All language subtitles for Nigellissima.S01E04.720p.iP.WEB-DL.AAC.H.264-BCH

I have an exuberant passion
for a particular foodstuff

that some people find
utterly revolting.

But that's how it is.

What gives some people pain,

can give the rest of us
exquisite pleasure.

And I have everything to feed my
late night need in this black box.

There is a reason why this box
is black, that's because

it contains liquorice, and no-one
does liquorice like the Italians.

Oh, these are so charming.
They are liquorice pebbles.

Even liquorice-phobes couldn't
resist these, surely.

When I'm in the mood for something
a little more darkly decadent,

I go for these chocolates with
an oozing liquorice centre.

Now, when I was teenage,
it was considered the height of cool

to be chewing on a natural liquorice
root, as really, why wouldn't it be?

Mmm, very nice, actually.
What else have I got in here?

If only I had known about this black
and viscous liquorice liqueur

when I concocted this liquorice
pudding first off,

I would have spiked it with it.

However, I am happy enough
with these lozenges.

I need a teaspoon of
these little babies

to start off my liquorice pudding.

I've got some water here, and
really you just have to be patient

enough to wait five minutes to let
the liquorice dissolve.

Bit of a swirl will help it along,
but to be honest,

I don't mind
if it doesn't all dissolve.

A few dark splodges in the pudding
later are rather gorgeous.

Bitterness is
part of the point of liquorice,

but I still need a bit of sugar.

I'm having light
muscovado in my pudding.

That is as black as tar.

Adding cream to this turns
the black into a deep buff-tone,

like a manila envelope.

Frankly, I could drink this,
but to turn it into pudding,

I need a cornflour mixture,
I need to slake it,

which means a bit of cornflour,
mixed to a smooth paste with milk.

This is hot, so I'll whisk this in.

Just a few seconds
and it'll be thick.

That's it, it's ready. So excited.

What I normally do is cover these,

and put them in the fridge to chill,
about four hours or overnight.

But you don't have to!

And there is something to be
said for eating them straight away,

and what's more, although it does
feel verging on the deviant,

with a little sea salt
sprinkled over.

I don't mix it in,
I just add with each spoonful.

It's out of this world.

Mmm, dark and divine.

# Lonely

# Lonely. #

When I can, I love, love,
love coming to an Italian deli,

and right now, I'm here
because I need some fregola,

which really,
you don't find on the high street.

Now, what fregola is,
is like a giant couscous.

It's often known as
Sardinian couscous,

but unlike ordinary couscous,
it's toasted when it's made,

so it has a real roundness
and nuttiness of flavour,

and what I need it for is
my Sardinian couscous and clams.

Oh, the sound of a sizzle
just makes me salivate.

I've got a shallot in
with some olive oil.

The wonderful thing about
these shallots is

that they soften so quickly,

so I'm already in position
to mince in some garlic.

A lot of garlic here,
two cloves,

but this is from Sardinia, and
they do like their tastes robust.

Bit of fire as well.
Some chilli flakes.

This gorgeous terracotta
coloured confetti.

Haven't quite finished
the flavour base.

I feel I need an ungainly
squirt of tomato puree.

I normally would NEVER
add tomatoes to clams,

I like them "il bianco,"
as they say in Italy.

All-white, no tomatoes,
but this is different.

It somehow keeps
the lightness of tomatoless clams,

but brings a bit of
brightness at the same time.

On top of all that flavour base,
I'm adding a weakish chicken stock.

You could at this stage add wine,
but I prefer vermouth.

It has a more mellow ring about it,

you don't need to cook it for ages
like you would red wine.

In goes the fregola.

If you've never come
across fregola before,

do not be afraid or
even slightly panicked.

It's really like giant couscous,
that's all it is.

The fregola won't take
very long to cook,

and in the meantime,
I will chop some parsley.

Now, the fregola is cooked,
I can feel that.

It's cooked,
but still a bit resistant,

which is how it should be,

but I have something to add,

that is the sea liquor that
will eschew from these clams.

They've been soaking in cold water,
and all you need to know is

that any clams that don't
open should be chucked away.

I always feel a link
with our primeval past

when I cook with seafood.

What a welcoming clatter!

These just need to steam.

Like this.

It's a matter of moments,
so I'm getting ready now. Yum!

