1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:05,440 I really have very few memories of it. 2 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:11,240 I've been dreaming of coming back to Calabria since I was a boy. 3 00:00:11,240 --> 00:00:14,120 I don't remember it being this green. 4 00:00:14,120 --> 00:00:16,160 It's absolutely beautiful. 5 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:20,080 It's a wild and rugged region, steeped in mystery and myth. 6 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:24,840 A place that's as troubled as it is beautiful. 7 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:27,520 But Calabria means something more to me. 8 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:30,880 It's my ancestral homeland, and I want to get to know the region 9 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:34,080 that my family left behind all those years ago. 10 00:00:34,080 --> 00:00:35,720 Is this jogging your memory at all? 11 00:00:35,720 --> 00:00:37,240 It's a long time ago. 12 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:38,480 I'm Stanley Tucci. 13 00:00:38,480 --> 00:00:40,040 I'm Italian on both sides. 14 00:00:40,040 --> 00:00:43,320 And I'm travelling across Italy to discover how the food in each 15 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:47,000 of this country's 20 regions is as unique as the people 16 00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:48,840 and their past. 17 00:00:48,840 --> 00:00:50,920 Caught between a rock and the sea, 18 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:53,440 the Calabrese are notoriously tough. 19 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:02,640 But this is a place where Southern hospitality is a way of life. 20 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:05,120 Oh, my gosh, look at the size of it. 21 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:12,440 You should open a restaurant! 22 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:16,040 And in this poor region, 23 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:18,200 every meal is a celebration. 24 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:21,400 Oh, wow! That's like a million different flavours in there. 25 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:43,600 Calabria sits in the toe of the boot of Italy, connected to Basilicata 26 00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:47,000 in the north and separated from Sicily in the south, 27 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:49,480 only by the narrow strait of Messina. 28 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:53,960 It's a region of rugged landscapes, dramatic mountain ranges and some 29 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:56,440 500 miles of incredible coastline. 30 00:01:57,840 --> 00:01:59,880 It doesn't have that infrastructure. 31 00:01:59,880 --> 00:02:02,840 It's still a lot of abandoned buildings, a lot of poverty, 32 00:02:02,840 --> 00:02:04,760 a lot of corruption. 33 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:07,960 It's really unfortunate because it is magnificent. 34 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:11,360 Like millions of Calabrians, all four of my grandparents 35 00:02:11,360 --> 00:02:14,040 emigrated from this region with nothing 36 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:16,120 but the clothes on their backs. 37 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,240 So I'm headed first to see the birthplace of my grandfather, 38 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:24,400 Stanislaw Tucci, the man who my father and I are named after. 39 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:27,880 The town of Marzi, population, 900, 40 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:32,600 and happily, I'm being joined by two semi-experienced guides, 41 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:35,520 my parents, Joan and Stan Tucci. 42 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:37,160 Wow, look at that. Oh, look at the door. 43 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:39,240 That's beautiful. 44 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:40,360 This is nice. 45 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:41,960 We're walking down Via Morti. 46 00:02:41,960 --> 00:02:43,840 Yeah, I saw that. The street of the dead. 47 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:45,720 How nice. I'm not going down there. 48 00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:46,760 No, don't go there. 49 00:02:51,160 --> 00:02:54,920 My father has been to Marzi once before, and because our family 50 00:02:54,920 --> 00:02:58,480 is obsessed with our ancestry, he suggested we pay a visit 51 00:02:58,480 --> 00:03:00,720 to the local town hall to see what we can dig up 52 00:03:00,720 --> 00:03:02,240 about my grandfather's life. 53 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:18,080 So, what year, 1889? 54 00:03:18,080 --> 00:03:19,720 My father. 1889. 55 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:22,880 OK, 89. 56 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:23,920 89. 57 00:03:26,280 --> 00:03:27,960 There you go. 58 00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:30,360 Stanislav. Yeah. Oh, wow. 59 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:32,720 Scarpellino, that was his mother? 