The perfume of Sicilian breadcrumbs recalls the scents of the island itself. One of Sicily’s most iconic dishes is pasta ca’muddica, which comes in many different varieties, though all have one irresistible ingredient in common: breadcrumbs. It’s not just a final touch to top off a plate of spaghetti, they add a touch of magic to just about any dish.
Claudia da Sciacca, who lives in Agrigento, ships her homemade Sicilian breadcrumbs to her daughter Sofia in Milan, my roommate, so she can feel at home even though she's miles away.
The breadcrumbs can be stored and used whenever desired. Just a tiny sprinkling can transform simple ingredients and evoke the flavors of Sicily. Here's Claudia's recipe.
Sicilian breadcrumbs recipe
Ingredients
stale bread
garlic
wild fennel
caciocavallo cheese
parsley
salt
pepper
Stale bread is ideal because once it’s hard, you can simply grate it and combine it with chopped parsley, minced garlic, grated caciocavallo cheese, and season with salt and pepper. There’s no need to measure exact amounts; you can eyeball it, depending on your tastes. You can make large quantities in advance since they can be stored in the freezer.
Cooking with Sicilian breadcrumbs
Sicilian breadcrumbs are suitable for many different recipes. You can use them to bread classic fried dishes like cotolette, vegetables, meatballs, and frittatas.
If you prefer not to fry, you can also use the breadcrumbs for roasting. Before roasting, say a chicken breast, just dip the meat in a little olive oil and then in the breadcrumbs.
Roulades, sliced zucchini and eggplant, stuffed tomatoes... the possibilities are endless. When sautéing in a pan or baking in the oven, the breadcrumbs release a mouthwatering aroma.
You can also use the breadcrumbs to make meatballs. Just mix the beaten eggs with the breadcrumbs, adding a little milk if the mixture is too dry, then take a spoonful of the mixture and fry the meatballs in oil.
Be warned, your breadcrumb supply won’t last long – they're really that good!