Pane frattau

It is quite difficult for me to describe "pane frattau". It is the quintessential Sardinian dish: to me means home. Sic et simpliciter. Simplicity is actually they key word of this meal: few ingredients, attention to details and timing. That is about it. To cook this dish in Prague, and cook it properly, is not easy. Luckily i got hold of the right basic ingredients ( such as pane carasau, the typical Sardinian flat bread) and, with the help of my friend Nina (a fantastic hair stylist with a joyful and contagious passion for good food), i gave myself the present of a little trip back to the roots. 

Ingredients:

4

eggs

8

sheets Sardinian flatbread 

2 tbsp

finely sliced basil leaves

150 gm

aged Pecorino Sardo, grated

For drizzling:

extra-virgin olive oil

Mutton stock (brodo di pecora)

1 kg

mutton bones, chopped (ask your butcher to do this)

1½

carrots, roughly chopped

½

large onion, roughly chopped

1

celery stalk, roughly chopped

3

Roma tomatoes, quartered

2 tsp

tomato paste

3

fresh bay leaves

½

bunch flat-leaf parsley, torn

10

black peppercorns

Passata

20 ml

extra-virgin olive oil

¼

onion, finely diced

1

garlic clove, finely diced

1 kg

very ripe tomatoes, chopped

3

basil sprigs, leaves picked, torn

Method

For mutton stock, place bones in a stockpot or large saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil, then strain and rinse well. Return mutton bones to a clean stockpot or large saucepan, cover with about 3 litres of fresh cold water – the bones should be completely submerged – then bring to the boil. Reduce heat, skim off any froth that rises to the surface, then add remaining ingredients and ¼ tsp sea salt flakes and simmer for 6-8 hours, skimming regularly to prevent the stock from going cloudy. If the liquid level drops so that the ingredients are uncovered, top up with a little cold water. Set aside to cool, then ladle through a sieve lined with muslin, discarding solids.

Meanwhile, for passata, heat a saucepan over low-medium heat, add oil and, when hot, add onion and garlic and cook until soft but not coloured. Add tomato and basil, season to taste and bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tomato has completely broken down into a thick sauce (1 hour). If it dries out so much that it starts to stick, add a couple of tablespoons of water to loosen it up. Pass the tomato sauce through a mouli (see note), discarding skins and seeds. Store covered and refrigerated for a couple of days, or pack into sterilised jars and store in a cool, dark place for several months.

Place passata in a saucepan and bring to the simmer. Keep warm over low heat.

Combine 1 litre stock (freeze remainder for another use) and 1 tsp sea salt flakes in a small saucepan and bring to the simmer. Crack an egg into a cup and carefully slide it into the simmering stock. Repeat with a second egg. Cook eggs for 3 minutes then remove, using a slotted spoon, and place on paper towel to drain. Repeat with the remaining eggs.

Transfer stock to a large, tall saucepan over low heat. Using tongs, dip a sheet of Sardinian flatbread in and out of the hot stock to just soften it. Place on a platter and spread about 4 tbsp of the passata over the top. Scatter about 1 tsp of the basil and 3 tbsp of the pecorino on top of this. Dip another sheet of Sardinian flatbread in the hot stock, place it on top of the pecorino, top with more passata, basil and pecorino and continue the layering, finishing with a final layer of pecorino and a scattering of basil. Cut the stack into quarters, top each quarter with a poached egg, then place on plates. ( You can also make single plates, making less layers and placing just one poached egg on top of it). Drizzle with oil and serve.