Fresh water and salt water: two habitats that cannot be taken for granted to coexist even in nature, but whose osmotic balance regulates their coexistence and has become the gastronomic concept behind a four-handed dinner featuring Michelin-starred chefs Mattia Trabetti of Alto, Rooftop Restaurant at the Executive Spa Hotel in Fiorano Modenese, and Gianfranco Pascucci, owner of Pascucci al Porticciolo in Fiumicino. The venue? The refined dining room of Alto, which on Monday, September 8, on the occasion of this meeting, reaffirmed the restaurant’s role as a benchmark in the Italian fine dining circuit.
FRESH WATER AND SALT WATER: THE FOUR-HANDED DINNER BY MATTIA TRABETTI AND GIANFRANCO PASCUCCI
The idea of a four-handed dinner, focused on aquatic ingredients in their various forms, came about spontaneously, without any pressure or superstructures. In this regard, Francesco Corradi, General Manager of Executive Spa Hotel, says: “The evening came about almost by chance from an informal meeting between friends. It was precisely on this occasion that the idea emerged to combine two different but complementary visions of fish cuisine.”
On the one hand, the menu reflects the experience of Gianfranco Pascucci, one of the most influential interpreters of seafood cuisine; on the other, the approach of resident chef Mattia Trabetti, linked to the use of freshwater fish, in line with the restaurant’s territorial identity. The result was a stimulating and creative gastronomic comparison, capable of bringing two different worlds into dialogue through a menu built on balance, contrasts, and affinities. “This encounter with freshwater is right up our alley,” explains Gianfranco Pascucci, “Fiumicino is a seaside town with a great fishing tradition, but it is also crossed by the Tiber River, which has always influenced us. Freshwater is as much a part of our history as saltwater. Fiumicino is a brackish area, crossed by irrigation canals, with countryside that has always played a fundamental role. We live in a natural symbiosis between these two elements. We are traditionally linked to the sea, of course, but fresh water has always been there, it was a necessary encounter. This dinner represents for us almost a journey back to our origins, and it was even more wonderful to experience it in an area so rich in gastronomic tradition, together with a young chef who has just won his first star and who has a genuine desire to do things, and do them well.”
It is therefore a synthesis of gastronomic thinking and local identity, as confirmed by Mattia Trabetti: “The idea of creating this menu together with Gianfranco Pascucci stems from the desire to combine sea fish and freshwater fish, but also and above all, to tell the story of our territories through the habitats that define them. Each dish represents not only a fish, crustacean, or mollusk, but everything that lives around that ingredient. This is where combinations such as river shrimp with pork rind or oysters with sunflowers come from: visions that bring together flavors, memories, and stories deeply connected to our lands.”
CONSISTENCY AND VISION IN THE FOUR-HANDED MENU BY TRABETTI AND PASCUCCI
Chef Mattia Trabetti maintains his signature style on this occasion too, with a menu that stays true to his defining principles: rigorous attention to raw ingredients and absolute loyalty to the territory. “We like to start with freshwater fish. It’s a choice that we feel deeply, because it allows us to highlight ingredients that are often forgotten or considered minor. One of the dishes that symbolizes this philosophy is Polenta e Pescegatto, a catfish tartare, which we include on the menu precisely to restore dignity to a traditional river product.”
Fabrizio Cicconi
The redemption of these ingredients, symbols of the poor gastronomic culture typical of the areas bordering the river, is also evident in Cotenna, berberè e gamberi di fiume (pork rind, berberè and river shrimp), where the union between land and water contributes to giving a rigorous insight into what was the culinary tradition of a region crossed by the Great River and beyond. Pork rind is transformed into chips that hold the crayfish, an entrée that nods to the East with the spicy addition of berberè.
Fish liver pâté, candied citrus fruits, cocoa shortbread, and creamed salt cod are the representative dishes for the saltwater section at the beginning of the menu that Chef Pascucci has created for the occasion: “We chose to use chocolate in the entrées as a symbol of that border territory and the meeting point between the world of fresh water and that of salt water,” he explains in his opening speech at the event. Continuing this ideal culinary journey, we find Ostrica del Po e Girasole, a dish created by Trabetti, where a symbol of the Alps par excellence, naturalized in Emilia, has been interpreted in a completely different way. “The oyster we use is now an integral part of our territory, but it remains a French symbol in the collective imagination. I liked the idea of presenting it in a different way, closer to us, combining it with a local product such as sunflower, which we produce in large quantities here. This reflection led to the creation of a cream of toasted sunflower seeds, which recreates notes of hazelnut and toast, and the use of petals preserved in brine, which give the dish a vegetal memory of summer. It is a way of giving the oyster a taste, texture, and bite that is completely different from the usual conception.”
