LIDIA: Buongiorno!

I'm Lidia Bastianich.

And teaching you about Italian food has always been my passion.

It has always been about cooking together and ultimately building your confidence in the kitchen.

So what does that mean?

You get to cook it yourselves.

For me, food is about delicious flavors... Che bellezza!

...comforting memories, and, most of all, family.

Tutti a tavola a mangiare!

♪ ANNOUNCER: Funding provided by... ANNOUNCER: At Cento Fine Foods, we're dedicated to preserving the culinary heritage of authentic Italian foods by offering over 100 specialty Italian products for the American kitchen.

Cento -- Trust your family with our family.

♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

ANNOUNCER: Locatelli Pecorino Romano cheese from Italy.

Handcrafted from 100% sheep's milk.

ANNOUNCER: Authentic Italian cured meats.

Paolo Rovagnati, the true Italian tradition.

ANNOUNCER: And by... O0 C ♪ LIDIA: There are some dishes that scream Italian.

Arancini, Parmigiana, bolognese sauce.

And today I'm going to teach you how to make these great Italian staples.

I make my version of the famous chicken Parmigiana with a breaded chicken thigh topped with fresh tomatoes and mozzarella nestled in a bed of tomato sauce.

These crunchy fried rice balls are stuffed with sausage ragu, making them irresistible and, more importantly, the ultimate Italian snack.

It's quintessentially Italian.

Italian essentials.

Traditional Italian recipes are continued in the families in Italy, but also brought to America, a little bit Americanized, and they're delicious.

Arancini still is going very strong at restaurants as an appetizer.

Bolognese sauce.

And it's just so mellow, so heartwarming when it's done.

Polenta.

I've been eating it ever since I can remember.

And so flavors really connect and bring you someplace.

Sometimes they make you nostalgic for places.

Chicken Parmigiana Light.

Everybody loves chicken Parmigiana, but this one is a little different -- my way, a little lighter.

And I use chicken thighs.

I like chicken thighs.

They stay moister when you cook them, whether it's in the Parmigiana or whatever.

I'm going to just stretch them out a little bit.

And...it's always good, so it doesn't run all over.

The flat part of the mallet.

Kind of just stretching it out.

Yeah.

Good.

So the chicken is ready now.

So, the next thing is to bread them.

First, you do the flour, then you do the eggs.

Eggs with a little bit of salt.

And you whisk them well.

Okay.

That's that.

And then there is the bread.

Let's do two at a time, because once you get your fingers in the egg mixture and then in the bread, you're gonna get your fingers breaded, and then you won't be able to work.

So I am pulling it up with the fork, draining, and just laying it flat right in here.

I'm gonna do the same with this one... and lay it right in here.

Turn it in the bread with that.

While I'm doing this, I want the oil to heat up, and I'm gonna use vegetable oil to fry.

I always tell you vegetable oil reaches a high temperature and it's good for frying.

♪ You know, you say "Parmigiana."

Parma is a city in Italy.

And if you go to Parma, you will never get a Parmigiana, at least not like this.

This is more of an Italian-American recipe, shall we say.

In Parma, they do cook with cheese, but usually what they do, their meat, they're sautéed in the pan or cook it lightly and with the sauce.

And then on top of that, they sprinkle their cheese, and then they put it in the oven just a minute to get nice and crispy.

So their rendition of Parmigiana is quite different.

Now we can test it.

Okay.

[ Sizzling ] And the meat will tighten up a little bit.

Do not overcrowd it, but move it around a little bit so that it settles in, that everything has its space.

Let's clean it all up.

♪ And let's check on the chicken.

So, when do you know that the chicken is done?

Here, pretty much, you have to cook the chicken thoroughly because then it stays in the oven, it kind of finishes up, but you don't want to leave it a raw chicken.

You do want to cook it.

And how do you know?

When a breaded cutlet or chicken is done, it sort of tenses up a little bit.

It's no more pliable, if you will.

So that's a good sign.

So let's put it on some of the paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

Also, when it's fried, it kind of feels a little lighter.

I think it's -- it's done now.

Okay.

So now let me cut just thin slices of Fontina cheese, which I'm gonna put on top.

I think that's enough cheese.

