In this episode of Chef AF, Pepe talks with Rick Petralia, Culinary Director at Fazoli’s to discuss his jumpstart to becoming a Chef, his Culinary point of view and why he’s passionate about approachable, authentic Italian food.
Petralia talks about his unique journey toward becoming a Chef. He shares that while attending college to become a math major, he was working at a local restaurant as a server. During his shift one evening the cook called out and the manager asked him if he would be interested in learning how to cook. Petralia replied, “Sure I'll try it.” He adds, “I really enjoyed that and I transitioned from serving to cooking at the restaurant.” Petralia shares that this opportunity led to him changing course from being a math major to going to Culinary school.
Petralia talks about the 15 years following Culinary school and how he held a variety of positions in the industry, none of which had him utilizing his culinary experience. He talks about a position becoming available at Fazoli’s that would allow getting back into the culinary side of things. He says, “I thought, hey that'd be great to get back into a culinary more creative type of role.” He adds, “Italian is my background and you know it just really seemed like an exciting opportunity.”
Petralia shares his culinary point of view and how he approaches recipe development particularly when it comes to QSR and Fast Casual. He talks about having over 200 locations that serve over 700000 meals per week and how being able to replicate every recipe with consistency is key. He says, “First and foremost, that's in the back of my mind every time I develop a recipe, is how is this going to happen 700000 times a week in the same way.”
Tune into the podcast to learn more about how Petralia feels about developing recipes including Fazoli’s Breadstick Panzanella (Bread Salad), what he has to say about upcoming culinary trends, and his thoughts on supply chain issues on this episode of Chef AF “It’s All Food” or you can listen at Spotify!
RECIPE
Fazoli’s Breadstick Panzanella (Bread Salad)
Ingredients:
Tomatoes (mixture of variety) – 1.5 pounds, cut into 1” pieces
Kosher salt – 1 ½ teaspoons
Fazoli’s Breadsticks, baked – 10 each
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1 Tablespoon
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – 1/3 cup
Shallot, minced – 1 each
Garlic clove – 2 each
Dijon mustard – ½ teaspoon
Red Wine Vinegar – 1 ½ tablespoons
Black pepper, freshly ground – to taste
Basil leaves, roughly chopped – ½ cup
Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated – to taste
Yield:
8 servings
Process
Preheat oven to 350°
Place cut tomatoes into a colander and place the colander over a mixing bowl.
Add ½ teaspoons of kosher salt to the colander and stir. Set aside and allow tomatoes to drain at room temperature while you complete the rest of the steps. Stir occasionally.
Slice 10 Fazoli’s breadsticks into 1” cubes
Add breadstick cubes to a large mixing bowl
Add 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and coat to toss. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake until crisp and firm, but not browned (approximately 15 to 20 minutes). The goal is to dry the bread out, not brown it.
Remove breadsticks from the oven and allow to cool.
Remove colander with tomatoes from the bowl. Keep the juice.
To the bowl with the tomato juice, add shallot, garlic, mustard, and vinegar.
Whisking constantly, slowly pour in 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil.
Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Combine the breadsticks, tomatoes, and vinaigrette into a large serving bowl.
Add chopped basil leaves and toss to coat.
Allow to rest for 30 minutes before serving, tossing occasionally (this will help the bread soak in the tomato vinaigrette)
Top with freshly grated parmigiano Reggiano (or other hard cheese) and a basil leave for a garnish