Seafood recipes
introduction to SQUID -
calamari
Squid has become a very popular dish because of the mild taste of its meat and because of its adaptability to various types of cooking...Here I also explain how to clean Squids and how to boil Squids
CALAMARI (SQUID) Salad
One of my favorite dishes is squid salad, the calamari all’insalata, that my father prepared with diligence and love at the Focacceria Palermitana in Brooklyn, NY. I followed his simple recipe and method with meticulousness...
Fried CALAMARI (Squid)
Friday was the only day that we served fried squid at Joe’s of Avenue U, the Focacceria Palermitana in Brooklyn, NY. Fried calamari are extremely easy to prepare and require little time: they can be a delightful appetizer or an enjoyable entrée...
CALAMARI (Squid) in in tomato sauce
The way we prepare this dish requires the extra step to boil the squid’s tentacles and bodies separately, however without sacrificing on the taste, the result is worth the effort because the calamari...
Stuffed Calamari (Squid) IN TOMATO SAUCE
When Zia Bettina prepared the calamari ‘muttunati or chini, she served them with plenty of tomato sauce and with boiled potatoes on the side; I remember that I used to mash the potatoes with the fork and blend into them the delicious tomato sauce.
Preface to Octopus (Polpo)
Polpo in America is mostly available frozen in fish stores and in some gourmet groceries. The best polpi are imported from Portugal and the medium size, weighing about 1 ½ pounds, ..
Boiled Octopus (Polpo)
Piazza Caracciolo is the center of the famous open market of Palermo: La Vucciria. Vucciria means butcher shop from the French Boucherie, but because of the continuous yelling and ..
Polpo (Octopus) Salad
Polpo salad is a common appetizer served in Palermo. The best polpo salad is found in small trattorie, where the octopus is simply dressed in garlic, parsley, olive oil, lemon and a small stalk of celery for flavor.
FRIED Octopus (Polpo)
Purpu frittu is a popular dish in most Mediterranean countries. It is preferred because the octopus can be cooked in advance and easily and quickly sautéed with garlic, parsley, and olive oil and ..
STEWED OCTOPUS N TOMATO SAUCE (POLPO MURATO)
Purpu muratu, stewed octopus, called also with other names, is a dish cooked in all countries facing the Mediterranean Sea and where polpo is fished. In Palermo, my family used a clay pot exclusively reserved to cook this dish...
Nunnata Fritters
If you are lucky to buy fresh nunnata, make sure it was recently caught; in Brooklyn, where I live, the only nunnata available is frozen and though it is not the same as the fresh nunnata...
Introduction to Mussels
On the Eastern coast of North America, from Canada to New York, the blue mussels are commercially harvested in great quantity. The sweet taste, the rich texture and the scent of the sea make the mussels ..
Mussels in Tomato Sauce
At Joe’s on Avenue U in Brooklyn, NY, mussels in a light tomato sauce were served as an entrée, with Sicilian style hot bread. In Palermo, mussels are also cooked in tomato sauce and mostly served with crusty bread as a first course, instead of pasta...
Mussels Sautéed with Lemon
The mussels steamed in salt water, garlic and parsley are served with lemon wedges. Usually, they are eaten sprinkled with lemon juice and with an occasional morsel of bread and a sip of a fresh and light wine...
Stuffed Mussels Oreganate
The blue mussels harvested in the Atlantic coasts are abundant in the waters around Long Island. These mussels, with the characteristic dark blue shell, can grow to about 3 inches in length...
Baccala’ (Salted Cod Fish) in Bianco
Baccala’, the dried salted codfish and the stockfish, are two staple foods brought from the Normans to Sicily that became popular for its taste and because it is easy to preserve. In fact, baccalà and ..
Baked Baccala' (Salted Cod Fish)
At the Focacceria Palermitana, Joe's of Avenue U in Brooklyn NY, Friday was the fish day. We cooked calamari in sauce, fried and stuffed, polpo, seafood salad, codfish, other fresh fish ...
Baccala’ (Salted Cod Fish) with Cauliflower
One distinctive dish from Palermo is the pasta with cauliflower sauce, called Pasta chi vrocculi arriminata. The sauce for this pasta is a combination of cauliflower, saffron, onions, salted anchovies, ..
Baccala’ (Salted Cod Fish) with Endive
The Baccalà with endive is a specialty cooked in southern Italy. In Apulia, the “baccalà con indivia” is served for the traditional Christmas dinner. Baccalà is salted and dried codfish...
Stockfish Messina Style
Stocco or stockfish is preserved fish, dried by the sun and wind in the coastal area of Norway. Big fish are gutted and hung in special racks from February to March when the temperature, mitigated by the warm Current of the Gulf, is slightly above 32F degrees, ..
Introduction to Sarde a Beccafico
Beccafico (Sylvia borin), a Sylvidae bird is larger, meatier and more exquisite than a sparrow, nests in Tuscany and passes over Sicily in spring and in the fall for the winter migration. These birds were ...
Sarde a Beccafico Palermo Style
One of the courses whose origin they would never agree upon is the sarde a beccafico, the stuffed sardines: a delicacy made in Catania and in Palermo of which the only similarity is in the same name that they share ....
Sarde a Beccafico Catania Style
In Catania, the stuffing is made adding cheese, garlic, capers, parsley, made in a sandwich using two sardines, fried not baked.The Sarde a Beccafico Palermo or Catania style are delicious...
