from a Friggitoria: everyone loves aracine, those little rice balls, but the frittola is what I remember most. Sometimes these are the scraps from the butcher, the cartilage and the calluses, the fat trimmings, but from good stuff, veal or pork, boiled in rendered fat at a very high temperature. Then they open a tap with a sieve in it, and all the fat is drawn off and all the little pieces of meat that remain get pressed into large, round cakes. The vendor then slices these cakes and heats them up in a frying pan. Another version is simply to fry all the scraps and throw a blanket over them so no one can see what you are eating. They even spoon it into your hand, which is great for the napkin haters out there. I love it.
We ate lunch at Ferro di Cavallo Restaurant for some typical Sicilian cuisine. Spaghetti with Squid Ink, Sardine Balls, and La Golla Della Mucca (throat of the cow) a dish that is made of poached neck parts with loads of wild celery. This restaurant is packed all the time, the food is exquisite in the most rustic sense and I could eat there every night of the week.
We had dinner in an ancient building housing a killer eatery that is a serious food lovers Valhallah. Osteria Dei Vespri is located in the old historical center of Palermo near Piazza Rivoluzione. The chef-owner served up a degustation of nerves of cow mouth with veal tongue, dome of egg fondue with prawns from Mazzara, smoked pork jowl in a prawn bisque, hot cakes of mushrooms & Nebrodi cheese with candy lemon chips and ravioli neri filled with mussels and potatoes, seared refdish with sea urchin and tomato sauce...somedays my job is better than others.
We journeyed the next day to check out Cerda's most famous vegetable and a staple in Sicilian cuisine, the artichoke. This thistle is celebrated every year with a festival that mixes art exhibits and other artichoke-themed entertainment with live traditional bands and parades through the town. More than 10 percent of the world's artichokes are grown in Sicily, and during the festival, artichokes are used in every course of a meal. They are fried, sautéed, grilled, marinated, pickled, fresh, and creamed in soup. My favorites from the festival: Torta di Carciofi (Artichoke pie), and Carciofi Alla Giudea (Deep Fried Artichokes with baby squid) , but the topper was the artichoke gelato with lemon. Addictive.
The next day, in the remote fishing village of Marzanemi, I got a once in a lifetime opportunity to go night fishing with local fishermen. In Sicily, most fishing happens at night with lanterns in hand made boats, a tradition that has occurred for several generations. We went out again at dawn and caught a little bit of everything from 3 miles of nets we laid out.
On the way back to the fishermans house we stopped off at a bottarga processors. Bottarga is known to locals as "poor man's caviar" and its the salted and dried roe of tuna or grey mullet, or sometimes swordfish. Bottarga is massaged by hand to eliminate air pockets, salted for weeks and then dried for up to 2 months The result is a dry hard slab, which is often coated in beeswax for keeping. In Salvatore's shop I got a chance to eat La Lattume (the sperm sac of the tuna which is considered a delicacy in this part of Sicily). Salvatore's family has been making products like these since 1854, for five generations....so when he says the sperm is good, who am I to argue.
We drove on to Salvatore's home for lunch and his wife and cousins made us
Bottarga Antipasti, Tuna Sperm Linguine, Pachino Tomato and Squid Ink Sauce, a delicious sauce made with squid ink, local Sicilian tomatoes, herbs and extra virgin olive oil served over pasta. Sicilian Pachino tomato sauce is the best in the world and eating all the local pickled peppers, olives and cured lemons from Sal's wife's garden was the icing on the cake.
On our last day we cooked and ate lunch with Eleonora Consoli, the Julia Child of Sicilian cuisine, who teaches courses in her huge Mediterranean kitchen in her home on the slopes of Mount Etna. She is a former food journalist and she teaches in her home, a typical Sicilian house of the 18Th century. The house is set in a yard filled with orange and lemon groves, just down the mountain from vineyards producing DOC wine (the red, rosé and white wines of Etna), fanmous since Roman times. Having her walk me through the preparation of Rane a Brodetto (frogs soup) and Coniglio al Cioccolato (rabbit with vegetables and chocolate) and to see her make cured anchovies from scratch is something I will never forget. We hit it off, and the bloopers on the web site prove it.
