Mixed fried fish: the recipe of the Romagna tradition

The perfect mixed fried? Crunchy out, wet inside, savory but not salty. «And above all with the bones». Word of Andrea Bartolini, third generation of Romagnoli restaurateurs who today boasts three taverns (Cesenatico, Milano Marittima, Bologna), the La Buca restaurant (1 Michelin star, Cesenatico) and Bartolini terrace (Milano Marittima). “To express itself to the maximum, the fish needs its thorn: that’s where the flavor, mood, meaning is there, “he explains. The common thread of all the premises is the sea, even if the dish-manifesto of theOsteria Bartolini of Cesenatico – which is used to the Porto Leonardesco canal, a few meters from the fishing boats that every morning dictate the menu – it is precisely the great fried of the Adriatic. “It is not just a recipe for us: it is a legacy. It is a gesture that has been repeated for decades, since my grandfather, fisherman, cooked on the boat with what remained. The non -marketable fish – small, with tender meat – thus became the basis of an instinctive cuisine, made with embers, hands, salt, and patience. They called him “poor fish”: triglies, zanchetti, forklift, hook Sardone, fettuccia, paganello … these are precisely these, today, the protagonists of our mixed fried food ».

How to cook a good fried fish

The Bartolini Osteria in Corso Giuseppe Garibaldi 41, in Cesenatico.

Osteria Bartolini

As for the secrets to make it perfect: “The first thing is oil,” adds Andrea Bartolini. «We use only that of sunflower seeds and not olive, because it is too invasive: Our goal is in fact to enhance the flavor of the fish, do not overlook it ». Then there is the method that makes the difference: “Two couple. The first serves to scramble the still cold fish, just out of the cell. The second – already stable at 190 ° C – for the actual cooking. It is a sort of technical passage that allows you to keep the oil at the correct temperature, to obtain a light crunchiness. In the kitchen we have machines designed to be measured, with steel tanks designed to take advantage of the convective motions of the oil. But even at home you can do something similar »(see recipe to follow, adapted by Osteria Bartolini for readers of Vanity Fair). And again: «No batter. Only a very thin breading, obtained with double zero flour And an almost obsessive processing: the fish must be kept in the cold, then drained well and passed in dry flour, constantly sifted. Thus, when cooking, the breading becomes a crunchy veil ». But it is essential to never lose sight of the pot: «The oil bubble, which at the beginning is large and noisy, at a certain point begins to shrink. When ending, silent, we know it’s time. Then we drain, dab twice – first on white absorbent paper, then on yellow paper – and let it rest for a minute. Only then do we go up, slightly ».

The ingredients that make the difference

In the great fried of the Adriatic: small fish with the bone, molluscs and seasonal crustaceans.

Osteria Bartolini

In addition to the small whole fish above, in the great fried of the Adriatic of the Bartolini Osteria there are crustaceans: “Mazzancolla, escape, crab, and – in the season – the moeche, small and delicious. Among the molluscs we prefer the squid, especially in spring, when they are tender and delicate ». Then there are the unexpected guests, who give rhythm to the dish: “Very thin cut potato chips, with the peel, rosemary and coarse salt». Or – surprise – A cube of fried cream«A tribute to the original English soup Romagnola, the one without Alchermes. In our local in Bologna, to say, he is at the bottom of the walking cone ». Finally, the golden rule: “On the menu it is clear: the lemon does not put. Not for snobbery, but out of respect. The lemon, on the fried, breaks the balance, softens the crust, erases the sea. If a customer asks, of course, we take him to the table, but with a certain, intimate suffering ».

The great fried of the Adriatic

For breading: no batter, but only flour.

Osteria Bartolini

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 400 gr of Paranza fish (sardoncini, moles, zanchetti, small lugs of rock, mackerel, groove, sea chicker …) clean and headless
• 400 gr of squid cut into small slices and whole squid, leather private and interior
• 400 gr of crustaceans: small mazzancolle and scampi (whole)
• 200 gr. of Network crashing, deprived of the upper carapace (if available)
• Flour 00 to taste
• Sunflower seed oil (abundant, for deep saucepan frying)
• Salt up to taste

Procedure:

1. The freshness is everything. Cleaning every variety of fish respecting its delicacy: depriving the fish of paranza of the entrails and the head, cut the squid into small slices, leave entire crustaceans and crashies (without higher shell). Put everything in water and ice until the moment of frying: this helps to preserve tone and consistency.
2. In the meantime, bringing the oil into two high saucepan to 190 ° C. It is crucial that the temperature remains stable: the secret of a perfect fried is right here.
3. Dry the fish well with absorbent paper. Lightly flour each piece with 00 flour and then pass them to the sieve, to eliminate the excess: the flour must be just mentioned, like an invisible powder that protects, but does not cover.
4. Now it is a question of frying a few pieces at a time, separating the different types of fish to ensure uniform cooking. In the first saucepan, proceed with a very short first fries (for the thermal shock the oil will lower a lot in temperature, having inserted the very cold fish) and then continue in the second saucepan, where the actual cooking will take place with hottest oil to obtain a truly crunchy fish. Withdraw the fish when they take on a slight gilding and the oil bubbles around they begin to make fine and quick: this signals that the internal humidity is evaporated.
5. Place on absorbent paper, salt only at the last and serve.

Note of the chef

“Our Grand Fritto is not a dish. It is a postcard of the port of Cesenatico: each variety tells a season, a net, a boat. And every bite, if done well, must melt like salt on the skin after a tu ff o”.

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