The long maritime tradition and the osmotic link with Procida inhabitants’s sea are reflected in a gastronomy of which the freshly caught fish products are the protagonists
In Procida, there are ten fishing boats which, everyday, unload on the island several quintals of fish: anchovies, octopus and highly prized prawns, orata, sea basses, seafood, crustaceans and many other types and varieties. The cookbook is very varied, and remembers strange traditions. In times of misery, when people could not even afford to buy the most modest fishes, an emblematic dish was invented, the “pesce fjiuto” (from the Italian verb “fuggire” meaning "to escape"), which is a soup of fish from which the fish “escapes” from the pot: garlic, parsley, cherry tomatoes, oil, and a lot of chilly. All these ingredients are boiled and then poured on stale bread. Almost like saying “hot water with a desire for fish”.
Meat is not lacking, and it is above all the one of free-range poultry and rabbit, which is prepared on the feast day. Legumes and vegetables of the famous “parùle” find a perfect synthesis in the “bobba”, a soup made with aubergines, courgettes, potatoes, “del prete” squash and basil. But the vegetables also end up in the filling of pizzas, like the escarole and artichoke one. And the aubergines parmigiana reaches levels of absolute exquisiteness.
Bread lemons and artichokes , the delicacies of Procida gardens
Large like melons and with a very thick albedo, Procida lemons are also defined “bread lemons”. And in fact, they are not only used for the juice, less sour than the other species one, but also in slices or in the classic salad. Present in every corner of the island, the lemon trees have been cultivated for centuries in the gardens of houses, because they guaranteed to the sailors a precious supply of vitamin C against scurvy. The goodness of local citrus is enhanced in the production of liqueurs and an excellent limoncello. The lemon also flavours the cream of the characteristic island dessert, the Lingua of poof pastry.
Artichokes are another excellence of Procida agriculture. Of Roman type, large, they represent the Lent food and they are connected to the solemn rites of the Holy Week, which culminate in the solemn procession of Good Friday.
THE RECIPE
Limone al piatto (lemon dish)
Chop the garlic, mint and the chilli, and pour into a dish, together with the peeled and chopped lemons, there is a little water. Season with oil and salt. Many do not know this soup, but it is a a real gastronomic flag, very fragrant and colorful of the island of Procida.
