Well known for having chosen the Rocca dei Papi in Motefiascone as his residence, Martin IV, the French Simon de Brion, who rose to the papal throne in 1281, is remembered for his passion for the DOC eels from Lake Bolsena, the area just over half an hour from Viterbo and about 2 hours from Rome.
it seems that the pontiff was so fond of eels cooked in Vernaccia that he was immortalized by Dante Alighieri in the Purgatory as one of the most gluttonous gourmands in the 6th Circle (Divine Comedy, Purgatory, XXIV, 19-24) who ‘purges to fast on the eels of Bolsena and Vernaccia’. It is said that Martin let the Lake Bolsena eels drown in Vernaccia wine and then roasted and ate them. His fame as a glutton was also known at the time and already gave cause for satire.
The eel of Lake Bolsena in Vernaccia is still, after more than eight hundred years, a prized dish despite not being traditionally from Tuscia.
Ingredients
DOC eels from Lake Bolsena
Vernaccia wine
garlic
lemon
extra virgin olive oil
hot chili pepper
bay laurel
rosemary
salt
sage
Preparation
Clean the eel, slice it into pieces and marinate it in the Vernaccia wine for at least one night, covering all the eel with the wine and adding aromatic herbs, such as bay leaves, rosemary, pepper and garlic cloves. Drain the eel and season with oil, lemon and salt. Roast the eel and, if using a spit, alternate the eel pieces with bay leaves.
If you prefer to cook it in a pan, fry it with oil, garlic, rosemary, sage, red chili pepper and salt. Let it cook until golden brown.