So, I don't put anything on the bottom.

One would say, "Oh, you don't put any sauce?"

No, because if you put a lot of sauce on the bottom and all around it, well, then, that's the end of the crunchiness.

So I'm going to do a nice fresh sauce while this is baking, but I'm not gonna put a lot of sauce here.

Actually, I'm not gonna put any sauce.

We didn't salt it.

Let's do just a little bit of salting.

To give it freshness, I'm gonna use slices of tomato.

You get the tomato feeling, the tomato flavor, but it's fresh.

It's nice, fresh tomatoes.

So...you're putting the tomato first just like that.

Two, three slices of tomato on each.

That's nice and refreshing.

Then we will put the cheese.

Throw the cheese just on top like that.

So you can see that, actually, the chicken, the Parmigiana, is gonna get even crisper in the oven.

I didn't put any salt on the tomatoes.

The cheese has a nice saltiness.

But if you use mozzarella, which sometimes is not salted most of the time, then maybe salt a little bit the tomatoes.

So to give it that little crust, let's put a little bit of the grated cheese right on top like that.

And in the meantime, we'll make the sauce to go with it.

Let me put it in the oven.

Welcome back to my library.

I love hearing from you.

And I love being able to answer some of your questions.

Here's a fun request.

Sandra.

"It's my daughter's birthday coming up.

She wants an Italian dinner, and I was wondering if you would teach me how to sing 'Happy Birthday' in Italian and suggests a menu."

Tutti Italiana.

Good for your daughter!

Spaghetti and meatballs -- always a winner.

Or a lasagna.

And I think the kids would love it.

As far as singing the song "Happy Birthday," the theme, the music is the same.

The words change.

Buon compleanno a te.

That could be fun.

Alright.

That sounds like a good party.

The Parmigiana is in the oven.

Let's make a quick sauce.

Those nice Roma tomatoes you just saw me slice, I cube them, remove all the seeds, use the juice.

And let's make the sauce.

So let's slice some garlic.

And this is a great fresh sauce for you to make, especially in the summertime.

So just get a little bit of golden color.

Let's put in... [ Sizzling ] Some salt to that.

A little peperoncino.

You know I like a little zest.

So let this simmer away.

Mmm!

♪ So here we are.

The chicken Parmigiana is ready.

The sauce is ready.

Maybe I'll put some fresh basil in the sauce just the last minute to give it just a little bit of that fresh basil.

The sauce is ready, just as it is.

Let me show you how I would like to plate it for my guests.

So... ♪ And, again, not overly sauced.

Just like that.

♪ I would like also to serve it with a little bit of basil on top.

The aroma of the basil is coming right into my nose now.

Let me just cut into it.

A little bit of the tomato from the top, a little bit of the tomato sauce.

♪ Mmm.

It's delicious.

It's crunchy.

But then there's the complexity of the Fontina cheese, which takes it into another direction, and then the freshness of the tomatoes on top.

♪ Buonissimo.

♪ Some of my favorite time in the kitchen has been teaching my grandchildren to grow into confident cooks.

And these days, even though they're living on their own, that doesn't mean they stop asking for my advice.

Sharing recipes.

Bolognese sauce.

♪ Hi, Miles!

How are you doing?

MILES: I'm great.

How are you?

LIDIA: You know the bolognese sauce you love so much?

And you want to attempt to make it yourself?

Tell me first -- why do you like bolognese sauce?

Why do you want to learn how to make it?

MILES: I mean, bolognese sauce has been my favorite ever since I was a little kid.

It's always a staple in my diet.

LIDIA: Well, you know, bolognese sauce, it's a long cooking process of chopped meat.

And usually it is ground beef and ground pork in equal amounts.

And then you kind of begin making a pestata.

You chop some onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and then you take some bacon and you chop it very fine, as well.

So this is making your mise en place.

Start with the oil.

You render the bacon.

Once the bacon is nice and crispy, you put the pestata in, and you let that sort of sauté and let all of the water from the vegetables dissipate.

You add salt, a little bit of pepper.

Then when that has sort of dried a little bit, you throw in the meat.

The next step is to make sure that all that water from the meat dissipates, and so you have to be there, medium heat, and stir it and make it happen.

