OT Italian and seafood ft Lauderdale

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It's not Rustic Italian....Ive never made it...and I've chefed in Italian Rests since 82

I've been messing around cooking Italian for the last 15 years... favorite thing to attempt. Anything you recommend shooting for?
 
I've been messing around cooking Italian for the last 15 years... favorite thing to attempt. Anything you recommend shooting for?
Pasta Dishes to start...Marinara...Alfredo...Primavera....etc...
Bolognese sauce is alittle tougher....Even Clam sauce is relatively easy for a novice...
There are some excellent Italian cookbooks on the market with step by step instructions....always remember to salt your Pasta water liberally....and you NEVER want Rolling Boiling Water....just a simmered boil is what you want....
 
Pasta Dishes to start...Marinara...Alfredo...Primavera....etc...
Bolognese sauce is alittle tougher....Even Clam sauce is relatively easy for a novice...
There are some excellent Italian cookbooks on the market with step by step instructions....always remember to salt your Pasta water liberally....and you NEVER want Rolling Boiling Water....just a simmered boil is what you want....
My wife is the main cook in our house (i do the grilling) but I LOVE making bolognese. Mine is pretty **** simple, but super **** good! I use market ground beef and pork. Heck, I might have to make a pot of it this weekend. I always make a ton so I can eat leftovers of it for days. lol
 
Pasta Dishes to start...Marinara...Alfredo...Primavera....etc...
Bolognese sauce is alittle tougher....Even Clam sauce is relatively easy for a novice...
There are some excellent Italian cookbooks on the market with step by step instructions....always remember to salt your Pasta water liberally....and you NEVER want Rolling Boiling Water....just a simmered boil is what you want....

bolognese isnt tough so much as it's time consuming ... i think primavera (uniform knife cuts) and alfredo (ensuring your sauce doesn't break) are both way less forgiving as a home cook
 
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bolognese isnt tough so much as it's time consuming ... i think primavera (uniform knife cuts) and alfredo (ensuring your sauce doesn't break) are both way less forgiving as a home cook.
Bolognese is tough for a beginner...If your Alfredo breaks thats on you...Lol....Hollandaise is MUCH easier to break...But CaneinOrlando knows all the secrets to fix a broken Hollandaise easily...same for a Bernaise sauce, which is the same as a Hollandaise but with Tarragon reduction whisked in...
 
My wife is the main cook in our house (i do the grilling) but I LOVE making bolognese. Mine is pretty **** simple, but super **** good! I use market ground beef and pork. Heck, I might have to make a pot of it this weekend. I always make a ton so I can eat leftovers of it for days. lol
My Meat sauce is like my Moms...Italian Sweet Sausage...Pork Ribs that have been baked 3/4 of the way thrown into sauce (Bone and all)...Meatballs...and Ground Chuck cooked....once sauce is done...Bones can be retrieved with Tongs....
 
As far as Meatballs...CaneinOrlando uses 2 parts Ground Chuck...One part Sweet Ground Italian Sausage...You can absolutely use 1 part Ground Veal as well ( but considering the astronomical price) its not a necessity....
I also will NOT use Progresso Bread crumbs or any store bought brand....All you need is older bread...(minus the crust) cube them up...add to a food processor until semi crumbled....My Mom and Grandmother would make the finished bread crumbs alittle wet with Milk (old school italian) and plenty of eggs...Old School Italians will brown Meatballs in Olive Oil, then finish them in Sauce...but its not necessary...Put Meatballs on Flat hotel type pan...and add some water to the pan and bake at 325° for approx 40mins....even if they are 3/4 done...they will finish cooking in sauce....
Also....If your Marinara or any Tomato Ragu isnt going to cook all day...I recommend adding a teaspoon of sugar to cut the acidticity....The longer you cook fresh tomato sauce (homemade) the less acidticity it will be....Not needed if your sauce cooks all day....
 
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Pasta Dishes to start...Marinara...Alfredo...Primavera....etc...
Bolognese sauce is alittle tougher....Even Clam sauce is relatively easy for a novice...
There are some excellent Italian cookbooks on the market with step by step instructions....always remember to salt your Pasta water liberally....and you NEVER want Rolling Boiling Water....just a simmered boil is what you want....

Only Al dente coming out of my kitchen. My go to is usually sautéed chicken/veal scallopini dishes like Marsala, Champagne (Maybe not even Italian), Saltimbocca, Picatta, Franchese etc. Was really into Ragu at one point and always making mussels/clams in variations of white and red sauce. With my 'gravy' i'm pretty much crushing up San Marzano tomatoes and letting evaporation do its thing, but know Italians do so much more, or at least i think.
 
