The first time I heard a certain television chef instruct the audience to prepare soffritto, I scratched my head! Huh? What is soffritto? Soffritto comes from the Italian verb soffriggere, which means to brown or fry slightly. Many Italian recipes begin with a soffritto, a lightly fried mixture of herbs and vegetables.
The components of a soffritto can vary. A favorite combination of mine is finely diced onion, carrot and celery, slowly sauteed in olive oil. Others may include garlic, bell pepper, and many variations of aromatics such as rosemary and thyme. Soffritto is the base for many delicious pasta sauces, risotto dishes and stews. In Italy, soffritto is so commonly used, it can often be found in grocery stores.
Creating a flavorful soffritto requires fresh ingredients. Nor can you rush the cooking time. You want to cook the veges slowly over a medium heat, about 10-15 minutes. You will know it's done when the house begins to fill with wonderful aromas.
The idea of using a fragrant soffritto as a base for adding flavor to dishes is not unique to Italy. In France, it's called mirepoix, and in Spain it's sofrito.
So, the next time you're in the kitchen frying up a pan full of finely diced veges, show off your cooking prowess by announcing "the soffritto is almost done!" Like me, your family and friends are sure to scratch their heads!