60 00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:35,720 Scarpellino is your vocation. Yeah. 61 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:37,640 Stone carver. Oh, a stone carver? 62 00:03:37,640 --> 00:03:39,200 So he was born in 89. 63 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:42,080 When did he come to America? 1904. 64 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:44,560 So that makes him 15, 16 years old. 65 00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:47,080 Did he ever come back to see his parents? Once. 66 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:49,000 They never came to America? 67 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:51,920 So he only basically saw his mother one more time, 68 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:54,200 from the time he was 16, 15, 16. 69 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:56,400 It's amazing. Yeah, it's incredible. 70 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:58,520 And a lot of immigrants did. I know, I know. 71 00:03:58,520 --> 00:04:01,080 For a culture that is so family oriented... I know. 72 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:03,320 ..to just move away is hard to believe. 73 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:09,160 Oh, there you go, Dad. 74 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:10,800 Look, it's your family home. 75 00:04:10,800 --> 00:04:13,920 Familia Tucci. Yeah. Let's go in! 76 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:17,000 Wow. Could be a relative. Yeah. 77 00:04:17,000 --> 00:04:21,760 As it turns out, being a Tucci isn't that remarkable over here. 78 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:26,800 Over half of Marzi's population shares our last name... 79 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:29,240 Is this what you remember? 80 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:31,640 ..which turns out to be a big problem as my dad wants 81 00:04:31,640 --> 00:04:33,520 to find his father's house. 82 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:35,920 My recollection, it was perfectly flat. 83 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:38,760 And there was a place with a... Let's go. 84 00:04:38,760 --> 00:04:41,120 ..huge clock at the top. 85 00:04:41,120 --> 00:04:44,000 This is the clock that you just said, right? 86 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:46,360 You remember a flat area? Yeah, a flat area. 87 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:48,400 But do you remember where the house is? 88 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:50,840 I think it was down here. 89 00:04:50,840 --> 00:04:52,800 Watch your step. Yes. 90 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:54,440 Is this jogging your memory at all? 91 00:04:54,440 --> 00:04:56,680 It's a long time ago, that I remember. 92 00:04:56,680 --> 00:04:58,520 I remember the square. 93 00:04:58,520 --> 00:04:59,560 28. 94 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:04,720 That's number 30. 95 00:05:04,720 --> 00:05:07,080 Then that's it. 96 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:10,640 So this, we think, could be the house where your father was born. 97 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:13,360 It's only the second time, and obviously memory fades. 98 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:14,920 Yes, I know, I know. 99 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:17,520 I've always wanted to come here, you know, because I never came... 100 00:05:17,520 --> 00:05:20,240 No. ..when we were young. But we're glad we saw the town. 101 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:22,000 This town? Yeah, so pretty. 102 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:23,760 Yeah. Should we eat? 103 00:05:23,760 --> 00:05:25,640 Sure. Sounds like a good idea. 104 00:05:25,640 --> 00:05:27,800 Is there a restaurant called Tucci? Maybe. 105 00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:31,000 But I'm not going to let you try to find it. 106 00:05:32,160 --> 00:05:34,320 Marzi sits in the valley of the Savuto, 107 00:05:34,320 --> 00:05:36,120 known as the valley of wheat, 108 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:39,880 where, fed by the mineral rich waters of the mountains, 109 00:05:39,880 --> 00:05:45,480 there's a thousand year old history of bread making, and there's a place 110 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:50,320 nearby still making bread, according to ancient Calabrian tradition. 111 00:05:50,320 --> 00:05:51,880 Wow! 112 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:55,800 Stanley, 113 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:57,200 Stanley, Giovanna. 114 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:04,480 Pina Olivetti runs Panificio Cuti, 115 00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:07,840 one of the most famous artisanal bakeries in the region. 116 00:06:15,440 --> 00:06:18,040 Oh, my God, it is very heavy. 117 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:20,400 That's a heavy bread. Yeah! 118 00:06:34,000 --> 00:06:37,240 Sour dough is a living, breathing bread that has been made 119 00:06:37,240 --> 00:06:40,240 since the beginning of human civilisation, but is somehow 120 00:06:40,240 --> 00:06:42,760 still notoriously tricky to get right. 