Lidia's Kitchen

-Buongiorno.

I'm Lidia Bastianich, and teaching you about Italian food has always been my passion.

Just like that.

You got that right.

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

For me, food is about gathering around the table to enjoy loved ones.

Your family is going to love it.

Share a delicious meal and make memories.

Tutti a tavola a mangiare.

"Lidia's Kitchen: Meals & Memories."

-Funding provided by... -Every can of Cento tomatoes is born in Italy, where they are grown and ripened in sun-drenched fields and then harvested by local farmers who select them just for us.

Cento -- Trust your family with our family.

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

-It's the Italian way.

Prosecco DOC ros -- a toast of Italy.

-Locatelli Pecorino Romano cheese from Italy.

Handcrafted from 100% sheep's milk.

-Olitalia -- from chef to chef.

-Every so often, it's nice to treat yourself and your loved one to something special.

And for me and my family, it's all about lobster.

Everybody likes grilled vegetables, and turning corn, portobellos, zucchini, and tomatoes into this dressed-up salad is a fun and impressive way to serve them.

-It's good to be back in the kitchen.

-You like that?

-I love it.

-I believe it is important to eat the entire lobster, so nothing goes to waste.

-You taught me never to waste any meat in the lobster.

-Don't throw the knuckle away.

There's some sweet meat in there.

And going through each piece with care is something I wanted to share with you.

Mmm!

It is sweet.

Half the fun is seeing everyone working through the lobster with their hands, getting all the meat out, fingers dirty.

This dish is a memory maker.

There's nothing better than spoiling your loved ones and yourself a little.

My Uncle Emilio was a fisherman.

He had a little boat.

He used to take me and my brother and my cousin Sonia to help him out.

In that area, in the Adriatic, they don't have the beautiful Maine lobsters like we have here.

We had the spiny lobsters, and we had langoustine.

How do you catch lobster and langoustine?

You put a chicken-wire trap with some fish in there, and the lobster crawls in there, and then you pull it out.

He would wrap them and drop them and would leave it overnight.

And then, the next day was time to harvest.

And you start from one end, and you pull up.

And the excitement, you know, when this -- this chicken-mesh thing came up.

What's in there?

Spiny lobster sometimes, if we were lucky.

Scampi sometimes, if we were lucky.

And sometimes nothing.

So when I go up to Maine and all that, and I love that, the fishermen in Rhode Island, all of that, it's beautiful to see because it brings memories back.

Insalata di mais alla griglia, zucchine e pomodori.

For me, there's nothing better than vegetables.

And when you go to the market and you see the beautiful array, just buy -- buy whatever you see that's beautiful, because that's gonna be the best.

So let's go.

I have the corn already grilling.

Onion -- a nice red onion.

Nice thick slices like that.

That's it.

Let's put a little bit of oil.

Just like that.

And on you go.

And, you know, I put it as a whole like this, but, eventually, when it cooks the onions, the rings will kind of break off.

So, now to the mushrooms.

Let's just -- that's it -- pull that one off and scrape off the gills.

Olio.

And let's put them on the grill now.

Now, the corn seems done, so I'm gonna take it off and just let it rest here.

So, let's go on to the zucchini.

I washed them, and I'm just cutting off the ends.

Let me cut this so I get a lot of kind of volume on the grill.

Instead of doing it, you know, the whole long slices, this is a nice way of doing it.

So, there we go with that.

So I'm going to just flip these over.

There you go.

And you see grill marks.

Everybody likes to see those.

The zucchini.

Could you do this on the outside grill?

Of course you can.

But, you know, not all of us have an outside grill.

So you can do this in the house just like this.

And the tomatoes are simple.

Just in half.

You want the whole tomato.

So, a little bit of oil on the tomatoes.

And let's put them on the grill.

Okay.

So, here we are.

Let's get the onions going.

Mmm.

The mushrooms look good, done.

A little bit al dente.

The tomatoes, they're a little stuck.

Whenever you're grilling something or in a pan, if it doesn't want to move, let it be until it forms that little crust so that you can move it.

Okay.

The zucchini?

Yeah, these look good.

What I'll do now, I'll address the corn.

So, let's cut the corn off the cob, and you just go along the cob.

Although now they have gadgets just like a potato peeler, and you cut the corn off.

But since I don't have the gadget, Lidia does it the old-fashioned way, like most of you will be doing it.

And I like this salad at room temperature.

I think you could make them in advance, then bring them back to room temperature.

