It’s been nearly three years since America’s foremost authority on Italian cuisine, Marcella Hazan, passed away. And yet, here she is among us once again, in the pages of her newly released book, “Ingredienti: Marcella’s Guide to the Market,” co-written with her husband, Victor.
In this small but packed volume are her instructions on choosing and using a wide variety of ingredients typically found in Italian cooking, from fresh vegetables to canned chickpeas, and from cured meats to herbs and salt. The book, which contains no formal recipes, is like a tour of Hazan’s pantry, with the spirit of the author at your side; it is filled with her insightful descriptions of produce; practical tips and techniques for making the most without making a fuss; and, of course, her full-throated opinions and sharp observations on the still misunderstood art of Italian cooking.
Much of the information in “Ingredienti” will be familiar territory to seasoned cooks, to those who frequent farmers markets and, of course, to Hazan’s many followers — she wrote seven previous books, including “Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking,” a revised, combined edition of her first two books.
This is not to say that the material is not relevant. Indeed, at a time when recipes for concoctions such as “one pot pasta” abound on the internet, and seemingly every chef who spends two weeks in Tuscany fancies himself an expert on the country’s cuisine, I can’t think of a better moment to step back and return to basics. Here’s Hazan on the role of spices and herbs in Italian cooking:
“The role of a spice or herb or other flavoring agent is that of an accent that prompts recognition of a familiar taste sensation, as rosemary does of roast chicken or sage or game, or at most it is that of a fanfare calling the palate to attention, which is what a little bit of chili pepper does in sauteed rapini.” In other words, when it comes to Italian cooking, less is usually more.
In a few short pages, Hazan manages to shed light and clarity on that ever more confusing and controversial subject, olive oil. “The basic attributes by which olive oil is described are fruitiness, pungency and bitterness,” she writes succinctly. And: “If an olive oil’s brand has become familiar to you through advertising, stay away from it.” Sound advice.
There are plenty of opinions of the sort for which Hazan was famous, often delivered with an acerbic note. Here she is on potato gnocchi: “Many cooks, probably most cooks, even otherwise good cooks, add egg to the dough to make it firmer and easier to handle. We call that method alla parigina (Paris style), and it isn’t a compliment.” Ouch, says this “otherwise good cook” whose mother was Italian born and raised and who made ethereal gnocchi — with egg.
But those sometimes-cranky pronouncements are tempered by more lyrical passages and a number of poetic revelations, which beyond being lovely to read, serve to deepen our understanding of even the most prosaic staples, such as black pepper:
“There are aromatic substances held by the peppercorn’s black outer layer that release floral and citrusy scents, distantly evocative of thyme, marjoram, rosemary, and cedar. It is the promise of these aromas, traveling on gentle waves of heat, that has rewarded black pepper with universal employment.”
In reading through “Ingredienti,” it is impossible not to hear, entwined with Hazan’s familiar authoritative voice, that of her widower and collaborator, Victor, who translated all of his wife’s works into English. Victor Hazan has continued to maintain Marcella Hazan’s Facebook page, engaging with several food-writing communities and writing poetic, often poignant posts ranging from what he cooked for lunch to a musing on what constitutes happiness at age 88. (Answer: It involves tiny Venetian octopuses known as “moscardini.”)
In the book’s preface, titled, “What Am I Doing Here?” Victor Hazan calls his task of translating “Ingredienti” his last tribute to his late wife. It is also a fine gift to those of us who love and appreciate true Italian home cooking.
Domenica Marchetti is a freelance writer.
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