Contaldo - Gennaros fast cook Italian: from fridge to fork in 40 minutes or less

Fast cooking doesnt have to mean unhealthy fast food! In fact, quite the opposite! The Italian philosophy of using a few good ingredients and cooking them in a simple, unfussy way means you can create beautiful, nutritious dishes in no time. Traditionally, some of the best Italian dishes are made quickly with just a few fresh or stored ingredients.

These days, not all Italians have the time to cook lengthy meals like they used to gone are the days when women stayed at home and made pasta by hand, or soaked pulses in preparation for a slow-cooked pot of soup or stew. Dont get me wrong, I, like most Italians, still love to cook like this, but perhaps at weekends or for festivities like Christmas and Easter, when I have more time to cook. During a normal week, when the family is at work and school, there just isnt the time to prepare the dishes that our grandmothers once made.

Italians mainly cook from scratch and use high-quality, seasonal ingredients. This doesnt mean starting to cook the night before, but a little planning in advance to ensure you have the right ingredients in your store cupboard is a good start. Take pasta or risotto, for example; these two classic staples of Italian cooking, so quick and simple to prepare, make excellent, nutritious meals that everyone can enjoy at any time. I always make sure I have a selection of dried pasta in the cupboard, as well as risotto rice, good olive oil, stock (bouillon) and cans of tomatoes. Add some onions, carrots, garlic, pancetta and Parmesan from the fridge and I can already see quite a few meals. Even when the cupboard is bare, a quick dish of Spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino (garlic, oil and chilli) is a popular standby especially among Italian youngsters who opt for it as a midnight snack after a night on the town!

Of course, Italian food is not just pasta and there are so many meat, fish and vegetable dishes that can be prepared in little time. Fish, chicken, thin slices of meat as well as eggs for delicious omelettes cook in no time and provide nourishing meals. Vegetables are also often used in the Italian kitchen to create delicious main dishes which cook quickly. Italian cooking doesnt need too many added flavours, sauces or marinades, as Italians prefer to buy fresh, quality ingredients which speak for themselves! Take a simple steak, for example as long as you buy the best piece of meat you can afford, just a little salt and pepper and some oil are all that you really need; while the steak is grilling (broiling) or frying, slice some tomatoes and red onions for a side salad. Serve with some good bread and you have a delicious meal fit for a king, which has taken far less time to prepare than waiting for a takeaway to arrive! And, of course, it is far more nutritious and enjoyable to eat!

To make life even simpler, there are all sorts of short cuts available these days; walk into any supermarket and you will find a wide variety of ready-chopped and spiralised vegetables as well as cubed pancetta, grated cheeses, canned beans and pulses. Italian delis stock good-quality fresh sauces like pesto, tomato sauce and many others, as well as mouth-watering pickled vegetables in jars, which are always handy to keep in your store cupboard. You can of course make your own sauces; its always a good idea to make a large quantity of say tomato sauce perhaps once a month (time-permitting) and freeze in batches to use whenever required. On a weekly basis, if you have time, you could chop or grate a few basic vegetables, like onions, carrots, celery, courgettes (zucchini), garlic and so on, store them in containers in the fridge and use them in your cooking throughout the week. You could also grate a quantity of Parmesan cheese and chop pieces of pancetta so you have these to hand, too. This way, you know you will be using the freshest ingredients for all your dishes as well as reducing so much of your preparation time when it comes to cooking. In fact, a little planning ahead at the beginning of the week will make cooking easier, stress free and will ensure healthy balanced meals at all times with minimum fuss and effort.

Overleaf, you will find my list of essentials for your store cupboard and fridge, which will give you more than enough for quick and simple meals at any time. Obviously, add some meat and fish to this and your meal planning will be sorted.

All the recipes in this book have been carefully chosen to ensure they are quick and effortless to prepare and cook. They are all super simple to follow and even someone with only basic cooking skills will be able to make them. Although perfect for everyday cooking, most of the recipes can also be made for special occasions why spend hours in the kitchen just because you have guests coming or you are making a celebratory meal?

I hope you enjoy cooking the recipes in this book, which I hope will prove invaluable not just for when you are looking for a quick dish to rustle up, but for all your daily meals simple recipes for life that can be used over and over again.

Enjoy, happy cooking and buon appetito!

I have put together a basic list of essential Italian ingredients, which I believe will help you in your meal planning. Keep an eye on your supplies and when something runs out, make sure it is replaced.

STORE CUPBOARD

Extra virgin olive oil, for dressing

Olive oil or vegetable oil, for frying

Anchovies

Capers

Dried porcini

Green and black olives

Dried oregano

Dried chilli (hot red pepper) flakes

Natural breadcrumbs

Chopped walnuts

Sea salt and black pepper

Jars of good-quality preserved vegetables aubergines (eggplants), courgettes (zucchini), (bell) peppers, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes

Dried pasta a selection of long and short varieties

Vegetable stock (bouillon) I also like to keep chicken, beef and fish stock, but as long as you have a supply of vegetable stock, you can make most dishes

Red or white wine vinegar

Wine red and white

Pesto

Plain (all-purpose) flour

Risotto rice and long-grain rice

Quick-cook polenta (fine cornmeal)

Cans of beans and pulses cannellini, borlotti (cranberry) beans, chickpeas (garbanzo beans), lentils

Cans of chopped tomatoes and passata (strained tomatoes)

Grissini breadsticks

Pane carasau (wafer-thin Sardinian flatbread)

FRIDGE

Parmesan

Ricotta

Mascarpone

Mozzarella bufala to enjoy fresh in salads or starters and a harder variety for cooking with

Pancetta or bacon

Prosciutto this usually has a good sell-by date and is handy to keep for a quick antipasto or snack