Spaghetti with Scoglio

What are

Spaghetti allo scoglio is a typical first course of the Italian peninsula.

It is a food product with a medium energy intake, rich in complex carbohydrates, low fat and moderate protein intake; it is also characterized by the presence of gluten and the moderate content of cholesterol.

Spaghetti with seafood is relatively simple to prepare, although (as often happens) certain variations are decidedly more complicated than in the common. In general, for the conclusion of a good "spago allo scoglio" (nickname of the dish), a total of at least 45 minutes is required.

Origins

Spaghetti allo Scoglio: Weren't they a poor dish?

The ingredients of spaghetti with seafood should be "POOR" and easy to find, therefore seasonal. Clearly, the technological progress of fishing has distorted this principle, enriching the choice of fish and making available many products in all seasons of the year (even if at the expense of the marine biological balance); on the other hand, it has also contributed to standardizing the recipes of spaghetti with seafood offered in the restaurant sector, making them not only very similar but also banal in some respects.

Ultimately, despite being born as a "popular" food, spaghetti with seafood has become increasingly sought after and superfine, losing, in my opinion, the logic of the recipe.

The composition mutation of the spaghetti with seafood is not just about fish, but also other ingredients, including spaghetti and tomato. In fact, the type of pasta, generally "dried semolina", is now often replaced by a "fresh egg" product, or "spaghetti al torchio" and / or "alla chitarra". Similarly, the tomato used for this type of recipe (IF PRESENT) was subject to seasonality and typicality; in the height of summer it tended to be cool, with or without peel, and of the variety that lent itself most to the cultivation of coastal land. On the contrary, in the cold season the use of peeled, preserved or purée was more common. Today, thanks to the "greenhouse" agricultural production, it is possible to find fresh tomatoes in all seasons of the year and, since the reputed varieties are the small "pachino" and the long "S. Marzano", the others are excluded for automatism.

The name "spaghetti allo scoglio" should refer to a recipe based on ingredients from small-scale fishing, mainly found in the sub-coast or even from the shore. In fact, with a net "da posta" and some pots, positioned at dusk and recovered at the following dawn, it is possible to obtain all the typical ingredients of the dish with an almost nil ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT (except for bivalve molluscs that require a further laborers).

Be careful though! Leaving aside romanticism, logic and professional ethics, the roots of spaghetti with seafood are very different. It seems that in the Trapani area, in the not too distant past, on less fortunate days (or perhaps for personal taste ...) it was usual to aromatize the pasta sauce with the stones covered with marine vegetation gathered along the coast. Other than scampi and shrimp ... stones, algae and a few stories!

Fish Choice

Choose the products of the Spaghetti with seafood

Let's start by reminding you that the preparation of spaghetti with seafood should NOT impoverish your wallet! If this were not the case, it is better to review the criterion for choosing the foods involved.

In the various preparations of the restaurants, crustaceans such as lobsters, shrimp and scampi, cephalopod molluscs such as squid, cuttlefish and octopus, and bivalve molluscs such as razor shells, sea truffles, clams and mussels are never missing. In my personal opinion, the choice could be made more carefully.

Below I will list some indicated and other less suitable species for preparing spaghetti with seafood, but ATTENTION! Coastline fishing is extremely subject to seasonal and geographical variations. For example, the typical spaghetti of the area surrounding the delta of the Po river are completely different from those of the Tyrrhenian areas.

Shellfish for spaghetti with seafood

The crustaceans for this recipe exclude a priori all those caught at important depths. They are NOT part of it: lobster, lobster, large scampi and the giant brindle shrimp (or foreign species). On the contrary, small or medium specimens of local shrimp, at times scampi, lend themselves more frequently, sand crabs, shrimps, spider crabs (of large size only in certain locations and in spring), cicadas (only in certain localities, in spring is still rare), crab porter (very rare) and crab (rare).

Cephalopod molluscs for spaghetti with seafood

First of all, I personally do not like the use of octopus, as it requires an extremely long cooking time that distorts the speed of the recipe. For the preparation of spaghetti with seafood, baby octopus (typical of the winter period and, unlike the octopus, also found in the mid-upper Italian Adriatic) and cuttlefish (typical of the spring period, very abundant in the Adriatic side) are much more suitable. In certain areas of the Bel Paese, there are also frequent approaches to the coast by squid, although in very different seasons depending on the specific area.

Bivalve molluscs for spaghetti with seafood

It is important to specify that, compared to the Tyrrhenian Sea, the Adriatic certainly offers a greater availability of shellfish suitable for spaghetti with seafood; these are: the mussels (also the "mosciolo" variety, specific to Portonovo - Marche), the clams (better if Veraci and the Philippines, since they are more present under the shore), the razor clams (also available in the Adriatic shore), the spisulas (improperly called telline), the oysters (both species, local and oceanic, recently diffused) and the edible heart. Less frequent are the scallops and sea truffles, because: they require a different sampling method than those described above, they do not remain trapped in the traps or nets, and are not available on the shore; at the base of the rocks, sometimes, we can find peach combs or, on the rocks, other species of scallops.