I know that Florence, Venice, Milan and Rome are awesome. I have spent a lot of time there. I know how hip Capri and Ischia are these days, I love those islands, but Sicily is special. It feels like another world, which may be why every Sicilian always reminds you, "eet eeze not eetal-ee, eeze Sicily!"
45 Comments
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LOVE the show! Can't wait for Bizarre Worlds! Watching the Halloween Special right now and hoping you do another show involving the fans again. I would love to know how to be a part of that! You do great work, Andrew! Keep it coming!
I love the people interaction. I'd love to be a side kick on any of your shows or a guest on your shows. I'm happy to try anything from anywhere. I had crickets in Thailand when I was there last. I had to have another. Haggas wasn't tough, and Durian at first tasted pretty good. Then not so good, as the whole taxi smelled like it, and then every burp for the rest of the night!
Can I just say I am still star struck every time I come to this page? I absolutely love you! You're just so awesome lol. I was looking at the "spend a day with Andrew" thing, seems pretty cool, something I would be into. But then again I would want to do what you do EVERYDAY not just once!
Just got done watching Hawaii right now. It was awesome. I love pig like that over an Imu its so yummy! Everytime I see you eating something I think, mm that looks yummy (yes even the guinea pigs lol).
Thanks Andrew! If I should ever be aspired to be like anyone on earth it would be you. I mean you live the life I hope to live someday, truly! I know I know, its not all rock n roll, but it is pretty damn cool!
Kristi
Nice work Andrew, really nice to see how much you put into each posting.
Do you have a recipe for the chocolate rabbit? It sounds great!
I sooo dig your show..I am now in culinary school...I would love that Sicily recipe for that red jello..When is it going to be posted??...Bisous!
I challenge you to do an episode on kosher oddities. I see you eat some things and I say 'What is that good Jewish boy doing eating THAT?!'
Andrew, check out my web site mechoui.com and I'll be happy to treat you as a guest of honor... That means you will have the privilege of eating the eye of the lamb.
Andrew....you have no idea how excited my girlfriend Shannon and I get when we catch your show on the Travel Channel. It is absolutely the highlight of our day. Keep it up Andrew. Have you done a show in Brazil yet? If not, it wouldn't be a bad idea.
hi, i think you should do foods from Guyana its a great country and alot of different food.
I know you been to Samoa for a bizarre food show ... my wish why try to go to the island of tonga... is gonna be awesome just like the one in samoa...
Very good episode. Traveling and eating...Ohh how I do envy you. I even envy your camera crew! haha Keep up the awesome work and I'll keep watching.
Hi Andrew! One thing I have never seen you talk about or had a show about is a pauwau (pow wow). As an Indian, I have been to plenty of them right here in New York State. Since many people have no idea or are totally misinformed what a pauwau is, I believe it would be quite an interesting show. The food is fast food style, with booths where you can eat buffalo, gator, turkey and NO PORK! The food may not be bizarre, but buffalo and gator are not found on most menus, so they can be considered a bit out of the norm for New Yorkers. Pauwau are open to the public and with special permission (I can help you there) you can film them as the Smithsonian Institute often does. You can even go to POWWOWS.COM and consult a complete schedule of the year's pauwaus right here in New York State. Who knows, you can even be invited to a pauwau right on a reservation, as I often am. Please take this into consideration when doing a cultural show about New York...after all, the Native American culture that started it all out here are still alive n' kickin' and enjoying our culture. Please be our guest! P.S. I truly enjoy your show but being a New Yorker, and having seen more than my fair share of cockroaches, I still can't imagine chewing on a bug! That takes pure courage! lol Star
Hello Andrew when will you go to Turkey - not many countries are named after a food! I have had many strange but delicious foods in Turkey myself.
Hello,
You go to some very nice places. However I must say...the smacking that you do while eating. Is beyond the pale. Didn't your Mum teach you any mammers? And what's up with eating balls thats all you do....
