Cooking Fin to Skin in Tuscany

At Paca, Niccolò Palumbo cooks every part of the fish, from fin to skin. Last week’s Food Chain visited Molin di Bucchio, an aquaculture project raising trout in Tuscany. This week the fish arrives at Paca, where chef Niccolò Palumbo and his team use the fillet, the trimmings, the liver, and the skin. Paca is in a new home. Palumbo and his partner Lorenzo Catucci opened the restaurant near Prato’s historic center in 2019, naming it after themselves: “Pa” for Palumbo, “Ca” for Catucci. Three years later it brought a Michelin star back to the city after a decade. In September, Paca reopened at Tenuta Ceri, a wine estate in the hills of Carmignano established by architect Luca Ceri and now led by his son Edoardo. The estate covers about 40 hectares, 15 of them planted with vines, alongside olive groves, orchards, and woodland. “It was an opportunity to bring farming, research, and cooking closer together,” says Palumbo. “We wanted to build a relationship with the territory that would go beyond sourcing ingredients and become part of how we work.” The kitchen’s method hasn’t changed. “Our creative process always starts with the ingredient and the person who produces it,” says Palumbo. The tasting menu follows what comes into the kitchen, and the team works to use every ingredient in full. Continue reading Access this and all our other premium articles by joining our membership program. Plans start at $6.50 per month and include twice-weekly digital features, access to in-person events, and more. Campania Morocco Southern China All Trips Up Next Trout Return to a Tuscan Mill Town Join our newsletter to get exclusives on where our correspondents travel, what they eat, where they stay. Free to sign up.