What is the Paranza?
The paranza is a dish based on fried fish; for this reason, it has a rather high lipid and caloric intake.
The paranza is a typical dish of the fishermen's diet which, following the capture and sale of the finest fish, usually consume the advanced specimens as much as possible; it goes without saying that the paranza constitutes a predominantly indirect method of gain, even if, nowadays, it is well present on all Italian tables. Ultimately, although it is a fish, the paranza put up for sale "should" have an extremely low cost, even if you often come across misticanze containing prized species and therefore much more expensive than the ordinary.
Paranza should not be a primary objective of professional fishing, but a side effect of some fish traps (especially nets). It is no coincidence that large quantities of paranza are derived from the "trawling" method which - so as not to spare cans, shrimp, prawns etc. - uses nets with rather thin meshes (in small part from small mail and pots). Unfortunately, the train itself is a somewhat DESTRUCTIVE sampling technique, as it devastates the seabed that it covers, on which, moreover, underwater creatures build their own breeding nests; moreover, considering the small dimensions of the meshes mentioned above, it is logical to deduce that not only small species are trapped, but also those that could reach a medium or large size. Obviously, these last ones end up in the paranza even before having accomplished even a reproductive cycle.
Ultimately, the paranza can be considered a useful preparation for the disposal of small and not very valuable fish, even if, as we have seen, with the train it is not possible to carry out a real selection fishery.
Fish species in the paranza
In the paranza there are many fish species, as many as there are inventories or catches not foreseen during fishing. Some examples are: mullet (of mud and rock), moles, soles, flounder, anchovies, tangerines, gobies, small gray mullets, moorhens, boghe, salps, horse mackerel, garfish, scarves, maidens, chestnuts, thrushes, lapps, sparaglioni, small sea bream etc. Among these, some would still remain small and others could develop further.
Sometimes the most expensive paranza is enriched with cubes of large fish, crustaceans and molluscs.
Preparation of the paranza
The paranza is a second dish easy to prepare. It is a fried product in which it is essential to even out the pieces; in practice, it is a good idea to make sure that all the fish are the same size. Otherwise it would be necessary to cut the larger specimens.
First, if possible, fish should NOT be rinsed in fresh water. Then, based on tastes and species, it is also possible to decide whether to eviscerate them or not. While bringing the oil to temperature (preferably extra virgin olive or peanut oil), flour the fish, taking care to separate the excess powder well. With the oil in temperature and the floured paranza, plunge it a little at a time and fry until it reaches a crunchy consistency and a color that is about blond (not brown). It is essential that the oil never loses its optimal temperature and that it does not exceed it, in order to avoid that the fry is too greasy or that the oil goes beyond the point of smoke giving rise to compounds "not entirely healthy". Finally, fish the baked paranza with a spider ramina and dab it with absorbent paper; then, add salt and possibly a little fresh lemon juice. The paranza must be served hot and eaten possibly without discarding the bone and head.
Nutritional properties
It is not possible to make a precise estimate of the chemical and nutritional components of the paranza, as its composition is extremely changeable.
Certainly, being a fried food, it will be high-calorie (due to the lipids of the oil), therefore not advisable in the feeding of the overweight subject. Furthermore, although it initially contains essential fatty acids from the ω3 (fish) and ω ‰ 6 (peanut oil) families, we recall that the temperature necessary for frying drastically reduces their concentration in the food. Moreover, even if significant percentages remained, the total caloric intake would render it in any case unsuitable in the diet against metabolic diseases.
In addition to fats, the paranza contains good amounts of high biological value protein (of fish) and a small amount of carbohydrates (of flour). Among the vitamins there should be several exponents of group B and D, although many suffer negatively the inhibitory effect of cooking. As far as mineral salts are concerned, they are all present in good quantities, with excellent amounts of calcium (but only in the case where small fish are eaten - anchovies and lattarini - whole, ie with bone).
