In 1825, Giuseppe Acerbi, a keen observer of nature, a fundamental figure for the study of Italian ampelography, who had planted around 1500 types of vine for scientific purposes in his Castel Goffredo estate in Mantua, mentioned for the first time a rare vine unknown to most, cultivated on the steep slopes of the Amalfi coast from Scala to Ravello to Amalfi but also in Furore Tramonti and Positano. The name of the vine was a whole program: Ginestra a denomination that conveyed the sense of the scent of its grapes, with a clear fruity imprint. However, that fragrant vine did not have the fortune, over time, of many other Campanian vine varieties, which became much more illustrious such as Fiano, Asprino, Greco, Falanghina. But it hasn't disappeared. Thanks to the stubbornness of winemakers in love with their family traditions, the Ginestra has come down to us, officially registered in the National Catalog of vine varieties in 2005, even if in the whole territory it is cultivated in no more than four hectares. Serena De Vita, a passionate sommelier from Irpinia, talks about it with love: “Tying to borrow the Greek common sense, few places in Campania are able to define the concept of beauty through harmony and proportion as well as the Amalfi Coast. The 'agreement' between natural morphology and human intervention has been renewed over the centuries to produce one of the most evocative scenarios of the Tyrrhenian coast: real environmental logistics developed through modulations clinging to the slopes of the Lattari Mountains. Starting from the steep peaks up to the waters of the Gulf of Salerno, the profile is defined by terraced cultivations, expedients thanks to which olive groves, citrus groves and vines coexist by will and primary heritage. A natural reservoir of agronomic varieties, not least the ampelographic ones, which has little or no wink at past trends devoted to the proposal of international vines. In the panel of the autochthonous viticultural tradition, the case of the "Ginestra" is peculiar, a widespread and cultivated variety, albeit in small quantities, exclusively on the Amalfi Coast. In older literature it is found under synonyms such as Nocella, Ginestrello, Genestrello, and Biancazita and Biancatenera are joined to it as close relatives, to underline an important historicity firmly linked to the territory that acts as its guardian. The winemaking practice of the last few decades has seen this species compete mostly on balance with other varieties of the area, Biancolella and Falanghina above all, and merge into the mother denomination.
Paolo Barale, starred chef of the refined restaurant l'Aria, in the historic center of Naples, has also fallen in love with the delicate scents of Ginestra wine, who sees it well as a wine to pair with his original first course that unites two distant places, but basically bathed by the same sea.
Barrale, born in 1973, Sicilian origins, forged by the strict rules of French cuisine and classic cuisine, with important experiences in prestigious kitchens, such as that of La Pergola at the Rome Cavalieri under the guidance of Heinz Beck or those of Marennà, the exclusive of Feudi di San Gregorio, surprises you with his look between good-natured and ironic and with his cordiality. But in the kitchen good-naturedness gives way to a severe vision of procedures and technique. His gastronomic creed, built over the years, is in fact a rigorous attestation of three fundamental principles: balance, elegance and simplicity (the latter only apparent, of course, the result of long study in the conception and creation of a dish), combined with a careful almost maniacal respect for the raw material and for its territory of origin. In the recipe that Mondo Food is proposing this week, the starred chef manages to combine Campania and Provence with happy intuition, two distant regions that nonetheless overlook the same sea, and which have much in common, such as colours, flavours, a strong Mediterranean identity. Barrale plays his risotto with a skillful bank of references and nuances, with rock fish and its broth, saffron, fennel, lime and smoked paprika and the two Regions find themselves in this dish, each bringing with self contaminations and own techniques. “The path of evolution and structuring of a dish – says the chef – is fascinating (to observe, as well as participate in it). Observing the creative process, which from concept becomes substance, helps to immerse yourself in the succession of aromas, flavors, textures and returns through which the dish itself becomes a narrator." all without forgetting the playful part of work, play, fun and with great attention, at the same time, to the principle of recycling which in the kitchen, especially somewhere around here, has become a social imperative. Why the teaching that comes to us from great chefs is that transforming waste to eliminate waste into a resource in the kitchen is not only useful but can be fun and pave the way for new flavours.
“The idea of the risotto – explains the chef – comes from some trips made in the past from the idea that fish soup is a dish that is served throughout the Adriatic and in the Mediterranean, moreover it was also born with the opportunity to reuse unsold fish or possibly that trifle that is often not considered ... At the Aria restaurant we use quality ingredients and often undervalued ingredients remain such as fish throats or possibly some crustaceans such as mantis shrimp ... great flavour! With a thought therefore linked to resilience, here is our risotto!”
Risotto recipe “Between Boullabaisse and a mussel soup”
Ingredients for 4 pax
Bouillabaisse (for risotto)
50g oil
1 cloves of garlic
15 g parsley stalks
100 gr of fennel
50 g leek
100 g spring onion
1/2 kg of lobster heads
1 kg rock fish bones
200 g of mussels and clams
50 g per night
100 gr white wine
750 kg peeled tomato
Method
Proceed by stewing the vegetables with the oil, add the lobster heads (in small pieces), add the well bled bones. Then deglaze with the pernot and the white wine. Add the peeled tomato and cover with water, simmer for 20 minutes, let it rest and filter.
For the fish head cup
Season the throats of large fish such as redfish, grouper with oil, salt, parsley stalks, wine, i. Bake in the oven for a few minutes (210°C for 8 minutes).
Proceed by stripping into large pieces. With the fleshless bones make a quick fumet scented with lemon peel, pepper, parsley. filter the bottom and set aside 500 g of the remaining part, reduce it well and season the fish pulp. roll up in cling film and make a torchon. We let it cool.
For the risotto
200 g Carnaroli rice
100 g brunoise fennel
20 gr white wine
20 g Pernod
1/2 sachet of saffron
1 tip of chilli
Start the risotto by wetting the rice with white wine and Pernod.
Let it evaporate and continue cooking by alternating water and stock. Add the fennel and at the end of cooking add the reduced broth and saffron. Stir off the flame with a little delicate extra virgin olive oil and fresh chilli pepper.
Serve the risotto in an earthenware pan
Pour it on the fish bowl carpaccio sprinkled with smoked paprika and lime zest
Bon appetite
