| In Al Dente, William Black travels the length and breadth of Italy in order to get to the roots of Italian food. Our intrepid gastronome eats whatever gets in his way which often isn’t quite what it seems. If it’s cheese then it may be considered ripe only when it has been predigested by maggots or perhaps made solely from the milk of tired cows. A bowl of pasta might come with donkey sauce. A dish of wind dried tuna apparently includes its testicles. A lovely risotto has been made with seagull broth…
William’s dedication to his task knows alarmingly few bounds. His quest for the most delicious and authentic cooking and the very finest ingredients takes him to some wonderfully familiar places as well as others far off the beaten track: he drinks great coffee in Turin, chases rabbits in Ischia and views the mattanza, the annual tuna catch, off the coast of Sardinia. One minute he's scoffing eel brodetto, the next waxing lyrical about the joys of frog risotto. And as he eats his way to the country’s culinary heart, he unearths the fascinating story of his own family’s role in Italian history.
A joy from cover to cover and 100 per cent mierda di bufala-free, Al Dente is a must for anyone with an interest in Italy or its food. It will probably make you want to book a holiday and it will certainly make you laugh.
‘I couldn't put it down. They had to call me from the kitchen. When I was reading it I felt I was almost there. It brought a tear to my eye!’
Gennaro Contaldo
‘Al Dente is funny, at times poetic, and most useful’
Daily Mail
‘For anyone who enjoys good food, Al Dente is a must’
Financial Times
‘This vibrant and witty account of his gastronomic travels through Italy combines mouth-watering descriptions of dishes and foodstuffs, simple authentic recipes and a travelogue that is as richly observed as it is fascinating’
The Economist
'Al Dente is to Italian food what a map is to Italian roads - essential reading. I loved it!'
Giorgio Locatelli
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