And then you throw in the wine, and the wine is good because it brings acidity, because it makes the meat softer and the flavor.

And you let all the alcohol dissipate and again get dry.

That's where the tomato paste goes in.

And I add also a little bit of peeled tomatoes, nice and crushed.

And so now that all of the meat is covered with the juice, I would have a pot of stock, but you can also have a pot of boiling water so that the water is hot.

Slowly, you add the water just to cover the meat, and you keep on mixing, and back and forth.

This goes for about two hours until it really condenses and becomes flavorful and creamy and -- You think you can do it?

MILES: Wow.

Two hours.

That's like -- That's a lot of time.

Definitely gonna have to be a Sunday event.

Any chance I could double it and have some leftovers?

LIDIA: Hey, absolutely!

What kind of pasta do you think you would like to...?

MILES: I'm going with the fusilli.

We might need to FaceTime you a couple times along the way, but we'll get it done.

LIDIA: Okay.

I'll be there, leading you into victory.

MILES: Sounds like a plan.

Ciao.

Love you.

LIDIA: Rice balls stuffed with sausage ragu.

And I have a helper -- my granddaughter.

Actually my oldest granddaughter, Olivia Bastianich.

How are you doing, Olivia?

OLIVIA: I'm doing good.

LIDIA: Good?

You're happy to be with me in the kitchen again?

OLIVIA: Very happy, yes.

LIDIA: So we're gonna make arancini.

Arancini -- those little rice balls that are so delicious and everybody loves them at the party and you can never get enough of them.

Go ahead.

Put the rice in there.

We're gonna cook the rice.

You have a little stock there and just give it a stir.

OLIVIA: Does it matter what type of rice you use in arancini?

LIDIA: Of course it does.

Short grain rice.

This Italian rice, which is starchy so that the arancini really sticks together.

So you gave it a mix.

We let it simmer until it's cooked al dente.

We drain it, and then we let it cool, and then we begin with the sauce.

Put some oil in the pan.

OLIVIA: Is that good?

LIDIA: Yeah, that's very good.

Okay.

Perfect.

And here we have the sausage.

I remove it from the casing, and it becomes like ground meat, so you can do it with ground meat, but you can do it with the sausage.

And go ahead.

Put it in.

You mix it all and get it nice -- Break it down.

That's it.

So, Olivia... OLIVIA: Yes.

Your memories of in the kitchen with Grandma.

What is the best food you ever cooked with me?

OLIVIA: Hmm...

I would say the gnocchis we made have been the best.

LIDIA: The gnocchi, yeah?

OLIVIA: Yeah, when we make it from scratch together.

LIDIA: And what sauce did you like with your gnocchi?

OLIVIA: Honestly, the tomato sauce.

LIDIA: Just simple tomato sauce and basil, yeah.

We like peperoncino, don't we?

A little spicy.

OLIVIA: We do, yeah.

LIDIA: Yeah?

OLIVIA: Spicy's always good.

The spicier, the better.

LIDIA: Oh, yeah?

Okay.

OLIVIA: I think so.

LIDIA: Alright.

Alright.

So, I'm gonna put chicken liver because it gives it that little extra flavor.

And mix that in well.

All around.

You're doing a great job.

Let's put some onions.

OLIVIA: Smells good.

LIDIA: It smells good?

OLIVIA: Yeah.

LIDIA: So, this is a great party food, but if you go to Italy and -- it's street food, if you will.

You will find these little stands that have arancini or suppli or whatever they call them, which are rice balls.

In every city, they're different and they're even stuffed differently.

Let's put some carrots.

We have some celery.

Make a little hot spot.

You know?

Like, open -- That's it.

Open -- Right here.

And you empty the tomato paste right there and let it caramelize a little bit before you mix it in.

This way, the tomato paste gets that extra layer of flavor.

So smash it into -- That's it.

Turn it around.

Until it gets a little bit of color.

Then you can mix it in with the rest.

Tomato paste brings that concentration of those ripe tomatoes into this.

Now you can mix it around.

OLIVIA: Mix it around?

LIDIA: Sure, sure.

You can mix it around.

All over.

Get it all.

The corners.

That's it.

And we'll add a little bit of wine just to deglaze everything.

♪ That's it.

