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Great Italian Cooking Lessons With Celebrated Chefs To Watch During Quarantine

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While you can’t travel to Italy now because of the coronavinus crisis, you may want to bring some of the country’s indelible flavors into your kitchen. Master the how-to’s of its scrumptious cuisine with online cooking videos featuring some of the world's most celebrated chefs—a selection is included below. (The videos are free, with the exception of a series of classes that requires a subscription.)

CHEFS IN ITALY

Learn About Modern Italian Cooking with Massimo Bottura

Massimo Bottura stands at the pinnacle of culinary success—his three-Michelin-star Osteria Francescana twice took top place at the World's 50 Best Restaurants Awards and has long been a mecca for food sophisticates and celebrities from around the world. On MasterClass, the subscription site that taps into the expertise of top names in a variety of fields, from the arts to business, you can learn the secrets of contemporary Italian cuisine with the maestro himself. The course, called Massimo Bottura Teaches Modern Italian Cooking, covers a lot of ground, from learning how to make Mediterranean-style sole to a “better than panettone”souffle. Bottura says his goal is to evolve classic recipes and bring them into the future, and in these lessons he demonstrates with an engaging and lively presentation style how he accomplishes his objectives so brilliantly. 

You can also find Bottura cooking lessons for free with the recently launched “Kitchen Quarantine” series on his Instagram site, where the famous chef shows what he’s cooking at home during the pandemic.

Try Heinz Beck’s Unique Cacio e Pepe

Heinz Beck heads up the only three-Michelin-star restaurant in Rome, La Pergola, a revered dining spot celebrated not only for exquisite food, but also for stunning views of the Eternal City. Beck, whose culinary achievements have lead to a global network of restaurants, is known as a master of ingenious and healthy high-end cooking. In this video for Canada’s 100 Best he updates a Roman classic, cacio e pepe, by adding some surprise ingredients. 

Watch Carlo Cracco Make Riso/Risotto allo Zafferano

Carlo Cracco, one of Italy’s cooking greats who worked with the legendary Gualtiero Marchesi, oversees several restaurants in Milan and food-centric travelers to the city make sure to stop at one of them, like Ristorante Cracco in the Galleria in Milan, a culinary complex with a glamorous interior designed by Studio Peregalli, housing a restaurant, wine cellar and caffè. In this video with Italia Squisita, Cracco shows how to make a perfect version of a signature Milan dish, riso/risotto with saffron—with tips like using white instead of black pepper and Riserva San Massimo Carnaroli rice. 

CHEFS IN THE USA

See Michael White Whip Up Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Michael White is the much acclaimed chef/partner of the Altamarea Group, which owns such well-known restaurants in New York City as Marea (The New York Times gave it a three-star review), Osteria Morini and Ai Fiori. In this demonstration for Munchies/Vice, he shows how to perfect that irresistable pasta dish, spaghetti alla carbonara.

Let Lidia Bastianich Show You How to Make Easy Pastas on Her YouTube Channel.

You can see culinary powerhouse Lidia Bastianich—restaurateur, chef, author, Emmy-Award winning TV personality, and partner in Eataly work her magic in the kitchen on Tutto Lidia, her very own channel on YouTube. During the quarantine, you probably want to keep things simple cooking-wise, as it may be hard to find all the ingredients you want for a particular meal. Among the playlists to check on the channel are “Simple Pastas,” where you’ll find recipes for such dishes as spaghetti with arugula and ricotta or spaghetti with olive oil and rosemary, which you can prepare with little fuss. Also have a look at the recipe for an easy and healthy pasta e fagioli in the “Tips, Tricks & More” section.