Italian braai
Food editor Aletta Lintvelt recently visited Italy and came back inspired. Live la dolce vita with these delicious dishes.
Smoked halloumi
Serves 4 Preparation time 10 minutes Cooking time 10 minutes
If you ever visit the Amalfi Coast, be sure to order mozzarella grilled between lemon leaves. For this recipe, I used halloumi. You need • 250 g haloumi or smoked mozzarella • 16 – 20 big lemon leaves • olive oil • lemon wedges Here’s how 1 Cut the cheese into strips of ½ – 1 cm thick, as wide as the leaves. Wash the leaves and pat them dry. 2 Put a strip of cheese between two leaves. Use tooth picks to secure the parcel. 3 Drizzle olive oil over the parcels. Put the parcels on the grid over medium-hot coals and braai for a few minutes a side. It’s cooked when the cheese is warm and gooey. 4 Remove the leaves and serve the cheese with bread, olive oil and a dash of lemon juice. The Italians like to serve smoked halloumi as an antipasto with olives, salami and fire-roasted baby marrows and sweet peppers.
Tagliata
Serves 2–4 Preparation time 15 minutes Cooking time 10 minutes
In Italian, the word tagliata means “cut”. The steak is sliced and served with olive oil, rocket and parmesan. Serve with fresh ciabatta to mop up the sauce. You need • 600 g T-bone steak, at room temperature • 125 ml olive oil • 3 sprigs of rosemary • 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped • grated peel and juice of 1 lemon • 250 g baby tomatoes • 4 tablespoons capers • 150 g rocket • 100 g parmesan • ground coarse salt • ground black pepper Here’s how 1 Season the steak with salt and pepper. Braai the steak over medium-hot coals for about 4 minutes a side or until medium. Remove the steak, cover it with a sheet of foil and set aside. 2 Heat the olive oil in a pan on the grid. Add the rosemary, garlic and lemon peel. Remove the pan from the heat after 3 minutes and add the lemon juice. 3 Arrange the baby tomatoes, capers and rocket on a plate. Cut the meat in thin slices and add them to the plate. Use a potato peeler to shave the parmesan over the meat. Pour the olive oil through a sieve, and then drizzle it over the meat. Serve hot.
Polenta with ratatouille
Serves 4 Preparation time 15 minutes Cooking time 30 minutes
Italians also like mieliepap with their meat – they serve soft polenta on a board in the middle of the table. We like our pap with a tomato smoor; they prefer it with an aubergineand-baby-marrow sauce. You need For the polenta • 3 cups water • 1 cup polenta • 1 cup milk • 1 tin (410 g) sweetcorn • 4 tablespoons butter • 100 g parmesan, grated For the ratatouille • 2 tablespoons olive oil • 1 red onion, chopped • 3 cloves of garlic, chopped • 2 teaspoons fennel seeds (optional) • 2 sprigs of fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried thyme • 1 medium-sized aubergine, chopped • 3 medium-sized baby marrows, chopped • 3 ripe tomatoes, chopped • 1 tin (410 g) chopped tomatoes • 1 teaspoon sugar • sea salt, to taste • ground black pepper, to taste Here’s how 1 Bring the water to a boil. Add the polenta and use a balloon whisk to beat the mixture. When it starts to thicken, stir it with a wooden spoon and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the milk and sweetcorn. Season to taste with salt. Remove the pot from the heat. 2 Fry the onion, garlic, fennel seeds, oregano and thyme in olive oil until soft. Add the aubergine, baby marrow, tomatoes, tinned tomatoes and sugar. Simmer for 25 minutes. Stir occasionally. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. 3 Stir the butter and parmesan into the polenta. Serve hot with the ratatouille.