I love it when the clams
have opened, and the fregola

is sort of nestling inside the
shells, on the cushions of clam.

Beautiful, and the smell, I am
transported to the Italian seaside.

I need a bowl.

I need a ladle, and I need to eat.

It's an odd thing.

This is so unlike anything
you ever tasted,

and yet reassuring at the same time.

That is the magic
of Italian cooking.

Mmm!

ITALIAN CHATTER

Prego?
Un caffe per favore.Bel.

I learned from living in Italy that
you really don't need a whole

raft of ingredients to create
a beautiful supper.

For example, when I cook lamb,

I just marinate it
in balsamic vinegar

and some olive oil and salt,

and then once it's garlanded
with bay leaves, it's so ravishing.

And likewise, I do a recipe
with some baby aubergines,

and I scatter red onions on top,

but I macerate the red onions,
so they're almost luminescent.

My pudding is much newer,

although in fact it comes
from a relatively old source.

It's an ice cream cake that
is studded with meringue

and grated chocolate.

And it's incredibly high impact,
though low effort.

And I discovered it in a book
written by a highfalutin

Italian man of letters.

I may have found the recipe
in a venerable volume,

but it's now one of
the most straightforward

and simplest dishes
in my repertoire.

There aren't many puddings
you can rustle up

early in the morning before a day's
work, but this is one of them.

There are only four
ingredients needed,

the first one being cream,
obviously.

I want to whisk this
so the cream is thick,

but still soft,
which is what I want.

And now I'm ready for
ingredient number "due."

A splosh of rum.

My philosopher actually specified
a rather rare liqueur

that I can't get any more,
but rum, to me,

always tastes so authentically
Italian in puddings.

OK, so that's the whisking part
over and done with.

My third ingredient is chocolate,
it's a good start.

I find it easier to cut
the chocolate rather than grate it.

It makes a big difference
if your chocolate is cold,

cos otherwise it tends
to melt as you chop it.

So, in with the chocolate shards.

A lovely sound.

And now, quick fold.

My last ingredient, some meringues,
a bit of brute force needed.

These just get crushed in,
a sugary and heavy snowfall.

And the thing about meringues
is that they will not freeze,

so you create this crisp texture
within the ice cream cake.

And now it's just
a question of folding these in.

Mmm.

Like a morning walk on
freshly fallen snow.

Now, yes it needs
a day in the freezer,

but basically this is now made.

The hardest thing for me
is the tearing of the cling,

but I have learnt, I have been
taught, always tear the cling

from a standing up position,
don't put it flat onto the surface.

Look at that.

Got to line a loaf tin generously.

This makes unmoulding so easy,

you just pull it out
using the overhang.

In this goes.

Stamp it down.

So, after a day, give or take,
in the freezer, this will be set

and ready to serve. And with it,
I'm going to melt some chocolate,

some cream, another spot of rum,
and that's a chocolate sauce done.

There's nothing fancy about it,
there's nothing difficult,

but as Steve Jobs said, "Simplicity
is the ultimate sophistication."

'Ciao, bella.'

This has to be the easiest,
speediest way of cooking a roast.

What I need, what you need,

is a boned and butterflied
leg of lamb.

It may not look much like a
butterfly, but that's the idea.

And, if you're not getting your lamb
from a butcher, don't worry,

because any butcher counter at a
supermarket can do this for you.

I'm giving it what I think of as a
fast track marinating treatment.

In the traditional manner,
much as my mother always used to,

I'm going to cut slices of garlic,
and tuck them into the meat.

I like finding ridges and crevices
to poke the garlic into.

And now a bit of olive oil.

And a key ingredient,
and not a very familiar one with me,

balsamic vinegar.

I've often been
undecided about this,

but it is perfect with the lamb.

There's something about
the rich sweetness,

and the sharpness at the same time
that reminds me of redcurrant,

which of course we love with lamb,
so it's same destination,

but the Italian route.
Always picturesque.

Bay leaves next.

Now, I'm going to snip some
in a rather slipshod fashion now,

and when I serve,
I'm going to keep some back

to have whole,
because although you don't need

any extra bay leaves later,
they look so beautiful.

I'm going to leave the meat
to get to room temperature.

It goes into the oven,
and that's a hot, hot oven,

for about 30 minutes,
and then 15 minutes rest

under some foil, and it will be
lusciously pink and ready to eat.

