Chef Nino Graziano – From Sicily to Russia

Do you like this post?

Chef Nino Graziano is a Sicilian chef who took his culinary skills and passion for cooking to Russia, and what was considered as a loss of Sicily obviously became the gain of Russia as the restaurant that he is a head chef of, Semifreddo Mulinazzo, quickly earned praises and recognitions in the country as well as from the rest of the world. Right now, the San Pellegrino group has named them as the 94th best restaurant in the globe.

It was in Bolognetta, Palermo that Chef Graziano was born. He grew up in a very typical Sicilian family, with his father working on their land and his mother working in the home and kitchen. After high school, he decided to continue his education in Palermo; however, his father urged him to enroll at a hotel school instead. His father’s reason was a very practical one. Not only will it ensure him a job after graduation, but it will also give him the opportunity to get fairly decent meals.

With the decision made, Chef Graziano enrolled at a hotel school, and after two years, he landed a job as an apprentice at one of the beach resorts/restaurants in Mondella where his duties were to clean squids. However, he wanted to further his culinary education. It was pure luck then that he was invited to work at a restaurant in Lausanne, and without second thoughts, he grabbed the opportunity to work and learn at an Italian trattoria.

This, however, was not enough for him. He sought work abroad and landed in Switzerland where he found a job at one of the country’s fine-dining restaurants. It was his experience in Switzerland that opened his eyes to what a fine-dining restaurant really means.

A compulsory service with the military though took him back to Sicily, but after he completed his obligation to his country, he then went back to the culinary world and found work at a resort in Rimini. After Rimini, he then went to the Alsace-Lorraine region in France where he found work at a hotel/restaurant/disco in Metz. Here, he met friends that would soon play an important role in his culinary career.

In his early 20s, Chef Graziano, together with two other close friends, decided to open their own restaurant. They scouted the area and found a quaint building located near the vicinity of a forest. The friends purchased the old building and, with the help of the local community, renovated the building and turned it into a restaurant, Papiermuhle. It soon became a very popular restaurant in the area.

He soon got homesick for Sicily, so he and his wife, whom he met in France and married in 1980, opened a pizzeria in Menton. They began offering international cuisine, and just like his first restaurant, it soon enjoyed popularity. However, the call of Sicily could no longer be ignored so he took his wife and children back home with him to Sicily where he opened Il Mulinazzo in Villaftati. Pretty soon, his authentic Sicilian cuisine earned the praises of the food critics and, in time, it earned its own two Michelin stars.

In 2005, an offer was made that he could not refuse, so he closed his restaurant in Sicily and moved it to Moscow. Just like his restaurant’s success in his country, he brought recognition to his restaurant in Moscow, earning a spot in San Pellegrino.

Chef Nino Graziano’s Borsh Risotto with Fillet of Perch

Ingredients:

400 g Carnaroli rice from the Grand Reserve Pavese
50 g Cooked beetroot
160 g fillets perch
Extra virgin olive oil
100 g butter
Salt
Pepper
1 carrot
1 white onion
1 red pepper
150 g tomato pulp
200 g cabbage
400 g beetroot
15 g white wine vinegar
50 g parsley
30 g dill
10 g lemon juice
250 g tomato
15 g sugar
1.5 liters veal stock
Salt
Peppercorns

Directions:

1. Prepare the broth with Borsh, 1 carrot, 1 white onion, 1 red pepper, 150 grams of tomato pulp, 200 g of cabbage, 400 g of red beets, 15 g of white wine vinegar, 50 g of parsley, 30 g dill, 10 g lemon juice, 250 g tomato, 15 g sugar, 1.5 liters of veal stock, salt and pepper. Let stand overnight and filtered to Tamina end.

2. Heat a little oil and a knob of butter in a saucepan, then pour the rice and toast. Add the diced red beets and pour boiling broth while continuing to stir. Meanwhile, steam the perch previously cut with a circular pastry rings. Cook the rice, remove from heat, stir in butter and a little oil. Transfer the rice on the plates by placing the middle perch, sprinkle with olive oil and freshly ground pepper. Serve immediately.

Servings: Serves 4.

Original Source: espresso.repubblica.it

Image Credit: semifreddo.ru

espresso.repubblica.it

Popularity: 1% [?]

Currently 0 comment - But what do you think?