Sicilian-born Silvio Zaccareo says most Italian recipes only have four or five ingredients.
“The French are probably our prime rivals when it comes to food. But where they use more exotic ingredients in their dishes, we like to keep it simple.”
Silvio, 36, is a civil engineer by trade but a chef by choice. In between risotto and pasta preparations at the Villa Rosa Kempinski’s Lucca Café and Deli Ristorante, he shares an interesting career story spanning 16 years of cooking and in the process reveals some secrets behind the art of Italian cuisine.
“We take a lot of pride in preparing and enjoying food. It is not just to fill the stomach. It is a way of life.”
Another tip is using ingredients in season. Even though technology makes it easy to find products all year round, it is important to use seasonal vegetables. Silvio explains there is a distinct difference between a tomato harvested from a greenhouse in February and one ripened under the European sun in August.
After a two-year stint at a fine dining fish restaurant, this self-taught chef moved on to a trattoria where he picked up quite a few secret family recipes.
“Italian recipes are selflessly guarded. Most often it’s about the number of ingredients—the original ragù for example only contains beef, bacon, celery, carrots, onions and tomato sauce—and the rest is left to the cooking process.”
At Lucca you will find Silvio easily interacting with patrons and getting their feedback. To him it is important to integrate the local palette to that of authentic Italian dishes.
“With our cooking at Lucca we are trying to get as close as possible to the original Italian kitchen. We don’t want to be just another Italian restaurant abroad,” he says as he rushes off to prepare another order.