Only Al dente coming out of my kitchen. My go to is usually sautéed chicken/veal scallopini dishes like Marsala, Champagne (Maybe not even Italian), Saltimbocca, Picatta, Franchese etc. Was really into Ragu at one point and always making mussels/clams in variations of white and red sauce. With my 'gravy' i'm pretty much crushing up San Marzano tomatoes and letting evaporation do its thing, but know Italians do so much more, or at least i think.
I use San Marzano at home...I also tbroughout my career have used Fresh Roma Tomatoes...Make an X on end of tomatoes...Then add tomatoes to boiling water for 30secs...strain them into ice bath to stop cooking...you then can peel them easily (because of X cut, like petals on a flower) slice in half...remove seeds...and put into a Rice Grainer (My preference)
 
I use San Marzano at home...I also tbroughout my career have used Fresh Roma Tomatoes...Make an X on end of tomatoes...Then add tomatoes to boiling water for 30secs...strain them into ice bath to stop cooking...you then can peel them easily (because of X cut, like petals on a flower) slice in half...remove seeds...and put into a Rice Grainer (My preference)

I've done all that in the past minus the rice grainer. What exactly is that?
 
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I use San Marzano at home...I also tbroughout my career have used Fresh Roma Tomatoes...Make an X on end of tomatoes...Then add tomatoes to boiling water for 30secs...strain them into ice bath to stop cooking...you then can peel them easily (because of X cut, like petals on a flower) slice in half...remove seeds...and put into a Rice Grainer (My preference)
You guys are killing me! I'm starving with all this Italian cooking talk. LOL

BTW, @caneinorlando, did you ever do any business with a wholesale foods company in Ft Laud by the name of Grand Western Brands?
 
You guys are killing me! I'm starving with all this Italian cooking talk. LOL

BTW, @caneinorlando, did you ever do any business with a wholesale foods company in Ft Laud by the name of Grand Western Brands?
No....(but I'm familiar with them) most of the food companies I've dealt with were Sysco and Italian Speciality companies....Sysco pretty much has a stranglehold on the market in Fl....thing with Sysco....they only deal with HUGE orders...They're not coming to a small Mom and Pops restaurant with a $400 order...THATS were Grand Western and others have carved a niche....
 
No....(but I'm familiar with them) most of the food companies I've dealt with were Sysco and Italian Speciality companies....Sysco pretty much has a stranglehold on the market in Fl....
I worked for them from '76 to '83. We grew rapidly the time I was there. Wasn't much competition other than another local company that I can't recall the name of. I have no doubt that Sysco has that much of a stranglehold.
 
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With Italian Restaurants its tricky...1st...it depends on how much Prep work they are staffed to do...Most larger Italian Restaurants that are well staffed will Break down entire Legs of Veal themselves...Trim Tenderloins themselves...etc....The smaller ones will get their Veal and Tenderloins already cryerpacked....alot less prep...alot less overhead....Fancy expensive Italian Restaurants have machines that make Ravioli...Tortalini etc..by the thousands...Where smaller operations use hand methods because their volumn is alot smaller.
 
I worked for them from '76 to '83. We grew rapidly the time I was there. Wasn't much competition other than another local company that I can't recall the name of. I have no doubt that Sysco has that much of a stranglehold.
Sysco is the Boss in Fl....All the Large Restaurants...All the Theme Parks use them extensively....Their Salesmen are for the most part amazingly trained..
 
Waste is the single worst thing a restaurant has to endure...Your food cost should NEVER exceed 15%....The restaurant group I work for has been alittle Lax in that Dept...and it ****es me off..another reason I'm retiring next yr...Nobody wants to pay (chefs..Linecooks..etc) what their worth...hence problems with not caring and waste...The smaller your menu...the less spoilage and waste there is...Another example of why high cost items aren't on alot of menus except for weekly or monthly specials...The restaurant business is a MFer...and has been for many yrs...
 
Only Al dente coming out of my kitchen. My go to is usually sautéed chicken/veal scallopini dishes like Marsala, Champagne (Maybe not even Italian), Saltimbocca, Picatta, Franchese etc. Was really into Ragu at one point and always making mussels/clams in variations of white and red sauce. With my 'gravy' i'm pretty much crushing up San Marzano tomatoes and letting evaporation do its thing, but know Italians do so much more, or at least i think.
I'm all about Al Dente...Not because I don't like Fresh Pasta...but because you can control the firmness...The restaurants that charge $24 for a plate of Pasta Pomodoro should be ashamed of themselves...Ive been to Scarpettas (Scott Conent from the food Networks restaurants) and looked at his prices and was in Hysterics)...The day CaneinOrlando spends $25 for a plate of Pasta that costs $4 to make, is the day I need to be put down....Another reason why people are eating out less frequently....Nothing that Scott...Mario Battali...etc makes, that I can't....and rather easily...Those TV Food Network Stars make me cringe...You go to their rests...and your paying the exorbitant prices for their name alone....and don't EVEN get me started on Guy Fieti....Dudes restaurant in NY was absolute overpriced Garbage...You don't see the likes of the Great Chefs in America on the Food Network....Lol at Gordan Ramsey...
The Day I see Thomas Keller and other Noteworthy and HIGHLY acclaimed Chefs on the Food Network, will be the day of my passing....You want to know the Best Chef in America??...Look No further than Thomas Keller....He's without question the Best of The Best......Thomas Keller...Hubert Keller and Jacques Pepin wipe their Azzes with the clowns on Food Network....
 
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