121 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:44,680 Oh, my gosh, it's so hot. 122 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:52,120 Its slow, natural fermentation means this bread stays fresh much longer 123 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:53,640 than ordinary bread. 124 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,800 No trivial matter in a region where food wasn't always plentiful. 125 00:07:18,120 --> 00:07:20,720 Knowing we've come to Marzi in search of things past, 126 00:07:20,720 --> 00:07:22,720 Pina's prepared us a little treat 127 00:07:22,720 --> 00:07:26,720 that would have been on every family table 100 years ago, a filled bread 128 00:07:26,720 --> 00:07:30,560 bowl called morzello, which is typically stuffed with meat 129 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:34,480 and seasonal vegetables like local favourite, cime di rapa, 130 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:36,160 or broccoli rabe. 131 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:43,200 The bitterness of that... 132 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:56,880 This ingeniously portable dish meant that farmers, hunters 133 00:07:56,880 --> 00:07:59,080 and even stonemasons like my grandfather 134 00:07:59,080 --> 00:08:03,920 could carry a not so little slice of home anywhere they went. 135 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:19,760 That's beautiful. 136 00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:35,760 Oh, my gosh, look at the size of it. 137 00:08:41,480 --> 00:08:42,960 No, you're first! 138 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:54,720 Delicious. Delicious. So good. 139 00:08:54,720 --> 00:08:56,880 It's all sunk in. 140 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:01,480 That's good for you. That's great. Delicious. 141 00:09:04,560 --> 00:09:08,520 As we head out of Marzi, I think of my grandfather Stanislaw leaving 142 00:09:08,520 --> 00:09:13,040 Calabria and of that special bond that Italian immigrants have to food 143 00:09:13,040 --> 00:09:15,880 that reminds them of home. 144 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:19,840 Perhaps that's why bread is never missing on our table. 145 00:09:28,080 --> 00:09:31,800 While my parents are relaxing by the pool, or the bar, 146 00:09:31,800 --> 00:09:34,920 I'm heading out to a place I've always wanted to visit. 147 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:40,320 Built atop a 150-foot cliff, overlooking the warm waters 148 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:42,040 of the Tyrrhenian Sea, 149 00:09:42,040 --> 00:09:44,320 Tropea is Calabria's crown jewel. 150 00:09:45,560 --> 00:09:49,120 Over the centuries, it's been prone to almost constant invasions 151 00:09:49,120 --> 00:09:52,040 from neighbouring empires who all wanted to possess 152 00:09:52,040 --> 00:09:54,000 this enchanting town. 153 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:56,040 But I'm here to wrap my head around something 154 00:09:56,040 --> 00:09:58,080 of a botanical mystery. 155 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:05,320 Tropea is renowned all across Italy for its singular red onions. 156 00:10:05,320 --> 00:10:08,360 They are so sweet they can be served in everything from pastas 157 00:10:08,360 --> 00:10:11,240 to preserves, even in ice cream, 158 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:12,480 if you're so inclined. 159 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:13,800 I'm not. 160 00:10:23,560 --> 00:10:25,840 To find out what makes these onions so special, 161 00:10:25,840 --> 00:10:29,520 I'm meeting up with Tropean restaurateur, Michael Pugliese. 162 00:10:52,560 --> 00:10:56,240 Despite their incredible popularity, the Tropea onion only grows 163 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:59,280 in a small stretch of coastline surrounding the city. 164 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:01,520 Just a few miles further out, 165 00:11:01,520 --> 00:11:05,320 and it loses that sweetness that makes it unique. 166 00:11:25,640 --> 00:11:27,400 Wow. 167 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:29,400 Yeah, that's gorgeous. 168 00:11:49,320 --> 00:11:51,560 First grown here over 3,000 years ago, 169 00:11:51,560 --> 00:11:54,840 Tropea onions were an unexpected gift brought by foreign conquerors 170 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:56,720 from the Middle East. 171 00:12:36,080 --> 00:12:37,520 Though today the Tropea Onion 172 00:12:37,520 --> 00:12:39,320 is beginning to be produced commercially, 173 00:12:39,320 --> 00:12:43,080 there are still a few farmers left like Francesco and Onofrio, 174 00:12:43,080 --> 00:12:45,720 who harvest their onions by hand using only 175 00:12:45,720 --> 00:12:48,840 traditional irrigation methods. 176 00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:42,600 Despite having suffered invasions for over 3,000 years, Calabrians 177 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:44,560 are tenaciously hospitable. 178 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:49,000 So Michael is not allowing me to leave Tropea before eating 179 00:13:49,000 --> 00:13:50,720 something at his restaurant, 180 00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:54,960 Osteria della Cipolla Rossa, The Red Onion Inn. 181 00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:06,160 The restaurant is run by Michael's wife, Romana, who is so obsessed 182 00:14:06,160 --> 00:14:09,960 with farm to table dining that she refuses to own a fridge. 