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Pesto alla trapanese

Sicily · No.38 / 103

Pesto alla trapanese

Pesto alla trapanese, 3 ways

Raw tomato, almonds, basil, and garlic, crushed together in a mortar or a blender with no cooking involved — a no-cook relative of pesto genovese, also known as pesto rosso or pasta cull'agghia. The main forks are the tool used to crush it (mortar or blender) and whether the tomato and almonds are used raw or first blanched and roasted.

GialloZafferano Pasta Grammar Fabio
25 min · Difficulty ●●○○○ · 3videos

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GialloZafferanoItaly's largest recipe media outlet (founded 2006, now under Mondadori) Source verified

Peeled tomato and almonds; the mortar is the proper tool

  • Peels both the tomato and the almonds, removing the skins entirely for a smooth result
  • Explicitly states in the text that 'a mixer works, but a mortar is better,' ranking the tools by preference
  • Specifies red garlic and limits the amount to just 1 clove
  • Leaves room for judgment with 'add more oil if it's too loose,' prioritizing reproducibility at home
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In the chef’s words
  • Place in a mixer, or better yet in a mortar, the peeled tomatoes, the washed and dried bunch of basil, the almonds, a garlic clove and blend everything for a couple of minutes. source
  • If it is too dry, add more oil. source

References: [1] [2]

Pasta GrammarA husband-and-wife channel: Eva, from Calabria, Italy, and Harper, from the US Source verified

The mortar is mandatory; the blender is declared off-limits

  • A dedicated video chapter titled 'Why You Can't Make Pesto in a Blender!' takes a mortar-purist stance, explicitly rejecting mechanical blending
  • Roasts the almonds in the oven for 10 minutes before use, unlike schools that use them raw
  • Peels the tomato and removes the seeds as well, leaving neither skin nor seeds behind
  • Also demonstrates hand-rolled busiate in the video and serves the pesto with it as the traditional pairing
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In the chef’s words
  • Why You Can't Make Pesto in a Blender! (video chapter title) source

References: [1]

FabioItalian cook (freelance chef; YouTube channel) Source verified

No cheese; garlic is warmed in oil first

  • The only one of the three schools to use no cheese at all (neither Pecorino nor Parmigiano appears)
  • A partially pre-cooked take on trapanese: the garlic and basil stems are first slowly warmed in olive oil before the other ingredients go in
  • Always uses roasted, unsalted almonds -- raw almonds are never used
  • Positioned as a variation on Genovese, with the base Genovese video cited as a companion reference
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In the chef’s words
  • A variation on Genovese: Busiate alla Trapanese. A dish where the toasty flavor of roasted almonds truly shines. source

References: [1]

Compared on 10 axes

Figures are transcribed as written in each video or recipe page

AXIS GialloZafferano Pasta Grammar Fabio
Pasta and amount Spaghetti, 11oz (serves 4)Hand-rolled busiate (method shown starting 12:35 in the video; no quantity given in the recipe article)Busiate, 60g (fusilli or penne can be substituted)
Salt Seasoned to taste (no salt concentration for the water given)A pinch added in the mortar (no precise gram measurement)Salt to taste; 'a somewhat generous amount' for the tomatoes
Handling of garlic 1 clove of red garlic, blended whole2 cloves, ground first in the mortar with salt and basil2 cloves, crushed and warmed slowly in olive oil first to draw out fragrance
Almond prep 1.75oz (about 50g), blanched a few minutes and skinned by hand. Not roasted1/4 cup (30g), roasted 10 minutes at 350°F (175°C)50g roasted, unsalted almonds (raw almonds are not used)
Tomato prep 1 cup ripe tomato, scored with a cross and blanched 2-3 minutes to peel5 1/2 oz (155g), peeled, halved, and seeded100g cherry tomatoes, halved and added raw, then cooked
Handling of basil 1.8oz (about 50g), washed and dried leavesA bunch of fresh basil (no precise gram measurement; ground first with the garlic and salt)12g basil -- the stems are used first for aroma, the leaves added later
Cheese Pecorino, 1 tablespoonPecorino Romano, 1oz (30g)None (no cheese appears in the recipe)
Crushing tool Blender, mortar preferred (the text explicitly recommends the mortar)Mortar only (a dedicated video chapter explicitly states 'you can't make it in a blender')Immersion blender (no mortar used)
Finish 2 tablespoons of olive oil, adjusted as neededExtra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon (15g), worked in lastA final drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Time required 10 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking (25 minutes total)45 minutes total (about 10 minutes prep, 35 minutes cooking)About 15 minutes total (approximate)
Source check Source verifiedSource verifiedSource verified
GialloZafferano Peeled tomato and almonds; the mortar is the proper tool
Pasta and amount
Spaghetti, 11oz (serves 4)
Salt
Seasoned to taste (no salt concentration for the water given)
Handling of garlic
1 clove of red garlic, blended whole
Almond prep
1.75oz (about 50g), blanched a few minutes and skinned by hand. Not roasted
Tomato prep
1 cup ripe tomato, scored with a cross and blanched 2-3 minutes to peel
Handling of basil
1.8oz (about 50g), washed and dried leaves
Cheese
Pecorino, 1 tablespoon
Crushing tool
Blender, mortar preferred (the text explicitly recommends the mortar)
Finish
2 tablespoons of olive oil, adjusted as needed
Time required
10 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking (25 minutes total)
Source
Source verified
Pasta Grammar The mortar is mandatory; the blender is declared off-limits
Pasta and amount
Hand-rolled busiate (method shown starting 12:35 in the video; no quantity given in the recipe article)
Salt
A pinch added in the mortar (no precise gram measurement)
Handling of garlic
2 cloves, ground first in the mortar with salt and basil
Almond prep
1/4 cup (30g), roasted 10 minutes at 350°F (175°C)
Tomato prep
5 1/2 oz (155g), peeled, halved, and seeded
Handling of basil
A bunch of fresh basil (no precise gram measurement; ground first with the garlic and salt)
Cheese
Pecorino Romano, 1oz (30g)
Crushing tool
Mortar only (a dedicated video chapter explicitly states 'you can't make it in a blender')
Finish
Extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon (15g), worked in last
Time required
45 minutes total (about 10 minutes prep, 35 minutes cooking)
Source
Source verified
Fabio No cheese; garlic is warmed in oil first
Pasta and amount
Busiate, 60g (fusilli or penne can be substituted)
Salt
Salt to taste; 'a somewhat generous amount' for the tomatoes
Handling of garlic
2 cloves, crushed and warmed slowly in olive oil first to draw out fragrance
Almond prep
50g roasted, unsalted almonds (raw almonds are not used)
Tomato prep
100g cherry tomatoes, halved and added raw, then cooked
Handling of basil
12g basil -- the stems are used first for aroma, the leaves added later
Cheese
None (no cheese appears in the recipe)
Crushing tool
Immersion blender (no mortar used)
Finish
A final drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Time required
About 15 minutes total (approximate)
Source
Source verified

