18/10/2023
how-to-consume-the-sicilian-granita1In just a few steps, we explain impeccably how to consume the Sicilian granita at the bar.
To begin with, it is important to remember that granita is not drunk, it is eaten. If you fail to understand this fundamental point you will be rejected instantly. Ordering a granita is very complex because there are many variables: with cream, without cream or stained? What taste? Decide quickly and don’t be caught unprepared. If you opt for the coffee with cream one, ask the barista for half with cream: he will understand. Don’t dare ask to be able to see it: the real granita is hidden in the cockpit and not exposed in strange transparent machines.
Don’t call it crushed ice. To be such, the real granita must not have the ice crystals noticeable, nor must it be dry and sorbet-like. The density varies slightly depending on the flavor chosen. Speaking of flavours: coffee, chocolate, lemon, strawberry and mulberry are those recognized by the historic pastry laboratories of Messina while, as regards Catania pastry, the flavors are: almond “above all”, pistachio, mulberry, fig India and chocolate. Avoid asking for things with melon or orange: these are tastes for tourists. Good granita is made with ingredients that have the right pulp/flavor and acidity/sugar ratio, so as to have the right mix once frozen.
Let’s move on to the cream chapter:
how-to-consume-the-sicilian-granita2This is an important announcement that I hope will be understood by all those who sell granitas in the world: the cream must be sweetened, for heaven’s sake. Sugary. The minimum recommended dose is 100 g of icing sugar for each liter of fresh cream. The vegetable one is banned. As for those who just want to eat it, the cream on the Messina granita is fundamental, the same cannot be said for the Catanian who prefers to do without it. There are 2 techniques for consuming cream: mix it together with the granita and make it all together or eat one first and then the other. Here the Messina custom is divided but the second version wins, by a few points.
It seems easy to have breakfast, but it’s not. Wet the brioche. Here the moment is solemn, the brioche with the cap accompanies the granita like a father does with his daughter preparing for the altar: they must have the same rhythm and reach the end of the journey together. However, there are different schools of thought on consumption. The coppola is associated with a more accentuated flavor and an excellent crust/crumb ratio compared to the rest of the brioche); for this reason the people of Messina are strict about when to consume it. The majority prefer to use it immediately, to dip in the cream. The minority, of which I am part, loves to leave it for the last touch of granita at the bottom of the glass.
Sit down and eat the granita calmly because we are not talking about a refreshing drink: it should be consumed without haste. Use the brioche, being careful to finish it together but remember that, speaking of Sicilian traditions, making an encore of brioche is allowed.
Think carefully before calling those brightly colored glasses that want to sell you as granita, because being granita today is much more tiring.