Porchetta
Serves 6 Preparation time 30 minutes Cooking time 4 hours
Making real Italian porchetta (stuffed pork roast) is a slow process and it’s best left for special occasions. This recipe takes less time and can be made in the kettle braai this weekend. You need • 2 kg pork shoulder, deboned and butterflied • 2 teaspoons fennel seeds (optional) • 6 cloves of garlic, chopped • 2 teaspoons chilli flakes • 4 tablespoons fresh oregano or 1 tablespoon dried oregano • grated peel and juice of 1 lemon • 1 whole fennel bulb with leaves, finely chopped • coarse salt • ground black pepper • 2 onions, chopped • 1 cup white wine • 1 cup vegetable or chicken stock Here’s how 1 Prepare the coals in the kettle braai. 2 Put the butterflied pork on a chopping board with the skin facing down. 3 Sprinkle the fennel seeds, garlic, chilli flakes, oregano and lemon peel over the meat. Add the fresh fennel and drizzle over the lemon juice. Season with salt and black pepper. Roll up the pork and secure with kitchen twine. 4 Prepare the kettle braai for the indirect cooking method. Scrape the coals to the sides to leave space open under the grid. Add the onions, white wine and stock to a fireproof dish and put the dish on top of the grid. Put the pork roll in the dish with the skin facing outwards. Close the lid of the kettle braai – the temperature should be moderate (160° C). Roast the pork for 3 hours. Add more coals to keep the temperature consistent, but make sure the kettle braai doesn’t get too hot – a slow cooking process is needed to ensure the meat is juicy and tender. 5 Remove the pork from the kettle braai and take it out of the dish. Add more coals to the kettle braai. Rub coarse salt into the pork and put the meat directly onto the grid. Cover the kettle braai with the lid and roast the pork for 20 minutes on a high heat (200° C) or until the outside is crisped. 6 Cover the meat with a sheet of foil and set it aside for 20 minutes. Serve the sliced pork with polenta or baby potatoes.
Chicken kebabs with bagna cauda
Makes 4–6 Preparation time 15 minutes Cooking time 15 minutes Bagna cauda is a lukewarm sauce made from olive oil and anchovies and it’s usually drizzled over vegetables. It’s also delicious with lamb chops or chicken. You need • 1 kg chicken thighs, deboned • 1 red onion, cut into wedges • 1 sweet pepper, cut into pieces • 3 baby marrows, cut into strips • 1 cup olive oil • 10 cloves of garlic, finely chopped • 10 – 24 anchovy fillets, finely chopped • 125 g butter, cubed • ground black pepper Here’s how 1 Thread the chicken, red onion, sweet peppers and baby marrows onto skewers. 2 Heat the olive oil, garlic, anchovies, butter and pepper in a pan until warm – don’t let the ingredients fry or cook. Keep the pan warm on the
side of the kettle braai. 3 Baste the kebabs with the sauce and braai them over medium-hot coals until cooked. 4 Drizzle the rest of the sauce over the cooked kebabs and serve before the butter coagulates. Don’t add too much salt – the anchovies are salty.
Nutella pizza
Serves 4 Preparation time 20 minutes plus time to rest Cooking time about 10 minutes
I was surprised to learn how popular Nutella is in Napoli – you can serve this sweet treat as a dessert. You need • 2 cups white bread flour • 1 teaspoon instant yeast • 1 teaspoon sugar • pinch of salt • ¾ cup lukewarm water • 1 tablespoon olive oil • 1 jar Nutella • 250 g strawberries, sliced
Here’s how
1 Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt together. Add the lukewarm water and olive oil. Knead the dough for 10 minutes until it’s smooth and elastic. Put the ball of dough in a greased bowl, cover it with cling wrap and set it aside to double in volume. Knock the dough down. (It can be kept in the fridge overnight if needed.) 2 Divide the dough into 4 balls. Dust your work surface with flour and use a wine bottle to flatten the dough balls. Cover the dough with cling wrap. 3 Prepare the coals in the kettle braai. Scrape the coals to the side and put a pizza stone or ovenproof baking sheet on top of the grid. Close the lid of the kettle braai and let it get very hot. 4 Put a dough circle on the pizza stone or baking sheet. Close the lid and bake the pizza. If the kettle braai is hot enough, the pizza should be cooked in 3 – 4 minutes. 5 Remove the pizza base from the grid. Spread Nutella on it and add sliced strawberries. Repeat with each of the dough circles.