Lidia Celebrates America

I've picked a recipe, I hope you like it. Riso alla pitocca which is rice, everybody loves rice. And this recipe is a one pot recipe. I'm really excited 'cause a lot of the guys, one of the things that a lot of the guys have asked for is risotto (laughs), so I'm really excited that it's a rice dish. -

Lidia

Alright. They're gonna love it. So Jacob, the first step I guess is making a pestata, I do it in a food processor. You have one there? Yeah, I see. I do, yes, absolutely. We can talk and cook Jacob, nah? (Jacob laughs) (carrot crunching) The old times my grandmother we used to chop it with the knife you know, little pieces, and you would chop it with the knife and tiktiktiktik, I hear for hours in the kitchen going on. (Jacob laughs) (onion crunching) But here with the food processor, it's an easy step. Garlic, you're gonna put garlic in there. Yap. So we have the celery, the onion, the carrots. (upbeat music) (food processor grinding) When I started coming here everybody just automatically was like, "Hey man, can you help me out with a recipe? Hey man, can you help me with a recipe?" Young guys that were going off to work that just didn't know what to cook, didn't really know how to cook, that was when the idea was kinda spawn to put this book together. So, now you have the pestata, and you're gonna put some oil first, some olive oil. Yes. (upbeat music) So Lidia do you let the pot get hot? Do you wanna sautee the vegetables? Do you wanna get them in and start sweating 'em? No, you can just start sweating them right away. -

Jacob

Okay. Olive oil is sensitive to heat, so I never overheat it. Okay. I put in things, and then they get sort of heated up together. -

Jacob

Okay. So when we were talking with Jacob about recipe for his book, I had to keep the criteria that he started out with in mind. Straightforward, simple, possibly a one pot meal, and something that everybody likes. Jacob, tell me do most firehouses have a nice kitchen like this? Cooking just being such an important part in the culture, they definitely do. You'll go into some older firehouses, and you can tell they're definitely a little bit older, but, like I said cooking is definitely something that is very important in the fire service, so you'll find a pretty good kitchen in most firehouses. Even if they're a little older and a little smaller, they're definitely gonna be stocked with a lot of stuff. Everybody takes turns cooking like pretty much on a shift, but when it's their turn to cook, they cook three meals. They cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the whole crew. Jacob share with me this passion for cooking. But also what he really came to realize, is the need of food for physical strength, and emotional sustenance if you will, to these first line responders. (food fizzing) So I'm getting ready to add the rice and the stock now. So the chicken cooked all the way down. -

Lidia

Okay. Four cups of rice. -

Lidia

Mh huh. (somber music) I can't help but be in awe of our first responders. Every time you go out there, your life is on the line. You don't know whether you're gonna come back. Do you ever think about that? Does it ever stop you in any way? No, you know I have a daughter, so I think about my daughter all the time. That's my biggest thing. Does it make me not want to do it, or does it scare me enough to not go? No, not at all. Because I trust the people that I'm with enough. The guys that I'm here with, they're really good at what they do. So I don't think that that would ever be a thing. And maybe that's just... There is an inherent risk, there's totally inherent risk, but I trust the guys here enough, to know that (chuckles) I'm gonna come home so. (somber music) That's praise. The trust, and the need, and the knowledge of each one of you supporting each other and ultimately keeping us all alive. Totally, totally. Jacob felt that he needed to make the world that his daughter is gonna grow up in a bit better. So he evolved in becoming this volunteer firefighter, and then combining his two passions. Cooking is a way of nurturing his team, of giving what he knows well, how to cook good food that will make them feel good, bind them as a team, but also nourish them physically. So Jacob how are we there? Where are we? It's looking good, I just have to add the butter, the cheese, and the parsley to finish it up, and then we're ready to go. (upbeat music) You're like me with cheese, a handful of cheese goes in there huh? (Jacob laughs) (utensil clanks) -

Lidia

That's it. (upbeat music) Alright. (speaks faintly) the last (speaks faintly), okay. Now when you're finished really mixing it well, I want you to scoop your stuff out, a nice scoop. Alright. And, since I'm not there I want you to taste, and give me an honest opinion, how you like it, if it misses anything, and how do you think your team there will react to this? (laughs) I think it's awesome, it's awesome. It's cheesy, it's creamy. - It's good. It's awesome, I love it. You think that your team, your whole team will love it? I do, I do. Lidia, I'm pretty sure they're gonna kick me out and offer you a job next.