CUCINA POVERA MAY NOT be an
Italian term that you’re familiar with,
but it’s one that you will grow to cherish.
Translating as ‘poor people’s food’,
cucina povera sums up everything
that is great about cooking: beautiful
ingredients prepared with love and
care, but always with an emphasis
on simplicity.
Whether it’s a warming
vegetable soup or fire-
roasted wild mushrooms,
cucina povera is about
making the most of
seasonal produce –
whatever is plentiful at a
particular time of year, and
whatever is in your fridge or
store cupboard.
The spirit of this cooking technique
lies in embracing constraints and coming
up with creative solutions for meal
preparation. So rather than going
out and buying a pantry’s worth
of produce, make the most of
what you already have.
It may go against what our
culture traditionally conditions us to
do, which is to buy more and spend
more, but it’s a refreshing (and tasty)
philosophy to adopt in the kitchen.
@chefbennett23 @vuebennett@vuebennettBraised rabbit with
creamy polenta creamy polenta
(recipe p 72).(recipe p 72).For more of Shannon’s recipes, seeFor more of Shannon’s recipes, see
ON SUNDAY