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1 Pasta & boiling Brand, thickness, salt, water volume, cooking time
2 Base Fat and the main ingredient: rendering, infusing
3 Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water
4 Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating

The map of schools: where the heat is managed

For Pesto alla trapanese, the fork in the road is how you emulsify and heat

Toss over direct heat

The pan stays on the flame and your hands manage the temperature. Fast, but it takes feel.

  • No styles here

Indirect heat

Bain-marie, steam, double boiler or a hand blender. Repeatable, at the cost of one extra step.

Off the heat

Emulsify after killing the flame, or in a bowl with only the pasta’s residual heat. Hard to get wrong.

Total timeActual values from 3 styles. Equal values stack vertically
5.8 min16.7 min27.5 min38.4 min49.2 minGialloZafferano: 10 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking (25 minutes total)GFabio: About 15 minutes total (approximate)FPasta Grammar: 45 minutes total (about 10 minutes prep, 35 minutes cooking)ES

What to serve after this

In an Italian meal the primo (pasta) is followed by a secondo (main course)

Liguria 55 min

Branzino al forno alla ligure

Branzino al forno alla ligure

A whole European sea bass (branzino/spigola) roasted in the oven, a Mediterranean coastal staple. The Ligurian version is distinctive for a bed of potatoes, cherry tomatoes, Taggiasca olives, and pine nuts roasted underneath the fish, so the vegetables soak up the fish's fat and the whole thing becomes a single self-contained dish.

Pairs with: Pesto alla Genovese / Spaghetti alle vongole / Pasta al Limone

As a light, raw-tossed sauce of almonds and tomato, it keeps the primo from getting ahead on fat in a meal where the oven-roasted fish is meant to be the star.

Sicily 60 min

Caponata siciliana

Caponata siciliana

A Sicilian dish of fried eggplant simmered in a sweet-and-sour agrodolce sauce with celery, onion, olives and capers. Today it is served as a contorno or antipasto, and it is registered as a traditional agri-food product (P.A.T.) of the Sicily region.

Pairs with: Pasta alla Norma / Pasta con le Sarde / Pesto alla trapanese

Also Sicilian, from Trapani. This menu shape follows a light primo of raw almonds and tomato with a cooked, sweet-and-sour vegetable secondo, contrasting both temperature and technique.

Naples & Campania 90 min

Parmigiana di melanzane

Parmigiana di melanzane

A southern Italian vegetable dish of fried eggplant layered with tomato sauce and cheeses such as mozzarella, then baked. It is registered on Italy's Ministry of Agriculture list of traditional foods as a specialty of Calabria, Campania, Puglia and Sicily. The name's origin is debated: some dictionaries explain it as "Parma-style," meaning vegetables cooked layered, while others trace it to Parmigiano.

Pairs with: Pasta al Limone / Pesto alla trapanese / Orecchiette con le cime di rapa

Sicily is one of the regions that claims parmigiana's origin, so the regional lineage overlaps. An uncooked pesto keeps trapanese light as a primo, so the order into a heavier, baked secondo still holds.

Tuscany 60 min

Pollo alla cacciatora

Pollo alla cacciatora

Chicken pieces are browned in olive oil, then slowly braised with aromatic vegetables, wine and tomato. The name, meaning "hunter's style," is said to come from a stew hearty enough to fill a hunter waiting for game; tomato was not originally part of it and was added later. Northern versions tend to use white wine, southern versions red.

Pairs with: Pasta al Limone / Pasta alla gricia / Pesto alla trapanese

The uncooked almond-and-basil pesto is light, so it fits the pattern of placing a primo before a slow-braised chicken dish without reversing the order of weight.

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