183 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,080 The Osteria's specialty is the unapologetically simple 184 00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:29,920 red onion spaghetti. 185 00:14:29,920 --> 00:14:32,880 But don't underestimate simplicity. 186 00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:14,120 Oh, my gosh! 187 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:39,120 That's delicious. 188 00:15:39,120 --> 00:15:41,880 There's nothing to this but onions, broth and pasta. 189 00:15:41,880 --> 00:15:45,120 But the combination of these three simple ingredients 190 00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:47,760 becomes something sublime. 191 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:49,280 Oniony, but it's not oniony. 192 00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:50,920 I don't know how to describe it. 193 00:16:01,880 --> 00:16:04,520 It's hard not to be enchanted by the beauty of Tropea 194 00:16:04,520 --> 00:16:08,240 and its unique red onions, but to me the real magic of this place 195 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:11,400 is the warmth and hospitality of its people. 196 00:16:20,920 --> 00:16:24,360 The Calabrians have always had to rely on the sea for sustenance 197 00:16:24,360 --> 00:16:26,800 and surrounded by water on three sides, 198 00:16:26,800 --> 00:16:30,200 the catch here is as unique as it is plentiful. 199 00:16:32,280 --> 00:16:33,680 Look at that. Silver snake. 200 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:36,200 God, they're incredible. Yes. They look fake! 201 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:44,240 I've come to a Calabrian fish auction to get a sense of the catch. 202 00:16:52,160 --> 00:16:56,320 But because I'm a fish out of water, respected restaurateur, 203 00:16:56,320 --> 00:16:59,280 Gianni Giordano is showing me around. 204 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:01,680 Is it octopus? Octopus. Everything? 205 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:03,840 Everything right here. 206 00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:07,960 Tuna, swordfish, sharks. 207 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:10,280 Oh, this is a biggest squid. 208 00:17:10,280 --> 00:17:11,680 Calamari. 209 00:17:13,320 --> 00:17:15,720 He screams all the time. 210 00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:20,880 You've got to fight with everybody because nobody got to take the fish. 211 00:17:20,880 --> 00:17:24,280 No sea creature is more respected or prized in Calabria 212 00:17:24,280 --> 00:17:25,720 than the swordfish. 213 00:17:25,720 --> 00:17:28,760 Catching one of these sabred sea monsters is not easy, 214 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:30,400 but it is lucrative. 215 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:33,200 A single fish can fetch up to $5,000. 216 00:17:37,600 --> 00:17:39,640 Yesterday, 20? 20, really? 217 00:17:39,640 --> 00:17:41,680 Today, only one. Every day it's different. 218 00:17:41,680 --> 00:17:43,760 Every day is different, yeah. You want to buy it? 219 00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:46,040 I don't have room in my hotel! 220 00:17:50,000 --> 00:17:53,840 Gionni's promised some fresh swordfish awaits me at his place. 221 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:56,640 But before getting lunch, we stop off to have a look 222 00:17:56,640 --> 00:17:59,000 at his hometown, Scilla. 223 00:17:59,000 --> 00:18:02,160 This town dates back to a time when Calabria was at the heart 224 00:18:02,160 --> 00:18:03,920 of Magna Graecia, 225 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,640 Greece's empire in Italy. 226 00:18:06,640 --> 00:18:07,680 Wow! 227 00:18:07,680 --> 00:18:10,440 That's Sicily? Yes, it's Sicily. 228 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:13,800 The other side of this is Scilla. 229 00:18:13,800 --> 00:18:16,560 Ancient Greek legends like the Odyssey, 230 00:18:16,560 --> 00:18:19,880 told of the perilous passage in this narrow strait where sailors 231 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:23,240 were forced to choose between a vicious sea monster called Scilla 232 00:18:23,240 --> 00:18:25,360 and a deadly whirlpool. 233 00:18:29,160 --> 00:18:30,600 Is this true or... 234 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:32,480 No, it's true. It's true. 235 00:18:46,680 --> 00:18:49,360 If they catch swordfish. 236 00:18:49,360 --> 00:18:52,400 Remarkably, a traditional form of sword fishing passed down 237 00:18:52,400 --> 00:18:55,680 from the ancient Greeks is still practised here in the waters 238 00:18:55,680 --> 00:18:57,440 around Scilla to this day. 239 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:39,240 We're heading to the family's restaurant, the Prince of Scilla, 240 00:19:39,240 --> 00:19:41,520 and I'm in for the royal treatment. 241 00:19:41,520 --> 00:19:43,760 This one. Nice fish. 242 00:19:46,480 --> 00:19:49,400 This swordfish was caught so recently you can eat it 243 00:19:49,400 --> 00:19:50,680 straight off the bone. 244 00:20:01,880 --> 00:20:04,720 Caught this fresh and sliced this fine, 245 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:07,400 it's like prosciutto and smoked salmon 246 00:20:07,400 --> 00:20:09,920 had a lovechild. 