Italian Food Safari Season 1 Episode 5 Episode 5

Italian Food Safari is an Italian cooking show that travels all around Italy exploring the country's culinary traditions and dishes. In this episode, episode 5 of season 1, we join presenters Maeve O'Meara and Guy Grossi as they journey from the verdant hills of Piedmont to the sultry southern regions of Calabria and Puglia to discover some of the best classic and modern dishes originating from these regions.

The episode begins in Piedmont, the region that's considered the birthplace of the "Slow Food" movement. Maeve and Guy meet with three generations of women, a mother, daughter, and granddaughter team who show them how to make a traditional dish from the region called Agnolotti del Plin. Agnolotti is a type of pasta similar to ravioli and filled with a mix of meats, vegetables, and spices. The women painstakingly show Maeve and Guy how to make perfect agnolotti pasta with small, delicate folds.

Next stop, the neighboring region of Lombardy- Maeve and Guy are greeted by a friendly chef who specializes in creating modern interpretations of traditional Italian dishes. They watch the chef prepare a dish of braised ox-tail with polenta, demonstrating how to make a hearty dish that's easy to prepare at home. Guy then takes us on a tour of his own restaurant, Grossi Florentino, where he tells the story of how he came to love Italian food and the Italian way of life.

The duo then travels to Calabria where they discover a unique and ancient delicacy of the region called nduja. Nduja is a spreadable sausage-like paste made with fatty cuts of pork and chilli. The locals love nduja so much it's been incorporated into many classic dishes of the region. Maeve and Guy enjoy this delicious spread with some freshly baked bread and learn how to make a Calabrian classic pasta dish called Gnocchi with Nduja sauce.

In Puglia, the hosts meet with an Italian Nonna (grandmother) who teaches them how to prepare several classic dishes of the region. Nonna shows Maeve and Guy how to prepare a light and airy focaccia bread and how to make the pasta dish orecchiette from scratch. Guy is in his element as he cooks up a storm, showing us how to make a classic Puglian fish dish that is perfect for entertaining.

Finally, we see Maeve and Guy take us to the bustling city of Naples, where they explore the ancient art of pizza making. They meet with pizza maker Gino Sorbillo, who is a renowned master of the Neapolitan pizza. Sorbillo teaches them how to make dough the traditional way, and shows us how to build the perfect pizza, topped with the freshest ingredients and baked to crispy perfection in a wood-fired oven.

Italian Food Safari is a celebration of the culinary history and traditions of one of the world's great food cultures. Through their travels and experiences, Maeve and Guy have brought some of the best classic and modern dishes of Italy to our screens, inspiring and delighting us with their passion for food.