Grouper Matalotta Style
The Cernia alla Matalotta is a signature dish in Trapani and in the coastal towns of this province. The grouper, called Cernia in Sicilian, is a versatile fish because of his texture and lean flesh and ...
Fried Fish (Pesce Fritto)
Because fish has a particularly delicate or robust or subtle flavor, in order to enjoy their natural taste they can be cooked without adding anything to them, or as it is done in Sicily, simply add salt, olive oil, and lemon...
BAKED Fish Fillets In Garlic-Parsley Sauce
Joe’s of Avenue U, the Focacceria Palemitana in Brooklyn, NY, was a real fast food restaurant, long before McDonald’s was born. Our menu was simple, our food made express...
Baked Fish Fillets in Herbed Breadcrumbs
A simple and fast way to cook fish fillets is to bake or to broil them covered with herbed breadcrumbs. Herbed breadcrumbs simply made with olive oil, garlic, parsley and a pinch of oregano or with any other herbs you prefer...
Baked Fish Fillets with Tomato and Basil
The most important element of this preparation is the freshness of the fish. Smell the fillets before you buy them; they should not have any ammonia or fishy odor, look moist and the flesh should be firm to your touch...
Fillets Baked with Sun Dried Tomatoes
When buying fish fillets or steaks remember to check that the flesh is firm to your touch, make sure that they appear moist and have a pleasant smell. This sauce made with...
Baked Bluefish
Bluefish is abundant in the Atlantic Ocean and it is a very satisfying pleasure to catch it for his tenacity and force. When staying at our summer home, often I went fishing in the Long Island Sound, ..
Poached Fish
When my family was living in Sicily the Pisci Muratu was a favored dish and it was prepared often. “Muratu” that means walled up, is a way of cooking, where the skillet is covered and sealed with a tight lid so that the steam won’t ...
Roasted Whole Fish with Potatoes and Cherry Tomatoes
The Sicilian version of Roasted Whole Fish with potatoes and cherry tomatoes uses abundant olive oil and a limited amount of herbs and other condiments....
Fish Soup Syracuse Style
This is the way this interesting fish soup is cooked in Syracuse. The cooking in the oven presents many advantages to the quality of this preparation. Because it is cooked with a tight lid, all the flavors, ..
Fish Soup Catania Style
In Catania, the fish used are from the Mediterranean Sea, which are different from our local fish. There, whole fish are cooked, some with the head attached. The variations in this recipe are made to ...
The Varieties of Tuna Fish - Tunny
One of the most sought-after fish in the world is tuna. This magnificent fish can be found in all the oceans; tuna fish swim in cold waters but seek mild water temperature in their yearly voyage to mate and spawn...
Mattanza: Sicily's Traditional Tuna Fishing
The technique of fishing in Sicily and Sardinia is called “Mattanza”, meaning killing or slaughter. Mattanza is the final part of tuna fishing by a system of colossal nets extending almost a mile...
Tuna Fish with Sweet-Sour Onion sauce
At this time of the year, or when fresh tuna is available, a well-liked dish is tuna fish with sweet-sour onion sauce. It is very tasty, very convenient because it can be kept refrigerated ...
Grilled Tuna Fish Palermo Style
In my family and on many tables in Palermo, tuna fish is mostly a simple preparation: the slices of very fresh tuna, ½ thick are dredged into flour and fried in a hot pan sprinkled with salt and some olive oil. The slices are fried 2 to 3 minutes on each side...
Tuna in Tomato Sauce
Tuna fish in tomato sauce is very easy to prepare, it requires a few ingredients and it has good taste.
Swordfish Palermo Style
Swordfish Palermo Style is marinated for a few hours into a wine and olive oil mixture with the addition of sliced onions, bay leaves, salt and pepper; and before it is quickly fried, it is sprinkled with a small amount of oregano or marjoram....
Swordfish Sicilian Style
Swordfish Sicilian Style was very successful as well a convenient and easy dish to prepare. In fact, the sauce can be prepared ahead of time, the swordfish can be fried a few hours in advance, assembled at the last minute...
Rolled Swordfish - Spiedini
The rolled swordfish spiedini are prepared in two versions; in Messina and in the Eastern part of Sicily, the stuffing is made with breadcrumbs, cheese and parsley, in Palermo the stuffing is enriched by onions, garlic, anchovies, pine nuts, raisins, and aromatized with parsley, oregano and bay leaves...
Shrimp Introduction
Shrimp are very popular for their great taste, versatility and for their easiness and simplicity to prepare. There are many varieties of shrimp. Sea or freshwater shrimp are selected by size and ..
Shrimp Cocktail
Shrimp cocktail is one of the most appealing and preferred antipasti. One and a half to two pounds of unpeeled shrimp of the “16/20” count, which is the preferred size, are needed for 4 people...
stuffed shrimp
Stuffed shrimp is a very elegant and festive dish, impressive in the presentation and flavor, not so hard to fix and very successful with your guests. In this preparation colossal or jumbo size...
fried shrimp
When cooking fried shrimp for the family or close friends, I leave the shell on to enjoy in full their fantastic smell and their delicious taste.Of course it is a little messy but it’s worth it ...
shrimp scampi
Prepare the shrimps scampi and linguine, follow with a lettuce salad dressed with olive oil and lemon and finish with biscotti and ice cream drizzled with brandy...
- Sicilian Appetizers
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- Recipes of the Italian Regions
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