W
henDanielPepperellwasleadingthe
kitchenat 10WilliamStinSydney’s
east,heputhisownstamponItalian
cooking,quietlytestingitsboundaries
whilestayingtruetothefundamentals.Diners
embracedragùenrichedwitha slugoffishsauce
andsardinekatsuslippedbetweenpiecesofwhite
bread.Emboldened,Pepperellputa tripespecial
onthemenu.Notonepersonorderedit.
Whata differencea fewyearsmake.
SinceAlberto’sLoungeopenedina quietalleyway
inSydneylatelastyear,thekitchenhasservedupto
20 portionsoftripea night.Pepperellevenmentions
a regularwhoordersit forlunchoncea week.“He
sitsat thebarandhasthat,”hesays.“Abowloftrippa
allaRomanaanda salad.”
Alberto’sbraisedtripeisn’twhatyou’dcalltypical
allaRomana.Yes,there’sguanciale,tomatoand
pecorino,butthere’salsocardamom,fenugreekand
garammasala. It’sa cross-pollination ofthetraditional
Romandishwithsomeverysubcontinentalflavours.
Dependingonwhoyouask,it’seitheranextremely
foolhardymove,ora brilliantone.
Thisis nothingnewforthechef,ofcourse.You
couldsayit’shismodusoperandi:takea cuisineand
payrespecttoitsoriginswithoutbeingtootightly
boundbyconvention.SeetheroastedsnailswithXO
sauceandthekimchigratinPepperellservesat Alberto’s
French-stylecousin,RestaurantHubert,forexample.
AtAlberto’s,theSicilianpastaconle sardegets
a workover– insteadofswirlinga combinationof
anchovies,sardines,raisinsandcurrantsthrough
bucatini,hethrowsit atopa grilledswordfishsteak,
creatinga layered,complextriple-threatoffishflavours.
Inthepannacotta,cow’smilkis switchedoutforlighter
macadamiamilkthatthekitchenmakesitself.“It’s
reallydelicateandminimalist,”Pepperellsays,adding
thatit’soneofthedisheshe’smostproudof.“It’s
macadamiamilk,cream,sugarandvanilla.Howcan
younotlikethat?”
AftertwoyearsofFrenchcooking,Alberto’sis
somethingofa culinaryhomecomingforPepperell,
withthechefparticularlyenjoyingmakingpastaagain,
a skillhehonedat 10WilliamSt,throughwatching
YouTubetutorials,andbyconsultinghisculinary
contemporaries.“DanJohnstonfromDonPeppino’s
showedmehowtoworkthepastaextruder,”hesays.
“It’sbeengreattoplaywith– werecentlymadea
calamarettiwithsquidinkthroughit.”
He’sfoundhishappyplaceinthisItaliankitchen,
butit wasn’tthetasteofoliveoil,thewobbleofa just-set
pannacotta,ortheheadyfragranceofjust-ripetomatoes
thatluredhimback.Ultimately,it wasa simplething:
“ThesweetsmellofParmigiano-Reggiano.”
Alberto’sLounge,17-19 Alberta St, Sydney,
albertoslounge.com
Spaghetticonbottarga
SERVES4 ASANENTRÉE// PREPTIME 15 MINS// COOK 15 MINS
“Thisis a prettyclassicversionofthisspaghettidish,”
saysDanielPepperell.“Makesuretogetthebest
spaghetti and bottarga you can find.”Pictured p105.
10 blackmussels
(about300gm)
100 mlwhitewine
60 gmbottarga(seenote)
coarselychopped,plus
extratoserve
200 gmdriedspaghetti
100 mlextra-virginoliveoil
5 garliccloves,thinlysliced
ona mandoline
1 birdseyechilli(seeds
optional),thinlysliced
1 tsplemonjuice(ortotaste)
1 Heata saucepanoverhigh
heatuntilhot(1-2minutes).Add
musselsandwine,cover,and
cookuntilmusselsopenand
releasetheirjuices(2-3minutes).
Strainthrougha finesieve,
reservingliquid(savemussels,
debeardthem,anddrizzle
witholiveoilandvinegarfor
a snack).Transfermusseljuice
andbottargatoa blenderand
blendonhighuntilsmooth,
then pass through a fine sieve.
2 Cookspaghettiina
largesaucepanofboiling
saltedwateruntilal dente
(7-8minutes).Drain,reserving
a littlepastawater.
3 Meanwhile,addoil,garlicand
chillitoa saucepanoverlow
heatandstiroccasionallyuntil
garlicstartstoturnlightgolden
(4-6minutes).Addmusseland
bottargasauce,thenspaghetti.
Tossspaghettiandsauce
togethertoemulsifyandthicken,
addinga littlepastawatertothin
it outif necessary(1-2minutes).
Finishwitha squeezeoflemon.
Twirlontoplatesandfinelygrate
remainingbottargaoverthetop.
NoteBottargais saltedand
driedmulletroe.It’savailable
fromselectfishmongers,
delicatessensandDavid
Jonesfoodhalls.
Winesuggestion 2015 La
GinestraTrebbiano.A rustic
farmerwine,savoury-fruited,
leather-booted and intense.