Scrape all of the little bits and pieces around.

And, you know, wine is good for cooking, and the alcohol dissipates.

And so you get the flavor and the acidity of the wine.

And to that, we'll add some crushed plum tomatoes.

Okay.

And we're gonna let this simmer for about half an hour to 40 minutes.

It becomes nice and dense and almost kind of -- You want it a little bit on the dry side.

Not too soupy.

And we'll let it cool, and we'll pull the whole thing together.

OLIVIA: Sounds good.

LIDIA: I got a message on my social media.

It looks like Mary has a question about polenta.

"I have been making polenta at home for years but can't get it like the restaurants.

What can you recommend?"

Polenta is milled corn, basically.

There is instant polenta that is pre-cooked, in a sense, and then you just whip it up in 10, 15 minutes, whereas the polenta that is milled takes about 45 minutes to cook.

I grew up on polenta.

I usually put bay leaves in.

I put a little bit of olive oil, maybe a little bit of butter.

So depends on which one you're cooking, depends how long you are cooking, flavoring elements you put in.

That all makes a difference in your polenta.

And when you're eating polenta in a restaurant and you like it, say, "How did they cook this polenta?

What spices, what herbs did they put in the polenta?"

You might get the answer to the polenta that you like.

Polenta.

I can talk for hours about polenta.

So, Olivia, the rice is cooked and chilled.

The stuffing is ready.

And to the stuffing, let's add some peas.

And these peas are sort of just blanched peas.

And mixed well into this mixture because then this will become the center of our arancini.

Now you can mix the rice.

We'll add a little bit of egg just to bind it, with a little bit of salt.

And I kind of beat the eggs.

Okay.

I'll spread them all over it.

And once you have the eggs in all the corners, we're gonna add some grated cheese.

That will bind the dressing.

Okay?

You ready?

OLIVIA: Mm-hmm.

LIDIA: Okay.

That's it.

OLIVIA: Is this stirred enough?

LIDIA: Yeah, you have it all mixed.

It looks all mixed to me.

Yeah, good.

And, you know, you need to get your hands into this, so let's start with the first one.

So, you want it all to be the same.

And then you kind of flatten it up.

Put a piece of cheese in there.

And then the stuffing.

Perfect.

And you put it in there because -- And you press it in, and then you close it into a rice ball.

And if you have -- if you're missing a little bit of rice, by all means, you put it in and you roll it.

Press it.

Press it.

And, you know, if it's a little bit like this, don't worry about it because I will put it in the eggs and in the flour.

So, to you out there, too -- So if it's a little bit just leaking, it's perfectly fine.

And then you make these nice balls.

And, actually, why don't you put them here?

OLIVIA: Should I try one?

LIDIA: Absolutely.

That's what you're here for.

♪ OLIVIA: Is that good?

LIDIA: That's good.

That's it.

And now you come all around.

You press it in.

That's it.

Ohh!

It looks like you've been around kitchens before, huh?

OLIVIA: Yeah, once or twice.

LIDIA: Perfect!

You did a much better one than I did.

Alright.

You continue on doing these, and then I'm gonna sort of flour them and egg and breadcrumbs.

So let's do the flour.

Just lightly the flour.

And you do have to handle it gently because it is rice and it could fall apart.

Kind of let it drain before you put it into the breadcrumbs.

And you roll it gently in the breadcrumbs.

And once you have the breadcrumbs on, you can reshape it.

And voilà.

Great job, Olivia!

OLIVIA: Thank you!

LIDIA: You're doing a great job.

Do you think that this would go with one of your parties out there?

OLIVIA: Yeah.

It's pretty easy to make.

Not too complicated.

LIDIA: We'll cook it together, and then we'll invite the boys.

OLIVIA: Okay.

LIDIA: Alright?

OLIVIA: They would love that, yeah.

LIDIA: And we'll have a party.

Okay.

So let's finish rolling all of these up.

Then we'll fry them.

And we'll have a party.

OLIVIA: Okay.

Formaggio fritto con polenta.

Here in the highlands of the Dolomites, they make the cheese.

The polenta -- they grow the polenta, the corn.

And they make this wonderful dish.

So what it is -- you make a polenta and you fry this cheese.

