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Award-winning chef, author and forager Alan Bergo. Food is all around you.

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Fresh Spaghetti with Colatura and Waterleaf

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Fresh spaghetti with colatura di alici, virgina waterleaf and hickory nut oil

Oil, chili, pasta, garlic, colatura and greens are all you need for a cornerstone of historic pasta cookery.

Quick recipe here to compliment the post I have on making garum on my fishing trip in Ontario that was getting a little wordy. If you know someone that makes garum (I have a friend who make barrels of the stuff in Duluth out of local crayfish) or you’ve shelled out some coin to buy the real deal from Italy, you probably only have a small amount of expensive the stuff, so you want to honor it in your cooking. Along with drizzling on fresh cucumbers, this is hands-down my favorite for enjoying the stuff.

Fresh spaghetti with colatura di alici, virgina waterleaf and hickory nut oilGarum/colatura drizzled onto a simple aglio e olio changes the recipe into it’s also traditional cousin: you get the toasty garlicky oil and punch of chili per usual, but with just enough of the caramel, sub-oceanic waves of the garum to let you know it’s a bit different. In this version I’ve also added virginia waterleaf since I don’t like eating bowls of just starch unless it’s Thanksgiving and I’m diving head-first into a mountain of mashed potatoes. Besides, the pairing is perfect and you could use any greens in small amounts, especially strong tasting or bitter ones, as they’re a good foil for the rich taste of the pasta. Cheese is absolutely not served here- it would hide the flavor of the colatura/garum.

Fresh spaghetti with colatura di alici, virgina waterleaf and hickory nut oil

Fresh spaghetti with colatura di alici, virgina waterleaf and hickory nut oil
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Fresh Spaghetti with Colatura and Waterleaf

Italian inspired fresh spaghetti with hickory nut oil, foraged waterleaf greens, and Italian colatura
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time7 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: Colatura, Hickory Nut Oil, Virginia waterleaf
Servings: 2

Ingredients

  • 4 ounces fresh spaghetti or dried spaghetti
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper or more to taste, it should be good and spicy
  • 2 ounces virginia waterleaf or another wild or strong tasting green like dandelions, use spinach in a pinch
  • 2 teaspoons garlic finely minced
  • 1/4 cup hickory nut oil optional, blended olive oil can be substituted
  • Kosher salt the tiniest pinch, to taste
  • 1/2 tsp Colatura, garum, or a substitute

Instructions

  • Boil a pot of lightly salted water-you want to be mindful not to over season this dish with salt because of the garum, but, I do find I need just a pinch to round things out though.
  • Meanwhile, warm the garlic and oil from cold on low heat in a 8-10 inch saute pan or cast iron skillet, stirring occasionally. When the garlic turns golden, add the chili, stir around to mix with the oil, then add the greens to cool down the pan and prevent the chili from burning.
  • Stir the greens to break them up, then add the pasta, a dash of pasta water or warm water to lube the pan. Add 1/2 teaspoon of garum, stir and taste, turning off the heat.
  • If you can take more, add garum in 1/4 teaspoon increments until you like the flavor. Divide the mixture evenly between two heated serving bowls and serve immediatley

Notes

Sam Thayer's hickory nut oil can be substituted with blended olive oil.

 

Related

Previous Post: « How to Make Nasturtium Capers (Lacto-Fermented)
Next Post: A Northwoods Garum »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rayann

    December 31, 2021 at 9:28 am

    I don’t think I understand what you mean by the term “garum”. Where is that listed in the ingredients list? Are you referring to the water leaf?

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      December 31, 2021 at 9:59 am

      Garum is essentially fish sauce. Read the recipe instructions and it will make sense. Waterleaf is a plant.

      Reply

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FORAGER | CHEF®
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Alan Bergo
Sometimes I forget we have good traditions in Amer Sometimes I forget we have good traditions in America too. Case in point: bourbon. 

TIL about American traditions, and the role of the white oak in aging. Tasted some of that sweet nectar too. 

The rye finished in rum barrels smells like pure maple syrup 🤤. @angelsenvy

#bourbon #whiskeyrow #angelsenvy #whiteoak
Summer veg PSA: One of the edible plant parts I co Summer veg PSA: One of the edible plant parts I cover in my book you might not know are squash and pumpkin shoots. 

Tender and delicious, these are eaten around the world. The US is still coming around, but I see them occasionally at farmers markets. 

I like to give them a dip in boiling water to wilt them quick, then toss them with some fat or stir-fry them quick. The little curly-cues make them look like fairy tale veggies to me. 

#squashshoots #cucurbitaceae #eatmoreplants #kehoecarboncookware
Shaved cattail rhizomes with smoked trout, chickwe Shaved cattail rhizomes with smoked trout, chickweed, lemon, hickory nut oil and tarragon from the @wild.fed shoot. 

I spent a couple days trying to cook the rhizomes, and it works, but raw is my favorite prep. 

I add some smoked trout both for the salty pop and because it’s fun to mix aquatic edibles. Runner bean flowers for a splash of color. 

#cattails #foraging #chickweed #runnerbeans #saladsofinstagram
Long, fun day snatching crayfish out of the water Long, fun day snatching crayfish out of the water by hand with Sam Thayer and @danielvitalis for @wild.fed 

Daniel and Sam were the apex predators, but I got a few. 

Without a net catching crayfish by hand is definitely a wax-on wax-off sort of skill. Clears your mind. 

They’re going into gumbo with porcini, sausage and milkweed pods today. 

#crayfish #ninjareflexes #waxonwaxoff #normalthings #onset🎥🎬
Working all day on preps for cattail lateral rhizo Working all day on preps for cattail lateral rhizomes and blueberries for this weeks shoot with @wildfed 

Been a few years since I worked with these. Thankfully Sam Thayer dropped a couple off for me to work with. They’re tender, crisp and delicious. 

Sam mentioned their mild flavor and texture could be because they don’t have to worry about predators eating them, since they grow in the muck of cattail marshes. 

I think they could use a pet name. Pond tusk? Swamp spears? Help me out here. 😂

Nature makes the coolest things. 

#itcamefromthepond #cattail #rhizomes #foraging #typhalatifolia
I liked the staff meal I made for Mondays shoot so I liked the staff meal I made for Mondays shoot so much we filmed it instead of the original dish I’d planned. 

Cooked natural wild rice (not the black shiny stuff) is great hot, cold, sweet or savory. It’s a perfect, filling lunch for a long day of berry picking. 

I make them with whatever I have on hand. Mushrooms will fade into the background a little here, so I use a bunch of them, along with lots of herbs and hickory nut oil + dill flowers. 

I’m eating the leftovers today back up in the barrens (hopefully) getting some more bluebs for another shoot this week w @wild.fed 

#wilwilwice #wildrice #chanterelles #campfood #castironcooking
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