3 chef-approved Italian dishes to make this weekend deliciously productive

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Pratik Parvani, chef de partie at Santi in New York City, shares with HT Lifestyle 3 elaborate Italian dishes that reward your taste buds with exotic flavours. When you create something new it makes your weekend feel productive and fulfilling.

Too often, one wastes the weekend binge-watching or lounging in bed, only to have the inevitable guilt creep in late Sunday evening. The weekend is also usually celebrated in expensive fine dining venues, with expenses spent on expensive cuisine. But this weekend, skip your usual Italian brunch spots and create something extraordinary at home. Nothing feels more productive than creating something new.

Maybe, who knows, you will impress everyone sitting at the table with your family and friends with your culinary praises.

Chef Pratik Parwani shares three recipes with us, including classic dishes like risotto. From kneading, folding, whipping, roasting to deglazing and plating, these recipes will keep your hands busy (no lazy doomscrolling) and your weekend deliciously productive.

Here are the steps shared by Chef Pratik:

1. Charred Leek and Guanacal Risotto with Fontina Fondue and Leek Oil

For burnt leeks:

Material-

• Leeks (cut in half lengthwise) – 5 pcs
• Marsala – 4 tbsp
• Garlic (chopped) – 1 tbsp
• Chili flakes – as required
• Thyme and oregano (picked and chopped) – 1 teaspoon each
• Olive oil – for coating

Method-

• Mix all the ingredients and let them sit for 20 minutes.
• Drain off excess liquid, and place the leeks on the grill with the insides out to get a good sear.
• Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350°F for 5 minutes.
• Cut into 1-inch cubes and keep aside for garnish.

For Fontina Cheese Sabayon:

Material-

• Fontina Vladostana – 100 grams
• Egg yolk- 2
• Half and Half – 250 grams
• white pepper
• nutmeg

Method-

• Mix the half-and-half with the egg yolks and heat until warm (not hot, you don’t want to overcook the egg yolks).
• Add the cubed fontina and whisk until melted and emulsified. Add white pepper and a little nutmeg.
• Pour the mixture into a siphon and give it a nitrogen charge until foam remains, usually 1 to 3 charges.
• Place in a hot water bath.

Leek Oil:

Material –

• Leek Greens (blanched and shocked) – 250 grams
• Neutral oil (sunflower or canola) – 250 grams

Method-

• Blanch the tops of the leeks until light green, shock in ice water and sauté with neutral oil until dark green and soft.
• Strain through fine chinois/cheesecloth. reserve.

For Risotto Rice:

Material –

• Carnaroli Rice – 2 cups
• Guanciale- 4 oz
• White wine – 1 ounce
• Marsala – 2 ounces
• Chicken Stock- 6 cups
• Parmesan – 2 ounces
• Butter (cold) – as required

Method –

• Present the guanciale, set aside the crisps, cook the rice in the fat. Make risotto with wine, Marsala and stock.
• When 90% cooked, add butter and Parmesan, emulsify with olive oil. Spoon the rice into a shallow bowl, place the charred leeks, fill the negative with fontina foam and garnish with crispy guanciale bits and drizzle the leek oil over the top.

2. Curry Duck Tortellini

For the confit duck legs:

Material –

• Duck legs – 6-8 pcs
• Thyme – 4-6 sprigs
• Oregano – 4 sprigs
• Sage – 5 leaves
• Whole black pepper – 1 tbsp
• Garlic – 6-8 cloves
• Duck fat – as required
• Olive oil- as required

Method-

• Place all ingredients except fat in a baking pan. Add duck fat and olive oil in a 1:1 ratio until the legs are 90% submerged in water.
• Cover with aluminum foil and cook in the oven at 350 degrees Celsius for 1 to 2 hours until the meat is tender.
• Remove the skin and shred the meat with a fork, or if you’re feeling messy, use your hands.

For the curry duck filling:

Material –

• Shredded confit duck – 1 pound
• Onion (chopped) – 1 medium
• Garlic (minced) – 3 cloves
• Cinnamon – ¼” stick
• Black cardamom – 1 pc
• Clove- 2 pieces
• Coriander powder – 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
• Cumin powder- ½ tsp
• Tomato (chopped, one piece)
• red wine vinegar
• Parmesan – 100 grams
• Eggs – 2

Method-

• Roast cinnamon, black cardamom and cloves. Cool it and grind it finely.
• Take olive oil in a sauce pot and start frying the onion and garlic without adding any color.
• Cook for at least 4-6 minutes, until the onions are soft and tender.
• Add all the ground spices and powder, followed by tomatoes and cook until oil separates from the sides.
• Deglaze with red wine vinegar and reduce. Cool this mixture and mix eggs and Parmesan well.