Hello from Seattle,
I'm sure I don't have to tell you that Seattle is wonderful mix of all kinds of people from all over the world. I feel so lucky to have grown up exposed to so many different cultures and yes, foods. Though my food experiences list would be a fraction of your own, I have discovered the guilty pleasures of seeking out strange new eats. I envy your position sir, my dream is to travel the world, meeting all kinds of people, learn their languages, and eating their foods. I bade that you come visit Seattle again, and don't just stop by for the food, I humbly suggest stopping by the Pike Place Brewery for excellent beer tasting. (Its right next to the farmer market)
Andrew, you're so awesome. It takes some 'balls' to do what you do and you have such an upbeat personality that makes it all the better. I look forward to seeing you this weekend in my hometown of Columbus,Ohio. Hope to get a picture with you!
Andrew,
I love your show. I have not seen any new episodes. Will there be more new episodes coming in 2009?
Heya Andrew. I spend a lot of time in hotels and Bizarre Foods seems to be on frequently. I do watch it even though I'm not really a fan, I'm sorry. It is great that you have fans and expose us all to some ways of eating we wouldn't see otherwise. Seeing as many places that tell you to 'eat this..is good for man's stamina' makes me wish Viagra was free so things like Bear paws, Rhino Horns, Live Frogs and countless creatures wouldn't get eaten so often.
Andrew forgive me for even bringing this up but I have to mute the tv everytime you chew. It sound like you have TMJ in your jaw plus the intense smacking like Catie mentioned above, and the lavalier mic being so close to the action is more unappetizing than just about anything you put in your mouth.
Hey Andrew
:]
I love your show! I'd love to be a part, someday, but not most of it because Im a vegetarian.
Keep up the awesomeness! :]
Hi Andrew, I adore Your program... You are the best!
I'm sicilian, my origins are from Messina, and I wish to meet You maybe there =) (it's a dream!)!! Thank You very much for Your wonderful Sicily description!!!!
Hi,andrew
I xtremely love you show, cant get enough of it.
I love the way you explain the tastes of those bizarre food you eat.
Hey man...I like your show.Bizzare, informenitive and overly nice. Stop it!!! All the balls you eat, you should have a pair,RIGHT? Relaxe and have fun! Let it out! Tell us if it tastes like sh!t.Sugar coating can only leed to disaster. I'm almost a neighbor of yours and I'd like to take you around Sioux Falls some time.Theres a lot of crap but we have The best {in my opinion} Buffalo wings this side of the Missori! Great Pubs to put out the Flames,,,and Lefsa and Ludafisk,,,not to mention the downtown erea is culture on steroids.History with a heartbeat all on it's own.Send me an e-mail I'll set it up!
Hi, Andrew
I love ur show a lot, but the only thing i really hate is when you chew, its nasty enough with some of the stuff you eat in the show. please put the mic some place else
Andrew you are badass... Period. Your explanations of the food you eat keep me and my family laughing. I don't get how you put any of that food in your mouth and keep it down with a smile. Awesome show!
You should come to indonesia. There's a lot of bizarre food in Indonesia but a lot of indonesian food have been claimed by another country. I don't like to spread issues but that's the fact. Come and experience the food in indonesia. And i think it will takes a long times for taste it all. Because the blend of chinese,melayu,and the other. it's because a lot of west country have been come in indonesia a long time ago. hope you see my comment and try to come to indonesia.
My hands down favorite show! Not sure how you can eat all that fermented and rotten meat, but falter at a fruit, although I'm not brave enough to try most of what you do! Your show makes me laugh and I loved the one where you went thru the cleansing ritual. And I would love to have snail caviar!!! Hope to see many many more new shows!!!!
Hello Andrew,
My name is Marc Calix. I am a big fan of Bizarre Food cause I have traveled to many parts of the world that you filmed your show and tasted many of the food that you have shown on the Travel Channel. Sometimes, I even think that I am as bizarre as some of the food you have tried. Anyway, I am originally from Haiti. I have yet to see a segment on that country. I am sure it is on your list but, I must tell you that we eat some stuff there that would blow your mind away. Although Haiti is extremely modernized, they still practice some old style culture dated back from slavery. It is a complexed country with a vibe beyond what the media has portraited it to be. Please Andrew, let's explore Haiti beyond Miami and New Yook for what it is really!
