Maommeno — Pasta Decostruita alla Siciliana con Ragù di Porto

"Maommeno" in Sicilian means "but also less" — an expression of affectionate resignation toward others' expectations, and also the comment Ciccio makes every time he brings the dish: "Maommeno, it's a pasta." It is a deconstructed pasta: the components of the traditional Sicilian pasta al ragù are separated and presented in three distinct compositions on the same plate. The Nebrodi black pork ragù — cooked for twelve hours in Mineo vineyard wine — is served cold as an aerated foam. The fresh pasta, broken down and rebuilt as blown semolina crystals, is presented alongside. The dressing is applied with a stone dropper. "I deconstructed the pasta until it looked like something else," Ciccio explains. "Then I reassembled it to make it look like pasta again. It's a pointless but necessary journey." The dish has been on the menu since forty-seven guests requested it after seeing Ciccio eating it alone in the kitchen between shifts.

"Every time I prepare it, I cry a little. It's a form of quality control."