But I like still the warmth of the vegetables just cooked.

The corn is here.

Let's check.

Yes, I think we are done with the zucchini.

And let me pull out the tomatoes and put them right here next to all of -- all of these vegetables.

Here we are.

Is this a beautiful plate?

I like just a little bit of vinegar on my vegetables.

Just a little bit.

Just like that.

Okay.

Let's get plating.

I'm thinking, I'm thinking, I'm thinking.

Maybe we'll start with the zucchini.

How's that?

Let's go with the -- with the tomatoes.

The tomatoes.

Just like that.

We have the mushrooms.

Now the mushrooms I have to cut a little bit and I'm going to slice them a little bit on the bias so that when I open them up, they are like a flower.

So, here they are.

And don't have the food kind of hang over a plate.

When you're presenting, the food should always be within the plate.

That's a chef rule, if you will.

Gonna put the corn in the middle.

And, you know, it's not that I always have everything pre-planned.

The same with you.

Okay.

How does it look?

How do I want it?

Follow your instincts.

Just pile it in the middle.

How's that?

I just love when food falls kind of naturally.

Let's see.

Let me put the onions right here.

Just like that.

I think buffalo mozzarella would be a great addition.

This is one beautiful piece.

So, let's slice it.

Okay.

Nice and easy.

Sharp knife.

So, let's see.

There's two, like that, and then we'll put two on the other side just like that.

Now, let me decorate the plate with some basil right here.

Mozzarella and tomatoes always require a little bit of basil, just like that.

And a little olive oil on the buffalo mozzarella just like that.

Oh, just like that.

It says what I want to say.

Just like that.

Okay.

Now, this one doesn't look too good.

Let me get a nice one.

Play with your food.

I just love touching food.

Your hands are the best tools you have in the kitchen.

So, now, if I presented you with this, would you come to my house for dinner?

And, you know, some of you write to me, says, "Lidia, last night, we had your recipe for this," and it gives me great pleasure and satisfaction to know that I come to your house with my flavors.

So please make this for your family.

All the vegetables, delicious.

And here we are.

Bring it to the table just like that.

Tutto fatto -- done.

Mangia un'aragosta come Lidia.

There's always good things cooking in Lidia's kitchen, but especially when the grandkids come.

And, today, Ethan is with me because I have his favorite -- lobster.

-Of course.

It's good to be back in the kitchen.

-You like that?

-I love it.

-Do you want a bib?

I have my apron.

Do you want a bib to work or just -- -I always make a mess when I eat lobster, so I think I might need the bib.

-Lower down.

-There used to be the time when I could reach.

Now, okay.

How's that?

-Perfect.

-Oh, you look good.

-Thank you.

-So here we have the lobster.

Take the scissors and... Yeah, all the way down.

That's it, both.

Straighten it out.

That's it.

Cut the little legs off.

That's it.

-In my opinion, the legs have some of the best meat.

-The sweetest.

Do you remember what I told you on how to eat these legs?

-You told me to suck the meat out.

-Go ahead.

Let me see if you remember what I told you.

No, no.

You see, you forgot something.

Now put that in your mouth.

That's it.

Go with your tooth from -- teeth from here, and slowly work your way to the end.

Don't break the shell.

Just get the meat out.

It works?

-Yep.

Get these little legs and put it on the plate, because that's our presentation.

Cut the big claws.

Now, you've been up in Boston.

You go to B.C.

And there's a lot of lobster there.

-Lot of lobster, lot of crab.

I actually went to a lobster shack last week with some of my friends, and we -- -And how did they fare?

-Well, they fared not so well, but I had a master -- master teacher, so I taught them all how to do it.

-You did?

You were -- Okay.

Let's have a refresher.

Good refresher course.

So put this down here, and now press it down.

All the way down.

That's it.

Go.

Okay.

Now, you can clean this up just like that.

-Are those eggs?

-The orange is eggs, and the rest is kind of food that they digested.

-I typically don't like to eat the food that they've already eaten.

-Well, I happen to like it.

Let's cut the tail off.

That's it.

Go in there.

That's it.

Do the other part.

Okay.

So now you want to pull the tail out.

You hold it in your hand just like that.

And you just pry it out.

There you go.

-Nice and easy.

-That's it.

Put it on the plate there.

We have the plate.

Okay.

let's go to this.

This is the knuckle.

-Knuckle.

-Just give it a whack.

That's it.

Good, Good.