247 00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:11,960 Oh, so good. 248 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:21,120 Next, Gionni wants to cook me something more traditional, 249 00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:25,560 scialatielli alla gurta, long, thin strands of pasta in a swordfish 250 00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:27,200 ragu, of sorts. 251 00:20:28,440 --> 00:20:32,600 He starts things off with a sofrito of garlic and sweet Tropea onion. 252 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:44,840 Yeah. 253 00:20:48,880 --> 00:20:51,480 I'd like to have a shirt made out of this. 254 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:13,600 Thank you for coming. Thank you for having me. 255 00:21:19,040 --> 00:21:20,480 Is it good? 256 00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:28,520 Yeah. 257 00:21:28,520 --> 00:21:29,560 Yep. 258 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:31,680 You should open a restaurant! 259 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:34,320 That's really good. 260 00:21:34,320 --> 00:21:35,880 And see the swordfish boats? 261 00:21:35,880 --> 00:21:38,680 And they're up in the crow's nest up there. 262 00:21:38,680 --> 00:21:40,320 It's really beautiful. 263 00:21:41,680 --> 00:21:44,200 It's curious to think of Calabrians still heading out 264 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:48,120 into these perilous waters to battle against ancient sea monsters. 265 00:21:48,120 --> 00:21:52,920 But in this land of myth and legend, the sea is a mirror to the soul. 266 00:22:05,320 --> 00:22:07,640 Look at those mountains. 267 00:22:07,640 --> 00:22:10,760 I'm leaving Calabria's coast behind and heading deep 268 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:14,280 into the back country of the Aspro Monte mountains. 269 00:22:14,280 --> 00:22:17,720 Rugged and shrouded in folklore, few tend to venture 270 00:22:17,720 --> 00:22:20,680 through its impenetrable forests. 271 00:22:20,680 --> 00:22:23,640 But I'm heading to meet a chef who's opened a restaurant in this most 272 00:22:23,640 --> 00:22:25,520 remote corner of Calabria. 273 00:22:29,760 --> 00:22:33,240 This river that flows in our property is called the Calabretto 274 00:22:33,240 --> 00:22:37,760 and comes directly from our big mountain, the Aspro Monte. 275 00:22:37,760 --> 00:22:40,320 All the southern part of Calabria 276 00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:43,400 is just surrounded by Aspro Monte. 277 00:22:43,400 --> 00:22:47,440 Nino Rossi has been living and working out here since 2016, 278 00:22:47,440 --> 00:22:50,440 making food that celebrates the unique biodiversity 279 00:22:50,440 --> 00:22:52,240 of this mountain. 280 00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:55,320 And this land's been in your family for many generations? 281 00:22:55,320 --> 00:22:57,320 I think we are sixth generation. 282 00:22:57,320 --> 00:22:58,760 Did you grow up here? 283 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:04,080 I grew up in Rome, but I never stopped being a Calabrian child. 284 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:08,360 Growing up in a well-to-do family 1,000 thousand miles away from here, 285 00:23:08,360 --> 00:23:12,240 Nino's keen interest in traditional Calabrian cooking came as a bit 286 00:23:12,240 --> 00:23:14,840 of a surprise to his friends and family. 287 00:23:14,840 --> 00:23:16,360 You didn't train as a chef? 288 00:23:16,360 --> 00:23:18,320 I am a self-taught chef. 289 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:23,000 But at the same time, in the past, I had the opportunity to learn 290 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:26,200 from an ancient housekeeper called Maria. 291 00:23:26,200 --> 00:23:29,920 And that's the way I got all the cuisine from the people. 292 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:34,080 Then I put all the things together and I started just experimenting. 293 00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:38,160 Once I would like to learn how to make pastry. 294 00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:39,680 I start only make pastries. 295 00:23:39,680 --> 00:23:43,600 So if you invite myself to a dinner, I would just show up 296 00:23:43,600 --> 00:23:45,760 with one of my cakes and say, "Oh, this is for you." 297 00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:47,760 You became obsessive? Yeah. 298 00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:49,080 Obsessive, yes. 299 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:52,680 Over the last few years, Nino's obsession has driven him to turn 300 00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:55,800 this remote area into his culinary playground. 301 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:00,240 So this is where you do your foraging? Yeah. 302 00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:02,880 I used to walk along the river 303 00:24:02,880 --> 00:24:05,800 and then go also higher into the mountain. 304 00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:09,680 But here you can find a lot of special things. 305 00:24:09,680 --> 00:24:11,200 This is the water mint. 306 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:15,280 It's wild and has a strong, citrus taste. 