By Invitation – Italian Chef Antonino’s Signature Pizza-Basics

 

A zealous Chef all the way from Sicily, Antonino Chirieleison is the quintessential Italian food aficionado. He started working in a professional kitchen in Italy at the wee age of 14, one fine summer.

His love for food saw him graduate with a degree in hotel management from IAL Emilia Romagna. Today, the chef has nearly a decade of experience working in Abu Dhabi, London, Italy and even Dubai. Currently in town for the Hyatt Regency Pune’s Casa Italiana, Chef Antonino plans to whip up some delectable Italian specialties.

We invited him to share his very own recipes for the pizza base and sauce which is the essence of a truly authentic Sicilian pizza, exclusively for #Pune365 readers !

 

For the Dough

Ingredients: 1kg Refined flour, 500 ml water, 25 ml Olive oil, 15 gm salt, 5 gm sugar, 5 gm yeast.

Procedure:

1. Mix and dissolve yeast, water, salt and sugar.
2. Prepare smooth dough with the flour and water solution.
3. Knead the dough with olive oil and divide into 10 equal portions.
4. Keep aside and cover with wet cloth to rise for at least 3 hrs.

 

For the Sauce

Ingredients: 1 kg Ripe Tomatoes, 20 ml Olive oil, salt and sugar to taste.

Procedure: Blend the tomato and mix all ingredients together.

 

Pizza Margarita

Ingredients: 1 kg Pizza dough, 500 ml Tomato sauce, 120 gm Mozzarella cheese, fresh basil.

Procedure:

1. Flatten the dough with a hand until it is as flat as bread.
2. Then proceed to spread the tomato sauce (Pizza sauce) over it with a ladle. Top it off with the mozzarella
3. Preheated the oven to 300-310 degrees Celsius and place the pizza in the oven to bake for 8 to 10 minutes.

Chef’s Tip: Enjoy with fresh basil on top.

Pizza Varieties

1. As an alternative to basil, you can savour varied toppings such as olives and dried rosemary.
2. There is also the option of using figs and cured prosciutto along with basil if you happen to love meat.

 

So here’s your Italian culinary secret that shall change the way your pizza’s taste and feel…

Truly Mamma Mia !