AUBERGINE, BASIL & SUN-DRIED TOMATO BROTH WITH CARNAROLI RICE

INGREDIENTS

Organic Carnaroli Rice — Melotti family, Veneto, Italy
Golden Onion — Parrish family, Bedfordshire, UK
Celery — Spain (Oct-April), UK (May -September)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil — Tom & Juli, Kyparissia, Greece
Garlic — Murcia, Spain
Natural Fine Sea Salt — Atlit, Israel
Datterini Tomatoes — Bartolomeo and Tuccio, Sicily, Italy
Black Aubergines — Tuccio, Acate, Sicily & Roero, Piedmont
Red & Green Pepper — Bartolomeo, Tuccio & Antonio, Italy
Tomato Concentrate — Antonella, Sardinia, Italy
Basil — Daniotti, Lombardy, Italy
Dried Porcini — Mountain Valley, Serbia
Sun-dried Tomatoes — Carlo, Campania, Italy

Working with fresh seasonal ingredients is complex. Weather conditions or other factors beyond our control mean that occasionally, we may have to top up our usual direct suppliers with market alternatives.

Tuccio grows his Black Aubergines directly in his mineral-rich, volcanic soil, allowing them to develop at their natural pace. The result: dense, seedless flesh with none of the bitterness of intensively-grown aubergines.

Tuccio grew up in rural Sicily, a region with a centuries-long tradition of growing outstanding produce. He started his own production after renting his first nursery at the age of 16. His skills, together with the richness of the volcanic Sicilian soil and the warm weather, all contribute to the outstanding quality of his produce.

Set close to the coast, Tuccio’s soil is rich in minerals thanks to calcified sediments of marine organisms. Packed with nutrients, it is able to sustain growth even in cooler times with little sunlight. This coastal proximity also means salinity in his soil and irrigation water — stressing his plants enough to force them to cling to the nutrients needed for survival and resulting in complex flavour.

Tuccio rotates his crops, allowing the land to rest between plantings while building up organic matter year on year. Plus, where other growers set their fruits with hormones, Tuccio chooses bee pollination and refuses to use any chemical pesticides. Finally, he picks only when his produce is fully ripe, serving up exceptional quality every time.