cesare casella &

the 10 commandments of italian cooking

			Chef Cesare enrolled in the Culinary Institute Ferdinando Martiniat the age of 14, and after graduating, he began transforming his family's restaurant, Vipore, from a local hangout into a well-known regional destination. By 1993, he had earned Vipore a Michelin star and a reputation that attracted patrons from Henry Kissinger to Tom Cruise. He was then named Executive Chef of New York's Coco Pazzo and soon launched its sister restaurant, Il Toscanaccio. In March 2001, he opened his first solo New York restaurant, the critically acclaimed Beppe, followed in 2005 by Maremma, a trattoria named for the region in southwest Tuscany. Currently, he is the executive chef/partner at Manhattan's Salumeria Rosi, where he creates a special menu of trattoria-style Italian dishes for the restaurant and masterfully prepared foods-to-go for the salumi counter. Chef Cesare travels frequently between New York and Italy, staying on top of both cultures and culinary scenes.

1. Start with fresh, high quality ingredients
   Everything is so much easier when the ingredients taste good.
     Simpler is always better
   Enough said.
     Cook with the calendar
   Locally grown, in-season produce usually tastes best. Shop at stores or farm markets that support local farmers.
     Get to know your vegetables
   You can’t cook real Italian food without spending some time in the produce aisle. With a few exceptions, Italians rely on fresh, not froze, vegetables.
     Make friends with your local cheese guy
   Find out names of names of the important Italian cheeses and how to buy them.
     Master how not to follow a recipe
   Most Italian cooks prepare dishes from memory, changing quantities and procedures ever so slightly each time. 
     Taste as you cook
   No one but you knows how salty or spicy you like your food. Season throughout the cooking process and adjust the seasonings right before serving.
     Work at building flavor
   Many Italian recipes begin by sautéing onions and other vegetables in olive oil. Don’t rush this step. It builds flavor.
     Be frugal
   Italians believe in the old maxim, “waste not, want not.”
    
2. Enjoy yourself
   If the meals allow you to enjoy the company and conversation of others, consider you cooking a success.

For more inspiring reads from Chef Cesare, we recommend True Tuscan: Flavors and Memories from the Countryside of Tuscany, and Diary of a Tuscan Chef.