The favorite recipes of Commissioner Montalbano, the TV character played by Luca Zingaretti and created by Andrea Camilleri's pen. Here's how to bribe him if he came to investigate your house
The Commissioner Montalbano is ready to return to tv, the March 9, in prime time on Rai1. One of the most loved characters of the Italian television, Montalbano is masterfully interpreted by Luca Zingaretti, the protagonist of the detective novels of Andrea Camilleri. Appearing on the screens in the now distant 1999, it has reached the fourteenth edition of the very successful television series.
Cases to solve, turbulent and passionate loves, stories full of suspense and pungent irony have made Commissioner Montalbano an all-round character, capable of making viewers fall in love also thanks to his passion – understandable – for the kitchen.
Except for Montalbano he is Sicilian doc and, in every episode of the fiction, his visceral love appears for his own land and for regional recipes – now known all over the world – which make Sicilian cuisine one of the most appreciated and loved.
And if you were to invite Commissioner Montalbano to dinner, you would be able to conquer it with recipes of the kitchen he loves so much? We give you a little help with one tracking shot of dishes most interesting that have appeared in all these years, devoured with transport by the talented Luca Zingaretti on the set and undoubtedly loved, even by the "father" of the commissioner, the Sicilian doc Andrea Camilleri who has always stressed how strong the bond between his character, Sicily and the recipes that are told in his books and in the TV series. And, we recommend, while you eat you don't talk, as Montalbano always suggests!
The favorite dishes of Commissioner Montalbano
Preparing a tasty dinner for Salvo Montalbano should not be a problem: the dishes of the Sicilian tradition are distinguished by the intense flavor and typical aromas of the land that invented them, fusion recipes that are affected by the geographical and cultural proximity to the Arab world.
Let's start from the dish that the character played by Luca Zingaretti loves almost madness (and how to blame him) and for many it can also be a tasty appetizer: the Sicilian arancine . We then continue with the famous caponata, to be eaten strictly – as Camilleri also writes – with fresh bread. And then sfincione, fritters is scacce, just to start!
The first course? Without a doubt the pasta 'ncasciata, a typical recipe from Messina which requires that the pasta be cooked directly in the pan and with two layers of embers, one below and one above the pasta. If instead you want to opt for a first course based on fish, which in the Montalbano series would like to eat in front of the sea in complete relaxation while it is always interrupted by colleagues, try to prepare the spaghetti with cuttlefish ink, Commissioner Montalbano will surely be happy about it. Or, to be perhaps a little lighter, a couscous alla trapanese, perfect mix of the Sicilian tradition with the Arab one.
Even for the latter, the choice is wide and delicious. Let's start from sardines in beccaficu, with a filling of anchovies in oil, bay leaves, raisins, lemon, orange, pine nuts and breadcrumbs. Or the fried red mullet with zucchini, to eat strictly washed down with fresh lemons. If instead you want to try to make Commissioner Montalbano happy with meat, why not try the farsumagru, the meat loaf typical of the Sicilian tradition.
Even if you may not be hungry anymore, you cannot, at this point, not think about sweet. The choice would be much wider, but we offer three, from bring to the table to make Salvo decide which one to eat! Sicilian cassata, cannoli with ricotta and sphinxes. But then, are we sure that the commissioner does not do the trio?
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