The cauliflower is a virtuous vegetable: it has a starchy mouth feel and texture, while being low in calories and high in things like Vitamin C. It does not rate highly on the glamour rating, though; the unpleasant odours when they are overcooked see to that - but it does lend itself to some surprisingly good supper dishes.
It is hugely popular in Sicily. If you are ever lucky enough to visit the island in the winter and early spring, you’ll find cauliflowers piled high in all the markets: the purple kind is preferred in the Catania region, while the green variety is in abundance in Palermo. And what the Sicilians like to do is similar to what the Spanish like to do – at least in Mallorca (I wrote a culinary guide for the island many years ago): Coliflor ofegada, drowned cauliflower, is similar to Catania’s Cavolfiore affogato. Which is no surprise if you think Sicily was ruled by the Spanish for pretty much five centuries, and Mallorca and Sicily not quite neighbours. The technique in both Spanish and Italian recipes involves sautéing the ingredients before adding small amount of water, covering the pan with a lid and letting everything steam until the cauliflower is cooked but still crunchy.
My friend Sally Mitchell, who lives in Mallorca, first showed me how to make coliflor ofegada. I love this recipe – it is a regular supper dish – even though the ingredients have changed over the years. I use sausages, not pork belly or pancetta; I don’t add pine nuts as I never seem to have some in the cupboard; the Mallorquin ramellettomato – a tough skinned cooking variety – is impossible to find outside the island, so I use fresh tomatoes in summer and a tin in winter.
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The cauliflower is a virtuous vegetable: it has a starchy mouth feel and texture, while being low in calories and high in things like Vitamin C. It does not rate highly on the glamour rating, though; the unpleasant odours when they are overcooked see to that - but it does lend itself to some surprisingly good supper dishes.
It is hugely popular in Sicily. If you are ever lucky enough to visit the island in the winter and early spring, you’ll find cauliflowers piled high in all the markets: the purple kind is preferred in the Catania region, while the green variety is in abundance in Palermo. And what the Sicilians like to do is similar to what the Spanish like to do – at least in Mallorca (I wrote a culinary guide for the island many years ago): Coliflor ofegada, drowned cauliflower, is similar to Catania’s Cavolfiore affogato. Which is no surprise if you think Sicily was ruled by the Spanish for pretty much five centuries, and Mallorca and Sicily not quite neighbours. The technique in both Spanish and Italian recipes involves sautéing the ingredients before adding small amount of water, covering the pan with a lid and letting everything steam until the cauliflower is cooked but still crunchy.
My friend Sally Mitchell, who lives in Mallorca, first showed me how to make coliflor ofegada. I love this recipe – it is a regular supper dish – even though the ingredients have changed over the years. I use sausages, not pork belly or pancetta; I don’t add pine nuts as I never seem to have some in the cupboard; the Mallorquin ramellettomato – a tough skinned cooking variety – is impossible to find outside the island, so I use fresh tomatoes in summer and a tin in winter.
Cook
20m
Ingredients
Method
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