17 January,2011 09:15 AM IST | | Avantika Patil
"Italian cuisine world wide is held synonymous with pastas, pizzas and wines. But Italiano is much more than all of these," says Chef Vijayraj Chauhan, who is a part of the 10-day Festival Della Cucina Italiana. The chef talks to CS on what's going to be on the plate:
I have worked with most of the top Italian chefs. But when I travelled the whole of Italy, I realised that Italian food had more than just herbs, cheese and wine in it. To discover the authentic cuisine, I visited the ancient and rural Italy.
I was shocked to discover that cheese in pizza was like oil in Indian foodu00a0-- used in a limited quantity. In cities, they customise food according to tourist's nationality.u00a0
Pizza in Italy, or I would rather say rural Italy, is a balanced meal consisting of two vegetables or a type of meat, sauces and cheese.
What adds oomph to the pizza are the freshly chopped green herbs and not the stale dried ones. There are three types of pastau00a0-- pasta (before meals), antipasti (as starters) and primi piatti (as first course) and according to their classification they all are cooked differently.
Recreating Italian magic
In this festival, I aim to recreate the rural and delicious Italy by retaining its authenticity. We have hung posters of Italy in the 1940s.
Interestingly, in those days pasta was eaten with the hands instead of fork, so you'll find posters of the yesteryear celebrities enjoying pasta with their hands. Soulful music on violins and classic wines make for a beautiful ambience.
