THE MIGHTY MINESTRONE

Febbraio 18, 2022

110

THE MIGHTY MINESTRONE
From humble beginning to center table, the vegetable porridge unites every palate and every region. Mostly identified with winter, it is also consumed cold in the summer.
Flavors and Knowledge

Feb 18

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Buongiorno amici:

A vegetable soup can unite all spirits, even with a thousand different facets. Growing up in Italy and cooking professionally for a half-century taught me many lessons. One, in particular, is that some dishes can unite a nation, as in the case of minestrone, a porridge-style concoction symbolizing the winter nights until the seventies.

Then it suffered the oblivion of many other dishes of the regional home tradition, making a stronger comeback than ever. The variety of soups that Italy can offer tickles the taste buds of foreign visitors, especially those, more and more numerous, coming from Eastern and Northern Europe, including the United States. As a result, these cultures have established the habit of including soup as the beginner course in their meals.

Minestrone translates into a cooked blend of local and seasonal vegetables; therefore, one recipe does not exist. However, you can travel from Lombardia to Calabria and witness several examples of well-executed combinations with contrasting flavors and ideas. The broth used may include water as a base or natural broths such as beef, chicken, or vegetables.

I have made many different varieties through the years, from whole vegetables to adding a large piece of beef, chicken legs, or lamb. As a result, there is a slight confusion around the dish. It is indeed codified but with wide margins of personal interpretation and regional differentiation between vegetables and legumes and the types of pasta that accompany it.

In the Lombardy region, instead of pasta, you will find rice.

The Venetians do include beans in their version.

In Liguria, beans and green beans deliver a fresher taste mixed with fresh basil. Often the final touch of pesto adds another element of discovery.

When in Rome, expect to find quartered artichokes.

In Abruzzo and Molise, you will find cardoons in the mix, as well as fresh herbs and legumes.

Going down to Naples, you cannot omit the tomato. However, in the region of Campania, the minestrone tends to have an orange shade to its color.

In the flat land of Puglia, turnip greens and Pecorino cheese take precedents over other fresh vegetables.

These are just a few unique ideas, but the list increases as you discover more varieties. One thing to keep in mind is the quality of the vegetables, rigorously in season and worked minimally. The addition of a protein element often dignifies the poverty of the minestrone. From a thick slab of pancetta to the crust of a Parmigiano rind, the blending becomes a genuine discovery of new flavors and rustic farmland expression.

Not sure which recipe to feature for you, I have decided to include what I think is one of the most recognized among consumers—the ribollita from Tuscany. Ribollita means twice boiled, is nothing more than leftover minestrone, made in advance and then cooked again in the oven, often on a clay pot.

You add thick chunks of crusty bread, rubbed with garlic, and previously roasted on an open fire. A thick ribollita is thick, hearty, and stew-like, including vegetables and greens such as the Tuscan lacinato kale, cabbage, spinach, and zucchini.

Of course, Tuscans love cannellini beans and olive oil, and some go to the extent of adding grated Pecorino cheese to the top before serving. However, I am not a big fan of the cheese addition because it may overpower the taste of the vegetables. Traditionalists say that we should eat it with a fork, not a spoon. As the flavors continue to blend, this comforting soup only gets tastier over a couple of days, making ribollita the perfect weekday dinner(s)!

Ribollita exemplifies the “Cucina povera,” a traditional style of Italian cuisine that translates to “poor cooking.” Frugal Italian cooks made the most with what was available, and their ingenuity provided the rest.

Centuries of transforming simple, readily-available ingredients into products that will last through a long winter resulted in iconic products like prosciutto; stretching a loaf of bread over a few days led to delicious dishes like this ribollita.

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Ribollita (Tuscan Vegetable Soup)

Yield: 8 servings

One bunch Tuscan kale, cut into 2-inch ribbons
One head savoy cabbage, cut into 2-inch ribbons
One bunch Swiss chard, cut into 2-inch ribbons
Two russet potatoes, peeled and diced
Three large carrots, peeled and diced
2 cups canned whole peeled tomatoes
Two zucchini, diced
One rib celery, diced
Two leeks (white parts only), sliced
Two cloves garlic, sliced
2 cups cooked cannellini beans, half pureed
Three tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
One bay leaf
Leaves of 1 sprig of thyme
An acceptable amount of sea salt to taste
1 to 2 cups (2-inch) cubes of stale bread

Procedure

Place the olive oil, leeks, and garlic in a large pot over low heat. Cook, frequently stirring, until the leeks and garlic are soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Next, add the carrots and celery, and cook, frequently stirring, until the vegetables have softened but not browned, about 8 minutes. Next, add the potatoes and zucchini and cook, stirring, until softened, about eight more minutes. At this stage, add the kale, cabbage, and chard, and cook – continually stirring! – until the greens are very soft, about 8 minutes. Finally, stir in the red pepper flakes.

Add the tomatoes and their juice, squeezing the tomatoes between your fingers to break them up. Next, add 2 quarts of water, the bay leaf, the thyme, and all beans—season to taste with salt.

Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the vegetables are very tender, about 30 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf.

Add the bread cubes to the soup, and simmer until the bread breaks apart and the soup is very thick about 10 minutes. Let the soup rest off the heat for several minutes, and then ladle into warmed bowls. Drizzle a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil over each portion before serving.