Guest Recipe : Rocco Verrigni
Posted on Jan. 12, 2010 by Uncommon Grounds in Guest Posts
Besides being a culinary instructor/chef/professor at Schenectady County Community College for the last 29 years, Chef Rocco Verrigni is also the co-founder and current president of Slow Food Saratoga Region. Rocco is a regular customer of the Uncommon Grounds in Saratoga Springs, and we love hearing his stories about his world travels as he has honed his culinary skills as a student, teacher, and adventurer.
Slow Food Saratoga Region is currently working on a project that will teach basic culinary skills to community members as a free service. The group is holding a fundraiser this Thursday at Max London’s to benefit this endeavor. More information on this event can be found on SFSR’s blog.
Today Chef Rocco shares an amazing Green Tea Smoked Salmon recipe! Healthy, and delicious!
Green Tea Smoked Salmon
Serves 4
1 lb. salmon filet, center cut, skin off
(cut into four equal pieces)
for rub:
¼ cup kosher salt
½ cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon Chinese five-spice
for smoking mixture:
1 cup long-grain rice
1 cup green tea leaves ( I used Uncommon’s Formosa Gunpowder)
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup grated fresh ginger
Directions:
Mix rub ingredients together and rub salmon generously. Wrap the salmon tightly in foil and refrigerate at least 12 hours or overnight.
In preparation for smoking, remove salmon from foil. There will be a some water in the foil. Rinse salmon under cold running water for 5 minutes.
Green tea and rice in foil-lined wok.
Mix smoking ingredients well and place in the bottom of a foil-lined wok.
Turn on heat and when the smoking mixture begins to smolder, place the salmon in a bamboo steamer and place it in the wok.
Cover the area between the wok and the steamer with wet towels or foil to keep steam from escaping.
Salmon in bamboo steamer.
Let smoke for 15 minutes. Turn off burner and let stand for another 15 minutes.
Accompanying vegetables.
The salmon may be served with steamed snow peas, carrots and shitake mushrooms or the vegetables of your choice. It may also be accompanied by jasmine rice.
Final dish! Delicious!
Do you have a recipe you’d like to share? Feel free to get in touch!
4 Responses to “Guest Recipe : Rocco Verrigni”
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Rocky,
I tried the recipe and everyone raved about it.
Glad to see you are doing well.
Steve
Steve,
Glad you enjoyed it!
Chef Rocky is the best!
Hope to get another guest recipe out of him sooner than later!!!
Jock, I found some old emails that I had forgotten about. One was from Leo Verrigni, written 3/2006. He was 23 yrs old and did not know of the first names I was searching. He said that there were many Verrignis and Mazzones (my grandmother’s maiden name) in the area. I also know that there is a prominent restauranteur in Schenectady by that name.
I do not know if we are related to him. I am pretty sure that he must have known my uncle Alfred. If you come up with any info on this subject, please let me know.
Sheila