In-Home Private Chef in Pantelleria
It is said that love passes through the stomach, therefore, the ideal way to pamper yourself on vacation is a tailor-made kitchen. And what is simple cooking without a high-class chef?
We offer you the ideal holiday, with 5-star tables, accompanied by the finest fresh dishes and excellent drinks, while admiring the fiery sunset!
Do not wait, contact us, we would be happy to offer our advice!
Brief history of Pantelleria cuisine
From the volcanic earth, the food products of the islanders were as simple as they were genuine and tasty.
The philosophy of the locals regarding food was to respect the rich land which gave them all the necessary inputs for agricultural work and not to violate the laws of nature and the sea, so fishing has never been the main concern of the Panthers. They defined themselves near the shore, working the land, and then transforming it into unique, tasty and imaginative dishes.
The food was based on barley biscuit, legumes, fruit, meat and fish. The oil, the one obtained from the mastic tree. The barley and wheat produced on the island gave the flour for the toasted bread, "U Viscottu", in the shape of a horseshoe used by the population while the bread and pasta made with wheat flour were used on Sundays or days holidays. Later the barley bread, or barley biscuit, a specialty of Pantelleria, is replaced by bread made with wheat flour imported from Trapani and Sciacca. "U Viscottu" still accompanies the Pantelleria salad made of tomatoes and potatoes and dressed with "minnuli", capers, onion, oregano and oil from the olive trees of the "tanche".
Handmade pasta and in particular "i maccarruni" and "lasagni" are appreciated and tasted for the dressing of fresh tomato sauce such as spaghetti dressed with oil, garlic and parsley or with basil-scented pesto.
Beeches, lentils, chickpeas and "lubbia nostra" that is beans with eyelet, potatoes, all products that the land offers to the Pantelleria farmer, were once and are today ingredients for a tasty soup with "i taddiarini ".
The garden continues to produce pumpkins and aubergines with which "u cucurummà" and "u sciakisciuka" are prepared, while the yellow pumpkin is used in the winter for a steaming soup or as a tasty side dish.
The land spontaneously offers vegetables: "chicory", "burrania", "cardaddra", which the housewife can boil and serve with a little oil or season with garlic and tomato.
Everything that is prepared in the kitchen is the result of the earth and the work of man who knows how to make good use of the space between the vines to grow melons, broad beans, peas, artichokes, onions, potatoes, courgettes and sweet and juicy tomatoes, good for the salad which today is called "n'zalata pantisca" due to its dressing. In fact it has the flavors of Pantelleria: the sharp smell of oregano, the sour taste of caper and the delicate sweetness of "minnule" eggs.
In the houses of the Pantelleria farmer the leg of ham from the reared pig dominates or the "a sosizza" sausage makes a fine show.
Pantelleria sweets are excellent for their scents and aromas: in particular for Easter they are prepared as in the past "i cannateddri", pasticciotti, "i cassateddri"; for San Martino "li spinci a cuddureddi"; for the holy christmas the mustaccioli of honey and of vinicotto "i mustazzola"; boiled or fried sweet ravioli and cannoli to which kisses and peaches are recently added are prepared on special private occasions.
Do not forget the black pudding "u sangunazzu", the pignolata, the mustard.
Malaga and dried figs were once the winter fruit and are now popular with tourists; typical local fruit is the zibibbo grape.
On the table of all Pantelleria wines and passito di Pantelleria.
In conclusion, Pantelleria cuisine can be defined with three adjectives: genuine, tasty, simple.
What to eat in Pantelleria
Bitter ravioli:
No, they are not exactly bitter, the adjective only serves to distinguish them from the sweet ones! The amari ravioli are ravioli formed by a thin sheet that contains a mixture of local ricotta, or tumma, and fresh mint.
They are cooked by immersing them in boiling water for a few minutes, as soon as they rise to the surface they are ready! They are seasoned with fresh tomato sauce or simply with butter and sage. Do not miss a grated ricotta salata.