On the contrary, large scallops (which live too deep), sea dates (these for environmental and legislative reasons) and fasolari (which too live too deep) are not recommended. It is very rare to use minor bivalves (that is almost unknown to the less experienced) such as: spondilo, the ark of noah, nacchera (or pinna nobilis - protected) etc. Some are not particularly pleasant, like the donax.

Gastropod molluscs for spaghetti with seafood

Often snubbed, they are a delicious ingredient and can make the difference between a "common" and an excellent spaghetti. In my opinion, the products that lend themselves most to the formulation of the sauce in question are: murici, truncated murici, galeodea, rapari or rapani ( Rapana venosa ), sea ears and limpets. To exclude, the smaller gastropods like the tombolini and the maruzzelle with shell (for the danger that they can have if whole and hidden in the plate).

Fish For spaghetti with seafood

It is a generally avoided ingredient, not out of impertinence, but because they boast an alternative destination, namely soups (such as the Fano soup or caciucco).

Nutritional Features

Spaghetti with seafood is a moderately energetic first course.

Considering the richness and taste of the accompanying sauce, spaghetti with seafood can be defined as a food that is also suitable for feeding the overweight subject and in slimming therapy; in this case, the attention must be focused above all on the weight of the pasta (NEVER above 80g) and that of the oil (NEVER above 10g).

It must also be said that, from the point of view of metabolic diseases, spaghetti with seafood should be the object of particular attention. First of all, an excessive glycemic load (deriving from a high weight of the paste) can damage a possible poorly compensated hyperglycemia, or hypertriglyceridemia; therefore, although the glycemic index of spaghetti is the lowest of all pasta, the portions must be carefully calibrated.

Then, it should be remembered that - although the fishery products mentioned are decidedly thin and with a good presence of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids - the contribution of cholesterol from spaghetti to seafood is not negligible and increases when egg pasta is used . Therefore, for those affected by this dyslipidemia, it is advisable to consume with regard to crustaceans, certain bivalve molluscs and gastropods.

Finally, for people with arterial hypertension, remember that the liquid hidden inside the bivalves is made up of sea water, therefore it contains high amounts of sodium.

The portion of spaghetti fiber on the rock is modest, so it would be useful to supplement the meal with a vegetable-based side dish.

Although it is a first course and not a dish, proteins are present in fair quantities and with a good biological value. We underline that, being a wheat pasta, spaghetti is not suitable for the celiac diet. Furthermore, containing crustaceans and molluscs, this first course is not suitable for feeding the infant, since allergy to these foods is one of the most widespread adverse events.

The saline profile is rich and there are excellent amounts of iron and iodine; as far as vitamins are concerned, some of the group B and certain retinol equivalents (pro-vit. A) certainly stand out.

Preparation and Cooking

Prepare Spaghetti allo Scoglio: Various Spaghetti Cooking

Preparation times for spaghetti with seafood: spaghetti with seafood should NOT require long and laborious preparation; however, this depends a lot on the ingredients used and the skill of the operator. In the case, for example, of opting for the use of octopus, the entire recipe can even reach 90 '(depending on the size of the mollusc).

What many people do not know is that to prepare a good sauce "with seafood" it is not always necessary to cook the ingredients separately. Of course, to a greater accuracy corresponds a higher result but (as far as cephalopods are concerned), taking care to use small sizes, it is possible to obtain a very fast and, in the end, good taste string.

Other important variables that significantly change the preparation time are: thickness of the spaghetti (different sizes), type of spaghetti (dried semolina pasta or dried egg pasta or fresh egg pasta) and cooking methods. It is logical to think that a spaghetti (including similar types such as capellini and vermicelli) of dried semolina pasta can have a cooking oscillating from 3 'to 13', depending on the size; moreover, a dry egg spaghetti cook more slowly than a fresh one (10 'vs 4'). Therefore, from now on we will take into consideration the most common type of spaghetti, that of dried semolina pasta n ° 5.

That said, let's take a brief introduction to the different techniques of cooking spaghetti with seafood.

