Of course, the fish, in all the options, better if “poor” (the very tasty “mazzamma”, the fried small fishes), but still for all tastes, and for all budgets, it is the fish that excels in a simple cuisine, always accompanied by local white and red wines (Aglianico prevalently), still produced in a domestic and familiar version.
In Procida, there are ten fishing boats which, everyday, unload on the island several quintals of fish: anchovies, octopus and highly prized prawns, orata, sea basses, seafood, crustaceans and many other types and varieties. The cookbook is very varied, and remembers strange traditions. In times of misery, when people could not even afford to buy the most modest fishes, an emblematic dish was invented, the “pesce fjiuto” (from the Italian verb “fuggire” meaning "escape"), which is a soup of fish from which the fish “escapes” from the pot: garlic, parsley, cherry tomatoes, oil, and a lot of chilly. All these ingredients are boiled and then poured on stale bread. Almost like saying “hot water with a desire for fish”.
Another typical recipe is the “lemon in the plate” (limone al piatto), knows as “lemon salad” which is a soup prepared with Procida lemons (large like melons and with a very thick albedo), which summarises the phenomenal goodness of local citrus. Their goodness is enhanced in the production of liqueurs and of an excellent limoncello. Meat is not lacking, and it is above all the one of free-range poultry and rabbit, which is prepared on the feast day.
Legumes and vegetables of the famous “parùle” find a perfect synthesis in the “bobba”, a soup made with aubergines, courgettes, potatoes, “del prete” squash and basil.
But the vegetables also end up in the filling of pizzas, like the escarole and artichoke one. Proprio i carciofi sono a dir poco eccezionali, e rappresentano il cibo della Quaresima e della Settimana santa. In parallelo la parmigiana di melanzane tocca livelli di assoluta squisitezza.
Among the sweets, there is the so called “Lingua” (tongue), characteristic of Procida (even if imported), prepared with puff pastry and cream.
