Bottura is a rarity among chefs. He is 100% Italian, but not afraid to eschew tradition. He travels the world and distills the best of contemporary cuisine in his dishes. He doesn't tell you about ingredients; instead, he discusses culture—culture as an essential ingredient for our future. Listening to him always enlightens and surprises. So, naturally, I couldn't resist his Masterclass cooking lessons.
Overview
For his twelve cooking lessons on the Masterclass app, Bottura considers, then modernizes, classic and regional Italian dishes. You will, of course, find recipes like squash risotto, tortellini, broth and ragù, but they’re not the objective — Bottura uses cooking techniques to help your thinking evolve. You will learn about Italy through the ingredients, and learn about the recipe through taste.
Here's why you can make pesto with bread
In just ten minutes, you can prepare a slight deviation from pesto sauce. Traditional pesto calls for basil, extra-virgin olive oil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmigiano and a pinch of coarse salt. This is where Bottura asks you to take it one step further by being open to the unexpected and expanding your horizons. So, what do you do if you don't have enough basil on hand? Do you have other herbs on the balcony or out in the yard? Inhale their aroma and taste them. What would go with basil? Perhaps a little rosemary? No, rosemary is a bit too aggressive. Maybe some mint? And there you have it. You can even try placing a few of those herbs in the pasta water to enjoy the heady fragrance. Now the pine nuts. No pine nuts in the pantry? Not able to find them at your local supermarket? Then unleash your creativity and imagine what your palate might recommend. What does the taste of pine nuts bring to mind? One very simple ingredient: bread. Then use bread crumbs. Next, add some ice water to help emulsify it all in the blender and preserve the herbs’ bright green hue. The time has come: you have the written recipe, but you don't really need it. All you need to do is taste it. Taste, taste, taste. A little more salt? Does it need more cheese? More basil? More mint. Your taste buds will decide, and your reaction will inform you. This approach lets you go beyond recipes and replace ingredients whenever you want, adapting them while maintaining a balance of flavors. This is what Bottura teaches you — his evolution of pesto.