Total cooking in water: it is the fastest and the simplest. Spaghetti are dipped in boiling salted water (depending on the salinity of the sauce) until cooked; then, they are drained completely and sautéed with the accompaniment that has already reached the right consistency (evaporation).
Partial cooking in water and finished in the sauce: it is less rapid; the spaghetti should be drained about halfway through and finished in the liquid sauce. In this case, cooking times in the sauce increase by at least 50%; this means that for a cooking in water of 8 ', the spaghetti should be drained at 4' and continued in the pan for another 6-7 '. It is necessary to pay close attention to the salinity of the sauce and the water, furthermore, when adding the pasta, the ingredients of the accompaniment must still be cooking. Some prefer to use the lid and finish cooking over very low heat, without adding more liquid, others keep aside the excess water of the sauce itself and add it little by little.
Total cooking in the sauce: it is the slowest and requires a very large sauté (pan). If cooked with the lid and over medium heat, it requires a quantity of liquid that corresponds to at least 300% of the weight of the dry pasta. It must be turned very often to prevent it from sticking and, up to the last 4 ', it must be immersed comfortably. In this case it is almost necessary to have a good supply of fish cooking liquid or even an additional comic to increase the dose. Using dry semolina pasta (cooked in water for 8 '), the total times are at least 16'. The fresh egg is more suitable both for its speed and for its lower ability to release starch (which tends to stick spaghetti at the end of cooking). WARNING! In this case the fish must already be cooked and removed from the cooking liquid even before starting the processing of the pasta; will be integrated only at the end. If there are good amounts of mussels and clams in the sauce, it is better to avoid adding salt or even stretching the sauce with neutral water / fumes.

As regards the cooking times of the various ingredients of the sauce, these vary considerably according to the type of peach product. Certainly, the first to be treated are undoubtedly the cephalopod molluscs (octopus, cuttlefish and squid), in parallel the gastropods (usually in a separate pan and in boiling water), will follow the bivalves and finally the crustaceans.

I refer the details to the recipe that will follow.

A Particular Recipe

This is my favorite spaghetti with seafood recipe. Quantity for 2-3 diners.

Ingredients

Sea ingredients

Crustaceans: 1 crab, 2-3 small shrimp and 1 canopy
Cephalopods: 1 small octopus and 1 small cuttlefish
Bivalves: QB mussels, QB clams, QB cat foot combs, QB edible hearts and 1 oyster (possibly a pair of razor clams)
Gastropods: 2-3 Ears of the sea and 2-3 murici (thorny or truncated), or 2-3 galenodee or 1 medium-small raparo.

Other Ingredients

Traditional guitar spaghetti 200g, homemade tomato sauce (very thick) 200g, 2 medium garlic cloves, fresh QB parsley, robust extra virgin olive oil QB, white Trebbiano wine 250ml, white pepper QB.

Method

Boil the whole gastropods for at least 5-10 'from the time of boiling (depending on the size) and shell the sea ears by removing the viscera.

Clean all other fishery products: remove the crab's tail, the shrimp's carapace and clean the shrimp; eliminate mouth, eyes, viscera and gladius (cuttlefish bone); remove the bisso of the mussels, beat the clams to check the presence of sand, open the razor clams with the knife to remove the intestine and scrape the oyster if it is dirty on the shell. Remember to rinse the ingredients (incorrect action, but essential to limit the presence of impurities). This is faster to do than to describe ...

Chop the garlic, chop the parsley and set them aside; cut the crab in half; cut the baby octopus and cuttlefish into small pieces (about 1.5 cm); cut raw sea ears in half, shelled and eviscerated murici, or shelled (breaking the shell) and eviscerated galenodas, or shelled and eviscerated raparo (the latter, better into small pieces).

In a shallow and not very large pan, put a little garlic and oil, and let it brown; add the baby octopus, the cuttlefish, the sea ears, the murici or the galenodee or the raparo and the crab cut in half. Turn gently and, after 2 minutes, add a little white wine. Once the alcohol has evaporated, add the tomato and leave to cook covered without adding salt for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, put a little garlic and oil in a large skillet and let it brown. Then add the combs and cockle hearts; after 2 'add the clams, mussels and oyster. As soon as they are all open, lay the razor clams and blend with a little white wine. Cover and, without turning, cook for another 2 minutes over high heat; then turn off, filter the liquid and keep it boiling. The more picky is advised to shell 50% of all bivalves to reduce the volume of NON-EDIBLE. It is recommended to maintain the integrity of the razor clams for decoration.

At this point, add the canocchia and the prawns in the red sauce and raise the heat to the maximum. If too thick, add one or two ladles of bivalve water, then dip the spaghetti. Continue cooking for about 4 minutes, then pour it all over the pan with the bivalves and finish the heat treatment of the pasta according to need (possibly adding more bivalve cooking water). Add white pepper, fresh parsley and oil down from the heat, sauté and serve in a tray adding also the razor clams.

NB. An interesting variant IN BIANCO involves cooking cuttlefish and octopus in water, while crustaceans and gastropods are integrated into sauté with bivalves. In this case, it will be very effective to use fresh spaghetti with cuttlefish ink and wild rocket together with parsley (50/50). To combine the ingredients with the pasta, it is advisable to tie a little comic or bivalve liquid with cornstarch or rice flour and skip the mixture.