Next, Gianfranco Pascucci offers Mazzancolle, pomodoro e leche de trigre: this crustacean, one of the most emblematic of Fiumicino’s local fishing industry, is interpreted in a way that maintains a strong link with the sea but leaves room for thoughts of travel and cultural fusion, inspired in part by the proximity to the airport. “For us, prawns represent a seafaring tradition linked to sand fishing, which is still very much alive. In this dish, we wanted to give it a new look: it is served raw, wrapped in a veil of tomato, with the addition of leche de tigre and accompanied by a small toast to complete the dish. It was interesting to take it on a little journey outside the territory, opening it up to unconventional influences and combinations, while maintaining its central role as an ingredient that defines our identity.” Enhancing the raw ingredient through creative reinterpretation without losing sight of the essence of the product and its local roots is the shared intention of Gianfranco Pascucci and Mattia Trabetti, who, with Risotto with saffron, eel, and licorice, emphasize local identity.
The risotto, cooked with saffron grown in the Apennines, is accompanied by freshwater fish, which is a concrete expression not only of the gastronomy of the valleys between the mouth of the Po and the Adriatic Sea, but also of the entire social and economic fabric that has characterized that particular territory for centuries. This is followed by Pascucci’s Assoluto di Calamari, a dish in which squid takes on a completely different and decidedly unconventional connotation. “The squid skin was the starting point: we used it to make a broth, which we then slowly reduced to a vinegar with which we seasoned the pasta. The work on the squid vinegar, combined with squid ink and reduced pig’s ears, creates a perfect union between land and sea. It is a dish that is very close to my heart, both emotionally and in terms of taste, where you can perceive an interesting transition: the squid, which starts with sweet notes, is transformed into a dark, intense, and structured sauce. It is a dish that I have studied extensively and to which I am particularly attached, partly because it encapsulates the important concept of plastic pollution in the sea. Crispy red mullet, red fruits, and marinated foie gras is another example of Chef Pascucci’s great affection for his dishes: it has been on the menu for more than ten years at his restaurant Pascucci al Porticciolo, changing twice a year.
@Lido Vannnucchi
“It must be revisited twice a year, always maintaining red fruits, red mullet, and foie gras as essential elements. It is an opportunity to stay connected to my personal history, while leaving room for evolution. The flavors remain firmly anchored to the land, in this case with foie gras.” This menu concludes with a link between fresh water and salt water, Assoluto di Fico, a dessert in which chef Trabetti clearly intends to highlight a strictly local product, the Black Fig of Fioramo Modenese, using all parts of the fruit. “A 360-degree view of the fig: at the base is a cream made from figs cooked on the grill, while from its leaves we obtain two different preparations, an oil and a meringue, which give the dessert two different textures and structures.” Starting from a single ingredient, the dish develops into multiple sensory facets, playing with complementary textures and flavors.
FRESH WATER AND SALT WATER: A REFINED DIALOGUE BETWEEN FLAVOR AND DELICACY
I asked them what they appreciated most about each other’s work: “First of all, I particularly appreciated the humility that allowed for open and constructive dialogue. From a culinary point of view, the distinctive feature that allowed us to create this menu, despite it being conceived ‘in the dark’, was our very similar vision on the use of raw ingredients and the promotion of the local area,“ says Mattia Trabetti. ”What I appreciated most was the spirit of the work, characterized by a calm determination even in the face of difficulties,” replies Pascucci. “It’s great to see young chefs working in harmony and balance, qualities that are fully reflected in Mattia’s dishes.”
Acqua Dolce e Acqua Salata proved to be a refined journey of taste between savoriness and delicacy, tradition and exoticism, a journey guided by two exceptional flavor guides, who offered an in-depth look at how it is possible to conceive a menu that harmonizes the flavors of the sea and river with consistency and creativity, while emphasizing the essential role of the land and the authentic identity of the raw ingredients used in each dish.
Dining and Cooking