307 00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:16,880 An orange taste. 308 00:24:18,800 --> 00:24:21,200 Yeah. You know that once, I poisoned myself. 309 00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:22,800 So this is safe? No, this is safe. 310 00:24:22,800 --> 00:24:24,360 I'm going to make it through? 311 00:24:24,360 --> 00:24:26,760 What did you poison yourself with? 312 00:24:26,760 --> 00:24:28,400 What was it? With the crocus? 313 00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:31,560 And I thought it was white garlic. 314 00:24:31,560 --> 00:24:36,120 And it was really... Yes, that can be very bad for you. 315 00:24:36,120 --> 00:24:39,800 Yeah, but I studied a lot. That's good. 316 00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:42,440 And I pretty know everything about this place. 317 00:24:42,440 --> 00:24:44,360 From the upper part, 318 00:24:44,360 --> 00:24:47,120 we take the silver fir and I show you. 319 00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:51,880 It's just a fir tree. 320 00:24:51,880 --> 00:24:53,000 White fir. 321 00:24:54,200 --> 00:24:55,840 Yeah, it's nice. 322 00:24:55,840 --> 00:24:57,360 Really aromatic. 323 00:24:57,360 --> 00:24:59,360 Yes, I love it. 324 00:24:59,360 --> 00:25:00,720 So should we go cook? Yeah. 325 00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:02,520 I'm going to cook for you. All right. 326 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:06,240 Nino's restaurant is a love letter to the Aspro Monte 327 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:09,840 and the unique and undiscovered ingredients that can be found only 328 00:25:09,840 --> 00:25:11,400 here on the mountain. 329 00:25:14,280 --> 00:25:16,280 Today, he's preparing me a dish 330 00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:18,560 that has helped cement his Michelin star. 331 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:20,560 A dessert called Fire. 332 00:25:20,560 --> 00:25:22,000 This is a meringue. 333 00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:24,200 So it's just egg white and sugar? 334 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:28,360 And we put this vegetable carbon powder. 335 00:25:28,360 --> 00:25:31,000 So this is just charcoal? Yep. 336 00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:32,600 What did people think about it? 337 00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:35,520 A lot of people think that putting charcoal in a meringue, 338 00:25:35,520 --> 00:25:38,120 it was something a little bit crazy. 339 00:25:39,480 --> 00:25:45,240 In 2021, over 60 wildfires ravaged Calabria, leaving a trail of death 340 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:49,200 and devastation in Nino's beloved mountains. 341 00:25:49,200 --> 00:25:53,600 Foraging was completely different after the fire because you can see 342 00:25:53,600 --> 00:25:56,040 a lot of mountainsides completely black. 343 00:25:56,040 --> 00:25:59,520 But at the same time, walking around, you can see all this strong 344 00:25:59,520 --> 00:26:02,680 nature and colours going through the ground. Right. 345 00:26:02,680 --> 00:26:07,240 And just go up and show its greatness. 346 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:12,120 Then I came back home and say, OK, I have to tribute the mountain. 347 00:26:13,880 --> 00:26:18,400 Nino's obsessive baking has paid off in this tribute to the mountain. 348 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:19,880 It looks like glass. 349 00:26:19,880 --> 00:26:22,880 After three hours in the oven, the notoriously temperamental 350 00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:26,360 meringue is perfectly light and crisp. 351 00:26:26,360 --> 00:26:30,800 Here we have silver fir balls, it's a silver fir extract, 352 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:32,120 water and lemon. 353 00:26:32,120 --> 00:26:36,760 We make a base like this, and then we bring the apple. 354 00:26:36,760 --> 00:26:38,520 So the apples come from the mountains? 355 00:26:38,520 --> 00:26:40,320 Yes, comes from Aspro Monte. 356 00:26:40,320 --> 00:26:42,320 I put the white chocolate foam. 357 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:46,120 I put back the white fir. 358 00:26:46,120 --> 00:26:51,360 We had to call this dessert New Life After The Fire. 359 00:26:51,360 --> 00:26:55,880 Because what we are building now is a new life, giving the second 360 00:26:55,880 --> 00:26:57,920 opportunity to the mountain. 361 00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:02,120 And this is like the last minutes of a fire. 362 00:27:02,120 --> 00:27:03,520 Yes, absolutely. 363 00:27:03,520 --> 00:27:06,480 You have to taste it. I will, thank you. 364 00:27:12,320 --> 00:27:14,200 Oh, wow! 365 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:16,520 That's like a million different flavours in there. 366 00:27:16,520 --> 00:27:18,120 That's amazing. 367 00:27:18,120 --> 00:27:20,600 Citric and balsamic. Yeah. 368 00:27:20,600 --> 00:27:21,960 And I love it. 369 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:23,480 Oh, that's amazing. 370 00:27:23,480 --> 00:27:24,800 I'm just, keeps like... 371 00:27:24,800 --> 00:27:26,160 And with the apple and... 372 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:29,160 Yeah, yeah, absolutely. 