I did not know there was such an infusion of blending cuisines in Sicily. I still await my opportunity to venture there and indulge in everything possible.
Especially enticing is the fried up veal and pork parts. That's impossible to go wrong!
I'm from the US south and I've noticed something on your show that really offends my southern sensibilities. You chew with your mouth open and as a result are a CHRONIC SMACKER. Honestly, please close your mouth when you're eating. As my mom would say you are not a cow.
Hi Andrew! Why not come to taste our Italian foods? you have to taste frogs, slowcoach, our game, lobsters and shellfish...................and so on!!! come here!!!!! bye!
hey andrew.....
i'm a huge fan of your show.......
hope someday you'll come to indonesia... i can guarantee you'll love it here.....
Hi!
I just watched you eat my favorite meal ever, and I can tell you as a 100% born and raised Norwegian, that you did not eat lutefisk correctly. It should be eaten on potato lefse with butter, salt and pepper.
Hi Andrew,
I am retired and closer to 70 than 60. I just wanted to let you know how much your show has come to mean to me. I try to never miss it now days. I am pretty hurting with cronic aches and pains from various operations, your show has given me the feeling of traveling that I was fortunate to do a lot of when I was feeling better physically. Anyway, you and your show have given me the feeling that I can go back to places so dear to me like Sicily and different places all over the world. In case you didn't get the idea yet, I am a huge fan. I just got back from Nashville and had a ball there, but I am limited to an electric chair now for a lot of movement so your show takes me to places I either can't go back to, or have never seen. Keep up the great work.
Thanks
Zachary
Thank you for showing Sicily in an interesting light. My father was born in Parlermo and when i saw that episode it was like being home again. I agree with you the food is phenomoinal but next time your in Sicily you have to go to a Mediterranian town called Pozzallo. It is beautiful and full of bizzare foods. i love your show and cant wait for the new episodes.
Nice post
I love ur show a lot, but the only thing i really hate is when you chew, its nasty enough with some of the stuff you eat in the show. please put the mic some place else
hey andrew.....
i'm a huge fan of your show.......
hope someday you'll come to indonesia... i can guarantee you'll love it here....
Hi!
I just watched you eat my favorite meal ever, and I can tell you as a 100% born and raised Norwegian, that you did not eat lutefisk correctly. It should be eaten on potato lefse with butter, salt and pepper.
Im surprised that you didnt go to Antica Foccacceria and get pane con la milza. :) My favorite thing when i visit my family. Boiled cow spleen.
The following recipe is EXACTLY as it appears on the printed sheet they show in Eleonora Consoli's kitchen on Bizarre Foods. I paused my DVR and wrote it down but haven't made it yet. If this violates any kind of copyright, please delete it.
Serves 4-6
1 rabbit, dressed for cooking and cut into pieces
1 onion, peeled and chopped
3 celery branches, chopped
2 bay-leaves
35g pine-nuts
35g raisins
2 "pastinache" (kind of Sicilian carrots), peeled and chopped
3 cloves
20g fennel seeds
1 glass white wine vinegar
25g sugar
40g dark chocolate, chopped
flour
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
salt, pepper
Wash the rabbit and saute it in a large saucepan, with three tbsp of olive oil, until golden.
In another saucepan, with the remaining oil, saute the celery, carrot and onion, over low fir4e; add the bay-leaves, pine-nuts, raisins, cloves, fennel seeds and saute until golden.
Add the rabbit, salt, pepper, sugar and chocolate.
Stir, add the vinegar, cover and cook, over low heat (if necessary, add some water), until the sauce thickens.
Serve.
The note about adding water is hand-written.
Hi -- Can you please post the recipe for cinnamon pudding? My mouth was watering as I watched it being made! WOW Thanks -- Former Jersey Girl Living in Big D
No very far. Just last week i was in Milan. Did anyone tried the chianti Wine ?? I do suggest to anyone !!
Think they would read the BILL if they had to live by it?
My daughter and I lived in Sicily for 4 years while I was in the military. I miss the island, the people, and the food so much! Thanks for taking your show there - I hope the exposure will convince more people that it is an excellent place to visit and explore!