Acqua Pazza is a classic Italian recipe, healthy and tasty! This cooking method is originating of Southern-Italy and commonly attributed to the Neapolitan cuisine. The traditional recipe wants the fish cooked whole with simple ingredients, whereas the contemporary way prefers to stew fillets of fish along with a delicious fish stock prepared with the bones and the head of the fish. Here both recipes and the origin of Acqua Pazza!
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ORIGIN OF ACQUA PAZZA
Acqua Pazza (Crazy Water), or Acquapazza, is a simple and traditional technique to cooking fish into salted water. It seems that Acqua Pazza has been invented at the end of the XIX Century by the Italian fishermen: in that time, the salt was particularly expensive, so the fishermen started to stew fish into Sea water, along with other simple ingredients like tomatoes, garlic, and parsley.
The paternity of the Acqua Pazza recipe is commonly attributed to the Neapolitan cuisine, but this technique is widespread into all the Southern Italian cuisine, from Naples to Apulia and Calabria. Some culinary historians affirm that Acqua PAzza has been prepared for the first time on the Island of Ponza in Lazio, then exported in Campania.
Nowadays the use of the seawater is discouraged for safety reasons, and the fish is stewed into salted water.
WHAT KIND OF FISH?
The most common kind of fish used to prepare Acqua Pazza is certainly the Orata (Dorade or Seabream), followed by the Spigola (Branzini). Other fish qualities that fit perfectly with this cooking style are the Pesce San Pietro (John Dory) and various kinds of Dentice (Snapper).
WHOLE FISH TECHNIQUE
The classic Acqua Pazza recipe requires to cook the entire fish, previously scaled and gutted. The fish is stewed into salted water enriched with garlic, tomatoes, and parsley, then fillet after cooked.
FILLETS TECHNIQUE
This is a contemporary version of Acqua Pazza. The fish is previously fillet before cooking. Then, the bones and the head is used to prepare a fish stock. Finally, the fillets fish are sautéed along with garlic and tomatoes, then stewed into the fish stock.
ACQUA PAZZA PASTA
The Acqua Pazza fish leftovers can become a delicious sauce for pasta. Once cooked, separate the fish from the liquid. Then, boil the pasta into salted water, and raise 3 minutes before "al dente". After taht, sauté the pasta along with a cup of the Acqua Pazza liquid, until completely absorbed. Finally, toss the pasta with the fish meat and complete with 1 tbsp of minced parsley and grated lemon skin!
ACQUA PAZZA RECIPE - WHOLE FISH
- 2 lb (900 g) Dorades, 1 lb each (alternatively Branzini, john Dory, or Snapper)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 21 oz (600 g) cherry tomatoes
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup white wine
- 1 sprinkle ground black pepper
- to taste table salt
- GARLIC AND TOMATOES
First, peel and chop the garlic, then cut the cherry tomatoes into halves. Now, sauté the garlic along with the olive oil into a pan big enough to cook the fishes, over medium heat: you want the garlic lightly gold, not brown.
At this point, add the tomatoes and sauté a couple of minutes. Then, add 4 cups of cold water and bring slowly to boil. Finally, add salt to taste. - FISHES IN THE PAN
Now, place the previously scaled and gutted fishes, into the pan. Then, raise the flame and baste with the white wine. At this point, cover with a lid and cook about 15 minutes flipping the fishes on the halfway: you want the fish still juicy and easily falling from the bone. - GARNISH AND SERVING
The Acqua Pazza whole fish can be served bone-in or fillet after cooked. Before serving garnish with minced parsley and black pepper.
ACQUA PAZZA RECIPE - FISH FILLETS
- 2 lb (450 g) Dorades, 1 lb each, clean and fillet (alternatively Branzini, john Dory, or Snapper)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 shallots (alternatively, spring onions
- 21 oz (600 g) cherry tomatoes
- 5 sprigs parsley
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
- ¼ cup white wine
- 1 qt (1 lt) ice cubes
- 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp whole black pepper
- 1 sprinkle ground black pepper
- to taste table salt
- CLEANING THE FISH
If you ask your fish seller to clean and fillet the fish, ask him to save the head and the bones to prepare a tasty fish stock!
In case you prefer to fillet the fishes at home, consider that the first time this step is not particularly easy. First scale the skin, then open the belly and discard any guts. Finally, fillet the fish following the bones, rinse and place them between two ceramic plates, and store in the fridge. - FISH STOCK
Now, let's prepare the fish stock!
First, chop two cups of cherry tomatoes, peel and crush the garlic, then peel and chop the shallots.
After that, place the fishes bones and heads into a 3 qt pot, along with 2 tbsp of olive oil.
At this point, sauté the bones a couple of minutes over high heat, then baste with the white wine. Let the alcoholic part of the wine evaporate a couple of minutes, then add the sprigs of parsley, the cherry tomatoes, the shallots, the garlic, and the whole black pepper. At this point, add ice cubes and cold water in order to submerge all the ingredients completely. Bring slowly to boil, then simmer gently 15 minutes. Finally, filter the liquid, salt to taste, and discard the bones and the other ingredients. - SAUTEEING AND STEWING
First, bring to boil the fish stock.
Now, reduce the rest of the cherry tomatoes into halves. Then, sauté the tomatoes 5 minutes along with 2 tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil in a pan big enough to cook the fillets of fish.
At this point, sauté the fillets starting from the skin side. When the border of the fillets starts to become white, flip the fish, add 5 cups of boiling fish stock, and cover with a lid, placing the pan far from the heat. After 5 minutes, check the fish: you want it juicy and well done. - GARNISH AND SERVING
Place each fillet of fish into a bowl along with some cherry tomatoes and 1 cup of cooking liquid. Garnish with a sprinkle of black pepper and minced parsley, and serve immediately!
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