FOOD
Heart and chemistry in Cappotto’s kitchen
Heart and chemistry: Low-temperature cooking that preserves nutrients
For Chef Alessandro Cappotto, the kitchen is a laboratory where passion and scientific knowledge work together. At Villa Calini, low-temperature cooking and a menu that leans towards raw food stem from a precise choice: to respect the raw material and preserve microelements. Understanding protein denaturation, the breakdown of complex fats, and the smoke point means cooking without degrading what nature offers.
The result is a cuisine that combines taste and health, where technique is not an exhibition but a service to the food, and every dish becomes a cultural act of awareness.
The kitchen as a laboratory: Chef Cappotto’s vision
For Alessandro Cappotto, the kitchen is a workshop of taste where tradition, passion, and science coexist. The chef himself defines it as an environment that operates in terms of physics and chemistry: every cooking process, every emulsion, every Maillard reaction is a measurable phenomenon, and knowing it means being able to govern it.
This awareness is what separates technical execution from signature cuisine, allowing every food item to be treated as a living matter subject to transformations. From this stems the philosophy of Villa Calini: minimal processing of the raw ingredient to enjoy it at the peak of its flavor.
Why Chef Cappotto prefers a cuisine leaning towards raw
The choice of a predominantly raw cuisine is not a stylistic pose but a precise technical stance. When food is not exposed to aggressive heat sources, heat-sensitive vitamins, polyphenols, and volatile aromatic compounds remain intact.
Raw, or minimal cooking, thus becomes the primary defense of nutrient bioavailability and the most direct way to return the truth of a fresh, seasonal ingredient to the diner.
Low-temperature cooking: The science that protects the raw material
Low-temperature cooking is the tool with which Villa Calini translates its nutrient-preserving cuisine into practice. By keeping the food below controlled thermal thresholds, it is possible to achieve gentle protein denaturation without the abrupt contraction of fibers and without the loss of liquids that stiffens their structures. Meat remains juicy, fish retains its melt-in-the-mouth texture, and vegetables preserve their color and crunchiness.
At the same time, the breakdown of complex fats occurs progressively, restoring tenderness without adding heaviness. It is a technique that requires time, precision, and a deep knowledge of the reaction times of each food.
Smoke point and thermal degradation: The boundaries not to cross
Knowing the smoke point of each fat and the thermal degradation threshold of microelements is what allows Chef Cappotto to build dishes that are simultaneously gastronomically accomplished and nutritionally intact. Exceeding an oil’s smoke point means triggering unwanted reactions and dispersing part of the food’s organoleptic properties. A temperature that is too high degrades vitamins, antioxidants, and extra-nutritional substances that nature has enclosed within the ingredient.
The rule of Villa Calini’s kitchen is clear: every degree counts, and perfection lies not in extreme heat but in moderation.
Taste and health: The Villa Calini equation
The ultimate goal of this approach is simple and ambitious at the same time: to have taste without having to compromise on one’s health. It is not a compromise; it is the equilibrium point where heart and chemistry become one and the same!
