MONTALCINO’S CONDITO
CONDITO IS A TRADITIONAL PEASANT SALAD FROM SOUTHERN TUSCANY BUT WE CAN TURN IT INTO A DELICIOUS HEALTHY STARTER
by Donatella Cinelli Colombini #turismodelvino
Condito from Montalcino bychef Doriana Marchi
This was the “coffee break” for the farmers who went out at dawn in the summer to harvest, during the cooler hours. They returned home in the late morning to eat and then work in the stables and warehouses.
In addition to omelettes and cured meats, the housewives also would put on the table the Condito, a salad made with celery, cucumber, tomatoes, green peppers and spring onion. All coarsely chopped, seasoned with extra virgin olive oil, pepper and salt. The name Condito comes from the difference with the normal salad which was dressed with oil immediately before eating it. The Condito, on the other hand, was “seasoned” in advance so that a sort of infusion was formed with the liquids from the tomatoes and the oil. A sauce that allowed it to be eaten with bread or on toast.
The peasant bread made with sourdough, kneaded by hand and baked in a wood oven once a week, had a thick, dark crust which, as the days passed, became less hard. Today, finding really good bread is the most difficult task because, in most cases, after a few hours it becomes inedible.