Cut the knuckle in half again.

There we go.

Don't throw the knuckle away.

There's some sweet meat in there.

[ Scoffs ] So now take the back of the knife, and you just whack it like this.

Nice and easy.

Pry it, because it's cracked.

Pry it with your...

There you go.

Pull it out.

There you go.

So, you don't have to peel it all.

Get the little fork and pull the whole claw out.

That's it.

Wow.

What a beautiful job.

-Slides right out.

-Yes.

There you go.

All right.

This is the stomach, and this is roe.

And it really is good.

This is all good stuff.

You want to try it?

-Yeah.

-Like this.

Look.

You just hold it, and you go.

Isn't it good?

-Mm-hmm.

-So, now, you want to prepare this table?

You can get your fork, and you have your little knife here.

Would you like a little butter on everything?

-Yeah, on the corn and the lobster, for sure.

Maybe not the claws.

-Oh, good.

Do you want to squeeze some lemon juice on it?

-Of course.

-So, dig in.

-All right.

I'm going for the claw first.

-Mmm.

-Mmm.

Delicious.

Next, the tail.

-Mmm.

So, just like that, eating lobster with your grandson?

One of the best moments of life.

So let's continue.

-Continue.

-All right.

-I'm glad I wore the bib.

-Linguine all'aragosta come sugo piccante.

It's certainly my favorite, my family's favorite, and it's going to become your family's favorite when you make it.

So, you get some lobster tails, and you take a chef's knife, and we're going to cut these in half.

So, you go in the middle, down, down on one side, you turn it around, and down the other side.

And let's open it up.

Let's see.

And a nice large pan with some vegetable oil line the bottom.

You flour it lightly, just like that.

Shake the excess flour right off.

The flour kind of seals the meat, keeps the juicier.

And when it disintegrates in the sauce, it makes the sauce just a little thicker.

So... Just put it meat side down so the flour caramelizes, just like that.

I'm looking just for a little caramelization.

As you notice, it's not thoroughly cooked.

I don't want it.

I just want the flour to kind of caramelize and get the coloring.

We can begin to cut the onion and to make the sauce.

Like a little garlic, too, which we're gonna crush.

Ah.

This is fine.

-The meat is compact.

That means that the lobster was fresh, and it's going to stay there.

When you pull it out, it's going to come out all in one piece.

You don't want the lobster to crumble.

So I'm looking here at the pan.

There's not too much oil, but I want to take away the vegetable oil.

And I don't mind leaving some of the fond in the pan.

That's the good part.

Just like that.

Let's crush the garlic.

And I'm crushing it because I like garlic, but I want to be able to pull it out.

Olive oil now.

Okay.

This is the beginning of the sauce.

This is what we're going to eat.

So I want good oil.

And I am going to get the -- the onion going.

Okay.

Let's start with the onion in, as well.

I'm going to season just a little bit of peperoncino.

Let's toast it a little bit.

Bring out the flavor.

I said spicy, so let me add a little more because I like it.

And here we have the herbs.

Bay leaves from a bay leaf bush I have in the backyard now, but I bring it in, winter or summer.

I take care of it.

But I love bay leaves.

And this is dry oregano.

I really like dry.

It has more of a pronounced taste, and it's -- If it's Sicilian, you buy it in a bouquet like this, and you just kind of... as much as you need.

You just...

I think we have enough here.

Put it right in with the onions.

And let me get the tomatoes now.

Nice plum tomatoes.

You know, I always tell you to get San Marzano tomatoes.

San Marzano is a town outside of Naples.

Great exposure to sun.

There they have beautiful sun, and the tomatoes grow beautifully there.

I'm looking at the onions here.

I want to wilt the onions just a little bit.

So I'm going to take a little bit of the pasta water...

Okay.

So, this way, the onions cook, and they begin to disintegrate in the sauce.

We could put some white wine.

You always ask me, "What kind of wine?"

Wine that you drink.

Good wine.

And at this point, we can add the tomatoes.

You know, I like my slosh.

I don't want to waste any of that stuff.

So let's get some of the pasta water.

And then from the can, just like that, I collected everything.

Let's go here and collect everything here.

Ah!

Now I feel good.

All right.

You know, I love it when you socially connect with me.

I tell you all the time, ask me the questions.

I do look at my socials.

Let me answer somebody right here.

Let's see.

Chris.

Hi, Chris.

Chris e-mails, "I'd like to make my dinner plate 'pretty.'

