Pasta alla Norma from Catania. Sicilian masterpiece and excellence. A dish that contains the flavors and aromas of the Sicilian land. A tasty, vegetarian dish prepared with simple and genuine ingredients. A tribute to the art of Vincenzo Bellini. The history and the recipe of Catanese pasta alla Norma, because ... «Mrs. Saridda, this is a real Norma!"(Mrs. Saridda, this is a real Norma!)
Pasta alla Norma: Catania, 1920
Let's take a dip in the past. We are in 1920. Catania, Via Etnea, Musco-Pandolfini house. The great Catania actor Angelo Musco lives with his sister Anna, married to Giuseppe Pandolfini. The couple has two children, the character actor Turi and Janu, the first actor (later owner of a well-known clothing store). Janu is married to the lady Saridda D'Urso. Inside the apartment we find gathered at the table Angelo Musco, Turi Pandolfini, Janu Pandolfini and playwrights and journalists Nino Martoglio, Pippo Marchese and Peppino Fazio. Saridda brings pasta with tomato sauce, fried eggplant, basil and grated salted ricotta to the table.
Lunch begins, between exchanges and first forkfuls. And it is precisely that day that Martoglio, poet and gourmet, congratulates the cook by exclaiming: "Mrs. Saridda, this is a real Norma!»Thanks to this sentence Nino Martoglio is credited with having baptized the popular Catania pasta with the nickname“ alla Norma ”. Probably he did nothing but repeat an expression already coined previously by the people, but the story and the characters that make it up are so fascinating that the joke could not fail to pass to posterity.
Pasta alla Norma Catania: 1831
According to other sources, the story is handed down that pasta alla Norma from Catania was presented for the first time on the evening of its debut. world of opera in two acts "Standard"By Bellini, 26 December of the 1831 at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan. Between the two versions, what is certain is the close link between the dish appreciated all over the world and the city of Catania. The tribute to the Catanese Swan and his work. A double-ended bond. Poetry and the intertwining of perfect notes that come together in a marriage of flavors. A pasta that they like so much and that fully deserves to be compared to the masterpiece of Vincenzo Bellini.
The recipe for Catanese Pasta alla Norma: ingredients for 4 people
- 400 grams of durum wheat pasta (preferably Sicilian) chosen from macaroni, spaghetti and penne rigate.
- Two aubergines, preferably of the "Turkish" type (preferably those coming from Acireale), alternatively the round violet ones.
- Salted ricotta, to taste.
- Two and a half kilos of tomatoes. The ribbed variety is recommended (there are several variants on the market).
- Two cloves of Red Garlic (preferably that of Nubia).
- Fresh basil, maybe from home! Here too, to taste.
- Extra virgin olive oil.
- Sugar and coarse salt, to taste.
Pasta alla Norma: preparation and cooking
- Take the aubergines, remove the herbaceous part and cut into thick slices lengthwise. (If you want you can also cut them into chunks, or, to please everyone, you can cut one lengthwise and one into chunks.) Take a colander and let the aubergines rest with salt for at least an hour, taking care to place a weight above so that they lose the vegetation water.
- After the resting time has elapsed, dab the aubergines well, pour the oil into the pan and fry. As the browning takes place, place the slices or chunks on absorbent paper.
- Peel the tomatoes, cut into pieces, remove the seeds and keep the vegetable liquid. Brown the red garlic in a large pan over low heat with the extra virgin olive oil, add the tomatoes and the vegetable liquid, add the salt and sugar. Cook until the tomato sauce is well reduced. Add a few hand-broken basil leaves, remove the garlic and let it rest.
- Grate the salted ricotta in a saucer and keep it ready. Now it's time to prepare the pasta! Then cook on the stove with plenty of salted water and when it boils, pour the pasta. I recommend that the cooking is al dente!
- Now you just have to drain the pasta on a serving dish adding the sauce, aubergines and ricotta salata. Enjoy your Catanese pasta alla Norma and bon appetit!
