It's hard to overstate the importance of Naples in Italian cooking.

Take tomato sauce. Can you imagine pasta without tomato sauce? That's the way Italians ate it for centuries, until Neapolitan chefs took a Spanish recipe, meant to be served with meat, and turned it into the quintessential sugo for pasta: pomodoro!

Then there's ragù, a dish the Neapolitans learned, reimagined - and respelled! - based on the classic French ragout. With typical Southern frugality, the cooks of Naples transformed a single dish into a two course meal, using the sauce to flavour their homemade pasta, and reserving the braised meats to serve as the main course. (To this day, no two households in Naples can agree which meats should be used in a traditional ragù, but that's another story).

And let's not forget pizza - only the world's most popular Italian dish. Baked or fried, pizza was the street food of Naples for centuries before it started to spread across Italy in the modern era, and quickly gained popularity the world over.

These are just the most obvious examples. There are many more famous dishes (like puttanesca or sfogliatelle) and hidden gems (like lagane e ceci and mozzarella in carrozza) that make Naples one the finest places to eat in all of Italy.

ABOUT TONIGHT'S CLASS

Of course we can only scratch the surface of such a rich culinary tradition in a single class, but not worry, there will be more to come!

But for now, let's begin at the beginning: Neapolitan chef Bruno di Sarno will guide us in preparing a typical Sunday meal, the kind his mother made when he was growing up. When we’re done cooking, guests will sit down together at a long harvest table to enjoy the meal, served by the Cucinato team.

MENU

Antipasti

Crocchè di patate - Classic neapolitan streetfood: potato croquettes

Primo

Spaghettie alle vongole - Spaghetti with clams

Secondo e contorni

Fettine alla pizzaiola - "Pizza-makers" beef fillets with tomato and oregano

Melanzane a funghetto - "Mushroom style" eggplant, lightly cooked with garlic and basil

Peperoni alla napoletana - Sautéed sweet peppers with olives and capers

Dolce

Migliaccio - Traditional campanese ricotta, semolina and lemon cake

BEVERAGES

A selection of wines, beers and soft drinks will be available for purchase at the event. Our wine list can be viewed here: https://cucinato.ca/collections/wines

We also offer corkage, the fee is $15 per bottle.

TERMS & CONDITIONS

• No refunds after purchase
• Exchanges (one per ticket) permitted up to 5 days prior to the event.
• Tickets to Cucinato events are transferable - you can give them to someone else if you can’t attend (but please notify Cucinato in advance!)
• We will do our best to accommodate dietary needs – please contact us before booking

Naples: Southern Italian Cooking at its Best! | Sat May 14

$145.00