Boiled tenerumi, a typical Sicilian vegetable, are a summer side dish.
What are tenerumi?
Tenerumi are the leaves and shoots of long squash plants – serpent squash or cucuzza longa – light green, soft, and with a characteristic fuzz that makes them easily recognizable.
They are available from June to October, extended with greenhouse cultivation.
In Sicily, they are a true seasonal delight
Common in Sicily, almost impossible to find elsewhere unfortunately, they are a true delicacy.
Some have spotted them at the market in Milan – on Wednesdays in Piazzale Martini and Thursdays in via Fiamma – but know that you can grow them on a balcony.
Curiosities and local names
In Italian, tenerumi are “translated” as tenderness.
Every area of Sicily has its own name:
tenerumi, tennarume, tinniruma, tinnirumi in Palermo, Trapani, Ragusa;
taddi, talli, tanni di cucuzza in Messina, Catania, Siracusa, Agrigento, Enna, Caltanissetta;
cime di zucca in some areas.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 2 Servings
- Cooking methods: Boiling
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 bunch tenerumi
- as needed water
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch baking soda
- 1 drizzle extra virgin olive oil (raw)
Suggested Tools
- Knife
- Cutting Board
- 1 Pot IMCO or regular
Preparation
First, select and wash the tenerumi thoroughly.
Due to wind, they may be full of sand or soil, which is held by the fuzz on the leaves and stems, and can be felt even after cooking.
Select:
– the most tender parts of the leaves, discarding the hard and spoiled ones;
– the most tender parts of the stems, discarding the hard and woody ones;
remove the strings.Immerse selected leaves and stems in a basin with plenty of water for about half an hour, stirring gently from time to time.
Rinse the tenerumi thoroughly under running water.
If you are not cooking them immediately, drain them well, wrap them in a clean cloth and place them in a plastic bag.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.
In a pot, bring the necessary salted water to a boil to cook the tenerumi.
Add the tenerumi, sprinkle with a pinch of baking soda – to keep the vegetables a bright green color – and mix.
Cook for about 10 minutes.Using a slotted spoon, transfer the boiled tenerumi to a colander.
Save the cooking water for any pasta cooking.
Season with a pinch of salt and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
Your boiled tenerumi are ready.
Enjoy your meal.
Although the harvesting of tenerumi falls in the summer, Sicilian tradition has it that they are consumed in soup with broken spaghetti that I chose whole grain.
Try it in both versions:
– Pasta Soup with Tenerumi Sicilian Recipe;
– Dry Pasta with Tenerumi.
Storage, Tips, and Variations
Besides being a side dish, you can use boiled tenerumi in the preparation of numerous dishes and tenerumi-based recipes.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Know that tenerumi can be grown on a balcony
If you have a balcony or a small garden, you can try growing a Sicilian long squash plant: it grows well in a pot, needs sun and regular water, and in a few weeks will give you tender leaves and shoots ready to cook.
Here is the link to purchase Sicilian long squash seeds.Do tenerumi always need to be boiled first?
Yes, it is advisable to boil them first to remove the fuzz, make the leaves more digestible and tender, and eliminate any sand or soil residues.
Tasting them feels like Montalbano
The tinnirume, leaves, and tops of the Sicilian cucuzzeddra, the long, smooth one, with a white barely tinged with green, was cooked to perfection, with a tenderness and delicacy that Montalbano found even poignant. With every bite, he felt his stomach getting clean, becoming as shiny as he had seen certain fakirs do on television.
“How do you find it?” the lady Angelina spied.
“Delightful.” Montalbano said. And to the surprise of the two elders, he blushed, explaining. “Forgive me, sometimes I suffer from imperfect adjective usage.”
[ The Terracotta Dog – Andrea Camilleri.
