Fregola sarda, italian cous cous

 

Fregola is made of two ingredients only, semolina and water.  Water is sprinkled over the semolina which is then shaken until it comes together to form coarse textured tiny balls.  The pasta balls are next toasted, giving the pasta its trademark varicolored golden tint.  Rarely do cooks in America make their own fregola, opting instead to purchase the ready made product.  I recommend Rustichella d’Abruzzo, an artisanal brand from Abruzzo.

 

With its nutty taste and pleasing bite fregola is added to soups like Sardinia’s famous Sa fregula con vongole – clam soup with saffron broth.  It can also be served with stews and braises.  Boiled in water, chicken or vegetable stock, it cooks up in about 10 to 12 minutes and dressed simply with olive oil and some parmigiano or pecorino sardo, makes a fine side dish.  But my favorite way to use it is in salads.  Think of any farro, couscous or bulgur salad you make, and fregola can be easily substituted.

For this recipe warm fregola, sauteed vegetables, pine nuts, golden raisins and tomatoes are combined with a lightly sweetened basil dressing to create a multi-textured salad.  Use any vegetables you like.  At this time of year Farmer’s Markets everywhere have an astounding array of spectacular vegetables.  Vibrantly colored peppers, uniquely shaped zucchini and gorgeous eggplant, peas, yellow squash and corn.

 

This is the time of year to really get creative in your cookery.  Just remember to cut the vegetables into a fine and uniform dice.  Careful knife work will be rewarded with a  stand-out dish.  Dress the salad when the ingredients are still warm.  That way the flavor of the dressing will permeate the warm fregola and other ingredients.

 

Just before service, top the salad with torn basil leaves and strips of Parmigiano or Pecorino sardo.  Use a vegetable peeler to create the strips by pulling it down the length of the cheese in one smooth motion.  You can create beautiful long thin strips of cheese that really set the dish off.

Served warm, at room temperature or chilled, this makes a wonderful side dish, or it can be the main event for a luncheon.  Try marinating chicken breasts in olive oil, lemon, garlic and rosemary, then grill the chicken and serve atop a bed of Fregola Salad.

 

serves 4 to 6

•2 cups fregola sarda

•1 medium yellow onion, minced

•2 carrots, peeled and cut in fine dice

•1 red bell pepper, cut in fine dice

•2 small zucchini, cut in fine dice

•1/4 cup pinoli

•1/4 cup golden raisins

•salt and pepper

•3 tablespoons olive oil

•12 small tomatoes, such as Sungold, Juliet, Golden Rave or Jaune Flamme, quartered

•basil  leaves

•Parmigiano or Pecorino sardo

•Basil Vinaigrette – recipe follows

 

Bring 6 quarts water to a boil.

While water is coming to the boil, pour olive oil into 12 inch saute pan.  Heat over medium.  Add onions and carrots and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt.  Saute gently 6 to 8 minutes until onion is translucent and carrots have begun to soften.  Do not brown.

 

At this point salt boiling water generously.  Add fregola to water and stir.  Boil 10 to 12 minutes, until done.

Add pepper, zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt to saute pan.  Continue cooking until peppers and zucchini soften, about 10 minutes.  

About 2 minutes before vegetables are done, add pinoli to pan and saute, tossing frequently. 

 

Just a few seconds before you drain pasta, add raisins to pasta water to soften.  Drain and transfer to large bowl.  Add sauteed vegetables and quartered tomatoes, tossing to combine.  

Add vinaigrette tablespoon by tablespoon and toss (you will not use all of it), tasting as you go. Do not add too much vinaigrette or the salad will be oily.

 

Check seasoning, adding more salt and pepper as necessary. 

Top with torn basil leaves, strips of cheese and a bit of freshly ground pepper. Serve.

 

 •1/2 cup basil leaves, tightly packed

 •2 teaspoons honey

 •1/4 cup white Balsamic vinegar

 •1/4 teaspoon sea salt

 •1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 

 •1/2 cup fruity olive oil, such as DaVero or a Ligurian oil made from Taggiasca olives

Place basil, honey, vinegar and salt and pepper in workbowl of food processor fitted with steel knife.  Process to puree basil.  With machine running, add oil through feed tube.  Check seasoning.  Transfer to glass container and refrigerate until use.

 

DaVero olive oil is available from Davero.com

 

Rustichella d’Abruzzo Fregola Sarda is available at many Italian markets, fine supermarkets and MarketHallFoods.com