Fried food.
I can’t get enough of it. No, I don’t eat fried food every day, not even every week.
But when I fry, I fry wholeheartedly.
I’ve decided to launch a new blog series called Fritti. Do I need to list the reasons why? If you insist: Because we’ve endured the whole of 2020 and 2021. Because we work hard for the right to indulge. Because we deserve fritti. And because it’s summer, a plate of fried food and a glass of bubbles can turn the whole evening around.
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My favorite cheat day food is fritto misto all’italiana (did I mention that when I go big, I go really big?). This is an assortment of fried preparations, mostly battered vegetables, breaded croquettes and more. Every region in Italy has its own typical recipe for fritto misto. For example in the Piemonte region, the mixed fry features 18 ingredients, between salty and sweet, with the original recipe including even more considering organ meat like liver, brains, sweetbreads and other offal.
There are so many other typical fried recipes across Italy. In Emilia-Romagna the classic fried appetizer is cured pork meats like culatello, served with the stellar gnocco fritto. This is a feather-light leavened and fried dough that’s found in every part of the region, and that goes by many other names, like crescentina, torta fritta or chisolino.
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Venetians, too, love to fry. Just think of the fried polenta that becomes the perfect base for cicchetti, or the stellar fried “sarde in saor” a vinegar marinade with onions.
You can’t visit Milan without tasting the regional specialty par excellence, cotoletta alla milanese. This is a huge veal cutlet pounded paper thin, breaded and fried in butter. Don’t call it schnitzel.
In Rome we love to fry. And many local foods find their best selves in the frying pan. Romans fry artichokes in various ways, including alla giudia which is a personal weakness. Rome is also home to fried zucchini blossoms, filetti di baccalà (battered cod filets), breaded lamb chops and the sublime supplì to mention a few.
In Naples fritti are served in a paper cone called cuoppo, and may include potato croquettes, fried arancini, zeppoline locally called pasta cresciuta, frittata cubes and the montanara, a delightful fried mini pizza topped with tomato sauce, fresh basil and grated parmigiano cheese. In the cuopp e’ mare seafood version, in addition to fried whole anchovies, calamari rings and zeppole strewn with seaweed, also baby squid and battered moscardini octopus. A squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt and your lunch is a portable feast.
The Puglia region is famous for its traditional fried dough pockets called panzerotti, made according to many different recipes and fillings. Sicily on the other hand is the kingdom of arancini (fried rice croquettes with myriad fillings) and panelle (chickpea flour fritters). Sardinians fry seadas, pockets of dough filled with salty pecorino cheese (which melts in the process) drizzled with chestnut honey… the list of regional fritti is truly endless.
There’s one fried specialty that is horizontal across the peninsula, and that I love above all else for obvious reasons. Our fritti series begins with her, the divine fried mozzarella. A crisp, crunchy golden crust that conceals a hot, melty and milky filling. Just writing about it makes my mouth water.
When I get the craving for fried mozzarella there are two things I can do: bounce down to the neighborhood pizzeria and get two orders to go; or fry some myself. Here’s how I do it.
Fried mozzarella cubes (not sticks)
Ingredients for 2 servings:
- 2 mozzarella di bufala bocconcini (3-inch balls)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- Flour for dredging, sifted
- Breadcrumbs mixed with a small pinch of uncooked polenta (cornmeal)
- Vegetable oil for frying
- Salt
Method:
Beat the eggs in a bowl, and heat plenty of peanut or sunflower seed oil in a large frying pan to reach 350°F. Pro tip: the more frying oil you use in the pan, the crisper and less oil-logged your results will be. Trust me on this
If you own an air fryer, plug it in.
Cut the mozzarella in 1-inch cubes and place in a sieve to drain the liquid. Line up three bowls: one with the beaten eggs, one with the flour and one with the breadcrumbs.
First dredge the cubes in the flour. Next dunk the cubes in the beaten egg, follow by coating well with breadcrumbs, and fry until golden. Do this in batches to avoid lowering the temperature of the frying oil.
Fish your fried cubes out with a slotted spoon, drain on a paper towel, immediately hit with salt, and serve piping hot. Uncork the bubbles and enjoy.
Stay tuned for more regional fritti coming on the series soon.
