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Cookbook Author

Lidia Bastianich

Restaurateur and author whose risotto teaching is anchored in northern Italian home tradition.

Speaks to 2 threads

Cited in 5 places

  • Risotto/ Commentary
    Lidia Bastianich's home-tradition position: a slow, patient soffritto and a stock kept at the same temperature as the rice. Cold stock shocks the grain; that is the single most common reason a home risotto refuses to release its starch.
    Lidia's Italian Table — William Morrow (1998)
  • Risotto/ Argument
    Arborio is what most Italian grandmothers actually use. Its softer kernel produces a homier, looser risotto (Bastianich, Lidia's Italian Table).
    Rice Variety — argued for "Arborio"
  • Risotto/ Argument
    Outside Lombardy, a tighter risotto is the regional norm — Veneto and Piedmont both tolerate a denser plate (Bastianich, Lidia's Italy).
    The Wave Test — argued for "Stand Firm"
  • Bolognese/ Commentary
    Lidia Bastianich's home-tradition position: the soffritto must sweat slowly until it is almost silken — fifteen minutes minimum, with no colour. If the vegetables are browning the heat is too high.
    Lidia's Italy — Knopf (2007)
  • Bolognese/ Argument
    Wide, eggy ribbons that the meat can cling to — the traditional Emilia-Romagna partner. Spaghetti bolognese is essentially a British/American invention (Bastianich tradition).
    Pasta Shape — argued for "Tagliatelle"