Let’s get one thing straight. Although celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis is an Emmy Award-winning Food Network character, cookbook author, restaurateur and entrepreneur, she still prepares meals in her home kitchen as people.
“The use of a commercial or production kitchen is not suitable for my job,” says De Laurentiis, who cooks five times a week at home in LA. “I’m trying to teach the average person how to make a certain dish without too many steps. That means staying home and using my own pots and pans on my own stove. That’s how you make cooking really accessible.”
De Laurentiis shares even more expertise through Giadzy, an Italian lifestyle platform that features over 200 hand-picked products (from breads to artichoke spreads), recipes, travel guides and more. “People have said to me during the pandemic, ‘I can’t go to my mom and the Italian pop grocer, so what do I do?’ she speaks. “Then, after the world reopened, our views changed about where we ate, how we ate, and what we ate. Eating at home just makes you feel better.” (Giadzy is her childhood nickname.)
To feel your best in the kitchen, think quality items over quantity. “I look in people’s drawers and there are a lot of gadgets and gadgets in there that nobody uses,” she says. On the other hand, a well-stocked pantry can do wonders: “If you have all the staples, you’ll never feel as if you couldn’t put a meal together when you hit the bar. hat falls. You will only have to go to the store to buy vegetables and protein. ”
Hungry for more information? De Laurentiis spoke to CNN Underscored about her recipe for success.
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A proper knife is at number 1 on her list. “You want one that feels good in the hand,” she says. The chef chose a Japanese Santoku utensil because it’s light but sturdy, and she notes that the metal handle – as opposed to the wooden handle – is ideal for cleaning. She uses a serrated knife to cut bread and a paring knife to cut tomatoes, lemon zest and other citrus. And don’t forget to forge them! De Laurentiis does every day.
This is a big problem on many levels. After all, a Dutch oven “is great for soups, stews, sauces, ragus and anything that requires a long cooking time,” she explains. “Cast allows it to heat more evenly without burning patches.” She prefers a heavy-duty Le Creuset because it has a seven-layer construction that ensures excellent heat distribution. She keeps her pans right on the stovetop and advises her chefs to do the same: “Pick a fun color that looks great in your kitchen!”
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De Laurentiis has stainless steel high top Made In pans in a variety of sizes (8 inches, 10 inches, and 12 inches, in case you were wondering). But, she adds, “it’s just because I cook a lot of dishes for different people. You really only need one – especially if you live alone”. As she explains, the right pan is boiling with possibilities. “You can make the base for the sauce, the Chicken Piccata, the Milanese and you can beat the eggs in it,” she says.
The truth is that De Laurentiis will choose not at all uncooked pasta because of its long shelf life. The prerequisite is that the noodles must be made in Italy. “American wheat tends to be the worst of the bunch because it’s heavily processed and modified and will leave me feeling bloated at night,” she says. She carefully selects imported pasta on her website because it is higher quality with minimal ingredients. Exactly, just durum wheat semolina and water.
No rotten tomatoes here. “Fresh tomatoes aren’t always in season, they don’t always taste right, and you won’t be able to keep them for two months,” she says. But canned or canned tomatoes of any kind are available (red-dy?) to take away. “I mix peeled tomatoes with some dried oregano and make a pizza sauce,” she says. “You really don’t even have to cook it.” That said, she also uses it as a base for soups and stews.
“Salt is the basis of all flavors, isn’t it?” she speaks. “But people put salt in their food and instead add more butter and fat because they are compensating. They don’t realize that salt itself is not bad for you. Things that are processed with all the preservatives will be bad for you.” De Laurentiis sprinkles Kosher salt on her clothes and pasta because it’s thicker and “I can feel the amount of salt I’m using in my fingertips.” She also loves seasoning it with dried oregano leaves and lemon zest.
According to the chef, seasoning is life’s variety – and a savory or stewed dish. This pack is a spicy blend of dried Calabrian peppers, tomatoes, parsley and garlic. “I like it because it’s a flavor bomb,” she says. “I also don’t need to go into a high-end grocery store and just buy fresh oregano or rosemary for $7, that’s going to be bad.”