373 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:30,720 That's just... 374 00:27:33,480 --> 00:27:35,560 That's great. 375 00:27:35,560 --> 00:27:37,520 Wow! 376 00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:38,720 Thank you. 377 00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:41,280 It's not fancy tricks nor strange ingredients 378 00:27:41,280 --> 00:27:43,040 that make Nino's food extraordinary. 379 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:47,000 It's that he's managed to perfectly capture the alchemy and enduring 380 00:27:47,000 --> 00:27:49,080 beauty of this place. 381 00:27:57,720 --> 00:28:01,320 I've come to the northernmost point of Calabria's Aspro Monte, 382 00:28:01,320 --> 00:28:03,720 to the mountain hamlet of Martone. 383 00:28:07,480 --> 00:28:10,200 It's a town that's ailing from an issue that's rampant 384 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:12,080 throughout the region. 385 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:31,320 Blighted by social and economic hardship, 386 00:28:31,320 --> 00:28:34,640 there are over 200 mountain towns in Calabria that are at risk 387 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:36,040 of being abandoned. 388 00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:48,960 But not everyone is packing up their bags. 389 00:28:48,960 --> 00:28:52,480 Annalisa Fiorenza is a farmer and local activist who is using 390 00:28:52,480 --> 00:28:55,640 organic agriculture as a means to create opportunities 391 00:28:55,640 --> 00:28:57,040 in her community. 392 00:29:28,520 --> 00:29:32,120 But Annalisa has had to contend with some deep rooted issues 393 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:33,760 that come with the territory. 394 00:29:33,760 --> 00:29:38,040 These mountains are a stronghold of the Ndrangheta, 395 00:29:38,040 --> 00:29:40,680 the notorious Calabrian mafia. 396 00:29:40,680 --> 00:29:42,400 Formed in the 1800s, 397 00:29:42,400 --> 00:29:46,000 this brutal criminal syndicate took root in the most impoverished 398 00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:48,480 and rural parts of the region. 399 00:29:48,480 --> 00:29:51,440 Today, they're one of the most powerful criminal networks 400 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:54,360 in the world, 401 00:29:54,360 --> 00:29:58,200 with an estimated $60 billion annual turnover. 402 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:43,120 The only way Annalisa has been able to survive is by joining forces 403 00:30:43,120 --> 00:30:47,400 with a cooperative of local farmers called GOEL Bio, 404 00:30:47,400 --> 00:30:51,160 which helped her rebuild after she was attacked. 405 00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:54,480 Today, a few members are meeting up for their monthly lunch at a local 406 00:30:54,480 --> 00:30:56,840 restaurant, La Colinecta. 407 00:30:56,840 --> 00:30:59,240 And Annalisa and I are joining. 408 00:31:05,400 --> 00:31:08,920 The restaurant is run by fellow farmer and chef, Pino Tremblay, 409 00:31:08,920 --> 00:31:12,720 who is preparing us a feast of Calabrian dishes. 410 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:17,440 Pino decided to join the cooperative in 2019 as a means to promote 411 00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:20,480 his incredible organic produce outside of his restaurant. 412 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:36,640 This is time honoured cooking, and by time honoured, 413 00:31:36,640 --> 00:31:38,600 I mean, like, the Stone Age. 414 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:42,840 Cooking in clay perfectly seals in the flavours of the meat. 415 00:31:42,840 --> 00:31:44,280 But there's a trade off. 416 00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:47,080 It takes over four hours per dish. Oh! 417 00:31:55,960 --> 00:31:59,320 Pino's down to Earth cooking would have been a sure-fire success 418 00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:00,720 anywhere in Italy. 419 00:32:00,720 --> 00:32:03,400 But running a thriving business in this part of Calabria 420 00:32:03,400 --> 00:32:05,240 often comes at a price. 421 00:33:05,200 --> 00:33:08,720 Whenever somebody like Pino is threatened or attacked, 422 00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:11,280 the cooperative gather around the victim to protect them, 423 00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:14,280 even funding rebuilding efforts. 424 00:33:15,680 --> 00:33:17,560 Oh, my... 425 00:33:20,360 --> 00:33:21,840 Oh, yeah, put it down. 426 00:33:23,680 --> 00:33:26,760 It's a bold approach, but one that's working. 427 00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:30,160 The cooperative hasn't suffered an attack in five years, 428 00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:32,360 and that's something worth celebrating. 429 00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:34,120 Wow! 430 00:33:50,160 --> 00:33:52,240 This battle is by no means won. 431 00:33:52,240 --> 00:33:55,920 But Pino and Annalisa's stories are a reminder that food 432 00:33:55,920 --> 00:33:59,400 can be a powerful tool for social change. 433 00:33:59,400 --> 00:34:00,960 It just falls apart. 434 00:34:00,960 --> 00:34:03,120 It's delicious. 435 00:34:03,120 --> 00:34:06,760 And there's reason to be hopeful because, as Pino says, 436 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:09,080 Calabria is made up of good people. 