How do I make the leap from 'kitchen food' to fine dining when I'm plating?"

Oh, Chris.

The plating is very important.

What's important about it is you get the right plate for presentation.

Let the proteins be the stars.

If you mix some color in that, it always looks beautiful, and vegetables do that.

Lay the protein on top, a little decoration of the herb, and simple and straightforward.

You know, you got to trust yourself.

It looks good to you, it's gonna look good to your guests.

Okay, Chris?

Good question.

Keep on cooking.

So, here we are.

The sauce is bubbling along.

The water is boiling.

Let's put the pasta in the water.

Now, I tell you, when you cook your pasta, I want simple water, salt, nothing else.

And when you're finished, when the pasta is cooked al dente, you can drain it, but do not rinse it.

And you don't break your spaghetti.

That's a criminal offense in Italy.

Don't you dare.

And it's time to put in the lobster.

So, the lobster will only take three, four minutes.

And I'm just turning over the lobster tail, too, to get some of the sauce and to flavor the sauce.

Let's take them out.

I told you they're cooked.

They're cooked.

But you can see the lobster will kind of come right out like that.

The whole piece.

Nice and firm.

So, let's put the lobster in my reserve pan here.

Let me pick out the bay leaves.

The garlic.

And I'm gonna take some of the pasta cooking water just to kind of extend the sauce.

And I always tell you that.

So if you are draining your pasta, make sure that you save some of that water before you drain the pasta so you have it just in case you run dry a little bit on your sauce.

It's just about al dente.

And I'm going to leave it a little bit more al dente.

So I finish cooking -- cooking it right in here.

I'm going to just drizzle it a little bit with the olive oil.

And, you know, when you do that at the last minute, it gives it a kind of shine and that freshness.

You taste the oil, too.

Everything looks nice and shiny.

So I think we are ready here.

Put the plates right here.

And where is my dish?

Mamma mia.

Right here.

Okay.

And I'm going to use my little plate here to carry the pasta over to the dish.

Give it a twist so it kind of falls into a mound, a twisted mound.

That's good.

Let's go on to the next one.

And I am putting a little extra here because I want it to look beautiful for you.

Okay.

Now, let's move on.

It certainly looks good with two like that.

I think so.

Now let's do a little bit of the sauce just like that.

Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Okay.

Just like that.

So let's put at the table just like that.

And just a little bit of parsley here, Italian parsley.

It looks like a crown.

First, let me show you how the lobster tail should come out of the -- Very -- very easy once it's done.

Look.

Just like that.

And that's a perfectly cooked lobster tail.

Now, if I wasn't on television, I would lick all of this tail, and it's perfectly okay for you to do it, but I'm just gonna put it here.

And you can see that the lobster is resilient, nice, but it is cooked, and this is the way you want it.

So let's try the lobster first.

Mmm.

Don't use the spoon when you're eating your spaghetti.

It's not Italian.

Just like this.

You take the fork, and you twirl and you twirl, and you get yourself a nice twirl.

So you have a little hanging?

You'll figure it out.

Delizioso!

So, salute!

Mmm.

The Prosecco DOC goes perfectly with this dish, and I am going to continue to enjoy.

I hope I inspired you to cook.

And as always, I invite you at my house.

So, tutti a tavola a mangiare.

Cooking for the family is very special.

You are nurturing, you are feeding, you connect, and you bring many things, shall we say, to the table.

You bring emotions, you bring love, you bring care.

And, you know, you identify with each one of your children or grandchildren.

You can see the smile.

You can see them feeling special.

Joe loves his lobster risotto.

Tanya loves her Jota soup, which is sauerkraut and bean soup.

The kids love their gnocchi.

They love getting involved in making the gnocchi.

So, getting your family involved, nurturing them, it's a gift.

But in giving that gift, you receive so much back, so much love, so much affection, so much appreciation.

[ Singing in Italian ] [ Speaking Italian ] [ Speaking Italian ] -[ Speaking Italian ] -Another 100?

-Why not?

-[ Chuckles ] -The food from this series is a celebration of the Italian dishes Lidia cooks for the ones she loves the most, from the traditional recipes of her childhood to the new creations she feeds her family today.

All of these easy-to-prepare recipes can be found in Lidia's latest cookbook, "From Our Family Table to Yours," available for $35.

To purchase this cookbook and any of her additional products... 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.

Funding provided by... -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... -Grana Padano -- authentic, Italian, rich in tradition, yet contemporary.

-And by...