For the pasta dough:

Material –

• Flour – 1 pound
• Egg yolk – 4
• Water – as required

Method-

• Add the egg yolks and flour to a mixing bowl, mix, adding water as needed and keep kneading. To make perfect pasta, the dough should neither be too wet nor too dry.
• Knead until you get a smooth, surface dough, and check for gluten formation by indenting your finger. If it bounces back 50%, you are good to go. Keep the dough for 20 minutes.
• Roll out the dough to 2 mm thickness and cut into 1 inch square pieces. Take a teaspoon of the filling and place it on the square.
• Fold it into a triangle and pinch the edges; Make sure there is no air space between the dough and the filling.
• Connect the bottom two corners around the stuffing to give it shape. Freeze pasta for better shape retention.

Final combination:

Material-

• Onion (chopped) – 10 grams
• Garlic (thinly chopped) – 1 tsp
• Chilli pieces – a pinch
• Red wine – 1 tablespoon
• Parsley – 1 teaspoon
• Extra virgin olive oil – for drizzling

Method-

• Prepare a hot boiling water station for cooking pasta. The pasta water should become as salty as the sea.
• Heat olive oil in a pan, add chopped onion, garlic and chilli pieces.
• Add red wine to deglaze and reduce by half. Add chicken stock and tempered butter.
• Reduce it until it becomes sauce-like, while it is reducing, add your pasta to the pot of boiling water and cook until it floats to the top and add it to the sauce. Finish with parsley, Parmesan and extra virgin olive oil.

3. Tomato Panzanella Salad

Fermented Green Tomatoes:

Material –

• Green Tomatoes – 4 lbs
• Salt- 54.84 grams (3% of the weight of green tomatoes)

Method –

• Mix salt and green tomatoes and store in an airtight container. Keep the container at room temperature, preferably in a dark and dry place, this will help the bacteria/yeast work their magic.
• In the first 3 days, you will see juice coming out of the tomatoes and yeast coming out in the form of bubbles.
• This process takes about 6 to 7 days, depending on how strong the fermentation flavor you want.
• Once you have achieved your desired fermentation level, strain the liquid and save both the green tomatoes and the liquid.

Fermented Green Tomato Jam:

Material –

• Fermented Green Tomatoes – All of the Above
• Chopped Onions – 9 oz
• Chopped Garlic – 1 ounce
• Wine – 16 fl oz
• Lemon juice – 8 fl oz
• Fermented Juice – 8 fl oz
• Sugar – 12 ounces
• Basil – 1 ounce
• Olive oil – as required
• salt to taste

Method –

• Add olive oil, onion and garlic in a pot. Let them sweat and let them crackle until they lightly stick to the bottom. Deglaze with white wine and let reduce by half.
• Add the rest of the ingredients except basil and let it simmer gently. Once all the liquid has reduced, you’ll notice a sticky glaze forming around your tomatoes; Take it off the flame.
• Add basil to it and let it soak in the mixture for 20 minutes. Drain the basil and add to a food processor, pulse until it is smooth and has a jam-like consistency.

Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes:

Material –

For marination:

• Minced Shallots – 2 tbsp
• Garlic – ½ tsp
• Parsley – 1 tablespoon
• Basil- 1 tablespoon
• Balsamic vinegar – ½ cup
• Fermented juice – ½ cup
• Extra virgin olive oil – 1 cup
• salt to taste
• Heirloom Tomatoes – 2 medium sized

Method –

• Cut old tomatoes into small cubes (0.5 x 0.5 x 0.5 inches).
• Mix all the ingredients except salt in a mixing bowl. Pour this mixture into a vacuum bag and compress in a cryovac.
• If you don’t have a cryovac machine, leave it in marination for at least an hour. Add salt to taste just before placing the dish on the plate.

Dehydrated Sun Gold Tomatoes:

Material –

• Sun Gold Tomatoes – ½ pound
• Thyme – ½ ounce
• Garlic chopped – 1 ounce
• Olive oil – as required
• salt to taste
• Black pepper – to taste

Method –

• Cut all the tomatoes in half. Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and transfer them to a sheet tray lined with parchment paper.
• Make sure all open half sides are facing up.
• Place in dehydrator overnight. (No dehydrator? Bake at 200F for 30 minutes to an hour)

Sour Crunch:

• Take a sourdough bread and cut it into 0.5 cm thick pieces. Add olive oil to a pan, enough to cover the bottom of the pan.
• Heat oil on medium flame, fry these pieces till they turn golden brown on both sides.

Final Assembly:

Material –

Burrata (4 oz balls) – cut into 4 pieces

Fermented Green Tomato Jam – 2 ounces

Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes – 4 ounces

Sun Gold Tomato- 4- 5 E

Sour Crunch – 2 E

Micro Basil- Garnish

Method –

• Place the green tomato jam in a bowl in the shape of 3 quarts.
• Arrange the marinated heirloom tomatoes around the jam, then alternately place the burrata between them.
• Fill the negative spaces with sourdough to give height to the dish and finally garnish with micro basil.