437 00:34:10,560 --> 00:34:12,600 To all of you. 438 00:34:26,080 --> 00:34:27,920 I remember this very distinctly, 439 00:34:27,920 --> 00:34:30,680 but I don't remember it being as verdant as this. 440 00:34:30,680 --> 00:34:34,320 Obviously, it was 48 years ago, so the trees were smaller. 441 00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,000 But you must have come with neighbourhood charm. 442 00:34:37,000 --> 00:34:40,760 My time in Calabria is coming to a close, so my parents 443 00:34:40,760 --> 00:34:43,280 are joining me for one last trip. 444 00:34:43,280 --> 00:34:47,640 We've come to visit my maternal grandparents' home, Cittanova. 445 00:34:47,640 --> 00:34:50,480 And I never saw this, all the times we've been here. 446 00:34:50,480 --> 00:34:52,560 No, I don't remember this. 447 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:54,120 But time's up. 448 00:34:56,000 --> 00:34:58,960 My grandfather, Vincenzo, was a battlefield medic 449 00:34:58,960 --> 00:35:01,920 in World War I who, emigrated to Westchester, New York, 450 00:35:01,920 --> 00:35:04,520 where he met and married a girl from his hometown, 451 00:35:04,520 --> 00:35:07,040 my grandmother, Conchita. 452 00:35:07,040 --> 00:35:09,960 That's an awful lot of people from a small city. 453 00:35:09,960 --> 00:35:13,200 Italia Caduti In Cverra. 454 00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:15,040 Those who fell in the war. 455 00:35:15,040 --> 00:35:17,160 This is our family, Tropeano. 456 00:35:17,160 --> 00:35:19,000 Tropeano, Tropeano. 457 00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:23,040 So happy we saw this, never even known it was here. 458 00:35:23,040 --> 00:35:26,040 But there's another reason why we've come to Cittanova. 459 00:35:26,040 --> 00:35:28,640 The last time we were here was on our first family trip 460 00:35:28,640 --> 00:35:30,720 to Calabria in 1973. 461 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:36,120 We stayed then with my grandfather's family and made a promise to return. 462 00:35:47,560 --> 00:35:50,480 Today, we're keeping that promise and finally getting to have 463 00:35:50,480 --> 00:35:53,840 an intimate family reunion, or as intimate as you can get 464 00:35:53,840 --> 00:35:56,080 with a family of this size. 465 00:36:02,080 --> 00:36:03,960 I know, I know, it's a lot of people. 466 00:36:08,680 --> 00:36:10,800 Let's go! 467 00:36:10,800 --> 00:36:14,800 In typical Calabrian fashion, my relatives have been up day and night 468 00:36:14,800 --> 00:36:20,200 for half a week, preparing a feast of some of our favourite dishes 469 00:36:20,200 --> 00:36:23,000 like this, stockfish, Cittanova style. 470 00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:26,640 This is a Tropeano family dish 471 00:36:26,640 --> 00:36:29,400 that is very similar to the Baccala and tomato sauce 472 00:36:29,400 --> 00:36:30,960 that I grew up with. 473 00:36:42,200 --> 00:36:45,840 My mother would make this with baccala. 474 00:36:53,680 --> 00:36:55,640 Wow! 475 00:36:57,560 --> 00:36:59,800 It's so good! 476 00:36:59,800 --> 00:37:03,960 But no family feast, at least in our household, is complete 477 00:37:03,960 --> 00:37:06,600 until you have these, zeppole. 478 00:37:24,440 --> 00:37:27,520 These delicious, deep-fried beignets-like things, 479 00:37:27,520 --> 00:37:30,320 often smothered in confectionary sugar, are a staple 480 00:37:30,320 --> 00:37:33,200 at Italian-American festivities. 481 00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:37,520 But here in Calabria, zeppole are made savoury instead of sweet. 482 00:37:41,280 --> 00:37:44,720 What do you think, Stan? They're good. They're good. 483 00:37:44,720 --> 00:37:47,560 It's a meal. Are they as good as mine? 484 00:37:48,840 --> 00:37:50,720 I'm not answering that question. 485 00:37:50,720 --> 00:37:52,240 Delicious! 486 00:37:52,240 --> 00:37:56,600 But another dish, a simple, nameless preparation of roasted goat, 487 00:37:56,600 --> 00:37:59,560 reminds me of that trip here almost 50 years ago. 488 00:38:20,920 --> 00:38:22,320 I don't know. 489 00:38:22,320 --> 00:38:25,360 It had a great influence on me, just driving up, getting it, putting it 490 00:38:25,360 --> 00:38:27,920 into the back of the car, into the trunk of the car. 491 00:38:27,920 --> 00:38:30,040 It was dead, but it was so good. 492 00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:32,480 It was probably prepared like that. 493 00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:34,800 Right? Beautiful. 494 00:38:34,800 --> 00:38:38,640 For our family, there has always been a strange and magical bond 495 00:38:38,640 --> 00:38:42,280 with food that drives so much of what we do. 496 00:38:55,920 --> 00:39:00,200 I believe that the food we enjoy together strengthens the bonds 497 00:39:00,200 --> 00:39:01,680 we will share forever. 498 00:39:27,280 --> 00:39:28,560 I'll take some potatoes. 499 00:39:28,560 --> 00:39:30,200 I love that. 500 00:39:33,360 --> 00:39:36,520 The region my family left behind all those years ago 501 00:39:36,520 --> 00:39:39,360 is still as troubled as it is beautiful. 502 00:39:39,360 --> 00:39:40,880 Oh, my God. 503 00:39:40,880 --> 00:39:44,320 But the true magic of this land is how it inspires people here 504 00:39:44,320 --> 00:39:49,440 to do things that are equally as beautiful and how everywhere you go, 505 00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:53,400 you will be treated like family.