You have it melted, and then you pour it on top of the polenta, and you have this delizia, this delicious dish.

Let me taste it for you.

Mmm!

This is a local dish.

When there's nothing else in the house, there's always some polenta flour.

There's always some cheese, local cheese.

And let's taste.

What can I say?

Delicious.

Okay.

So, we're just about finished, Olivia.

As you notice, you know, it's important to keep the oil at a certain temperature.

That's why the thermometer's there.

350, 360.

Slowly make sure that you drop them in.

OLIVIA: Should I stir them a little?

LIDIA: Just a little bit.

Yeah, absolutely.

You just got to stir them a little bit because otherwise they fall to the bottom and they stick to the bottom, so you want them to get the oil all around them.

And, of course, the important thing is to drain them a little bit like this on a paper towel, and then we will serve them.

And you see -- what's delicious here is that that's the cheese in there.

And who doesn't love melting cheese?

And that's called the fili del telefono.

Alright.

Alright.

Let's pull one out.

Let's see how it looks.

What do you think?

Oh, I think -- OLIVIA: Are we good?

LIDIA: Yeah, yeah.

I think you can put it here.

You can pick up two, three at a time now.

Any more in there?

OLIVIA: I think there's one more.

LIDIA: There is one, okay.

And so this is -- this is -- Is it?

You know, Grandma is used to kind of hot stuff, so just -- You know -- Yeah?

Can you handle it?

OLIVIA: I can handle it, yep.

LIDIA: You can handle it!

Oh, that's my girl!

And so it has come to that time, you know, when actually maybe we should taste and tell them what we think of it.

So take one.

Ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh!

And that's the fili del telefono.

OLIVIA: Mmm.

LIDIA: Mmm-mmm-mmm.

[ Blowing ] ♪ Give me a description of -- what do you like about this and what would your friends like about it?

OLIVIA: Hm.

The cheesiness on the inside makes it really good.

That's my favorite part, I think.

OLIVIA: Do you like the crunchiness?

OLIVIA: I like the crunchiness, too.

OLIVIA: Yeah, I know you would.

OLIVIA: Is it time to say?

LIDIA: What do I usually say?

OLIVIA: Tutti a tavola a mangiare.

LIDIA: She said it.

You heard it.

Tutti a tavola...

BOTH: ...a mangiare.

LIDIA: I go to Italy often because I love it, because I love to visit, but also because I like to refresh memories of -- of Italy and its originality.

And I visit mothers and grandmothers cooking the recipe.

Those are the roots.

Those are the traditions.

And every region is different.

So, to talk about food, it all is under the Italian bandiera, the flag, but it is very regional.

And, as always, let Nonna lead us to the table.

ERMINIA: ♪ Cin, cin, che bel ♪ ERMINIA AND LIDIA: ♪ Ueh, ueh, ueh ♪ ♪ Cin, cin, che bel ♪ ♪ Ueh, ueh, ueh ♪ ERMINIA: ♪ Avanti e indrè, che bel divertimento ♪ BOTH: ♪ Avanti e indrè, avanti e indrè ♪ ♪ La vita è tutta quà ♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: The food from this series makes Italian cooking easy for everyone and showcases simple-to-prepare recipes that require fewer steps, fewer ingredients, and less cleanup, without sacrificing flavor.

The recipes can be found in Lidia's latest cookbook "Lidia's a Pot, a Pan, and a Bowl," available for $29.95.

To purchase this cookbook and any of her additional products, call 1-800-PLAY-PBS or visit shop.pbs.org/lidia.

ANNOUNCER: To learn more about Lidia, access to videos, and to get recipes, tips, techniques, and much more, visit us online at lidiasitaly.com.

Follow Lidia on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @lidiabastianich.

♪ ♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: Funding provided by... ANNOUNCER: At Cento Fine Foods, we're dedicated to preserving the culinary heritage of authentic Italian foods by offering over 100 specialty Italian products for the American kitchen.

Cento -- Trust your family with our family.

ANNOUNCER: Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

And by... ANNOUNCER: Olitalia.

"From chef to chef."

ANNOUNCER: "Lidia's Kitchen" studio provided by Clarke, New England's official Sub-Zero and Wolf showroom and test kitchen.