Sicily
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.
Official videos by Tomomi Ogura
A representative video and official arrangements with different ingredients or pasta. Check the original videos for the method.
Michelin One-Star Italian Restaurant's Japanese-Debut Pasta "Fusilli Lunghi, Sicilian-Style with Freshly Boiled Whitebait" [Italian Professional Training Course vol.84]
Watch the official video on YouTube ↗Michelin-Starred Italian "Cold Trapanese-Style Fedelini" [Professional Italian Cooking Course Vol
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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
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
View the original recipe Load this style
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
View the original recipe Load this style
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 whole | 2 cloves, ground first in the mortar with salt and basil | 2 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 roasted | 1/4 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 peel | 5 1/2 oz (155g), peeled, halved, and seeded | 100g cherry tomatoes, halved and added raw, then cooked |
| Handling of basil | 1.8oz (about 50g), washed and dried leaves | A 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 tablespoon | Pecorino 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 needed | Extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon (15g), worked in last | A 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 verified | Source verified | Source 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
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
Sauce & emulsion Where you toss, heat level, how much pasta water 4 
Finish Cheese, pepper, finishing oil, plating
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.
What to serve after this
In an Italian meal the primo (pasta) is followed by a secondo (main course)
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.
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.
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.
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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