But, for now, I have those darkly
gleaming aubergines beckoning me.

Lamb goes with aubergines
however they are cooked,

and I am rather excited
about this way,

because I have done
a bit of tinkering

with an Italian favourite, which is
simply red onions and aubergine.

A bit of oregano.

So that's oil and oregano there,
and I have gone the cute route.

I don't always like that,
but look, these baby aubergine.

I want them cut lengthways.

Just put cut side down on the tray.

You may notice that I'm trying
to keep the stalks on.

You can't actually eat the stalks,

it is purely for aesthetic
considerations.

And last one...

Now, I'm just going to smoosh
them about here.

I mean,
they've already soaked up the oil.

Aubergines will drink however
much oil you give them,

so, sometimes you just have to
be quite stern about rations.

And then turn these round,
so they're cut side up,

and then they'll get
all soft and golden

when they get their quick
blitz in the hot oven.

I did promise red onion
with the aubergines,

and a red onion I have.
Look how beautiful.

The idea is to cut the onion
into fine half moons.

It's not really cooking,

I'm not cooking this onion,
it's a treatment.

And it's a treatment I devised
really for myself, because,

although I love the taste of onion,

I find that acrid afterburn
a bit tough.

And my method,
shortly to be unveiled,

takes away any of that burn.

And here goes.

The red onion goes
into a bowl.

Going to add a little "sale,"

and quite a bit of red wine vinegar.

All the acrid taste disappears,

and something spectacular
happens all round.

I want to make sure
that as many of these onion

pieces are saturated
in the vinegar as possible,

then I can leave them to steep
while the aubergines are cooking.

Right, I think I can get all
this to the oven.

Supper.

Me in Venice, when I was writing
a piece for the New York Times.

Oh, very nice. This is incredible,
I think I was somewhere in Tuscany,

and that was linguine
with courgette flowers.

Very pretty wine shop, although
these aren't my absolute best.

Now, that's just
what I wanted to see.

Mmm!

This needs to sit for a while,
then I can slice it, and we can eat.

Look at these,
in all their bronzed glory.

I did speak about the way steeping
onions in vinegar makes them

lose any acid, acrid taste.

But look at this transformation.

We're adding to the vinegary
onions some garlic,

some olive oil,
extra virgin olive oil.

Look at these beautiful pink onions
suspended in that golden dressing.

They make my soul sing.
They would if I had one!

And now...

..gentle transfer.

I need them warm still,
because I want the onion, the oil,

and the garlic to permeate
that smoky charred flesh.

And now comes the transformation.
Don't think I need my whisk.

It's jewel-like. So gorgeous.

I know it's Italian food, but
it's a bit of a Bollywood moment.

I've got some fresh
oregano for beauty and fragrance.

And now the lamb.

I have got all this fantastic juice
to pour over the lamb

once I have carved it.

Although I say carve, I mean slice.

Right.

Easy peasy. Perfectly pink.

So, it'll be piled
up on its platter,

drizzled with those wonderful
bay and balsamic juices,

then I think I might give it
a little final crown of bay leaves.

And I can feed the hungry hordes.

Oh, lovely!

Have you had this before, Tom?
I have indeed.

I'm going to ask you to swap plates.

LAUGHTER

CHATTER

Well, as much as they've eaten,

I think they'll find space
for a little bit more.

I'm about to unveil my
meringue gelato cake.

The great thing about wrapping
it in cling is that you can just

pull it out in one go,
without any worry.

Just a very light brick
at this stage.

I'm just going to cut
it into iced slices.

I love the knobbly texture,
that's all those crumbled meringues,

and the grated chocolate.

And although it looks rich,
it's in fact incredibly light.

And although I'm going to put

some raspberries on the table,
I do want to dot some

here and there.

Yes, they do look beautiful,
but they also provide

just the right tang against the
sweetness of the ice cream.

And now I'm going to Jackson Pollock
some chocolate sauce over. Mmm!

This makes me feel absurdly happy.

Let's hope it has the
same effect on them.

# I don't believe in fretting
And grieving... #

Will you hand me a plate?

Don't worry, there's
some raspberries there.

I know!

# Some find it pleasant
Dining on pheasant

# Those things
Roll off of my knife

# Just serve me tomatoes
And mashed potatoes

# Give me the simple life. #

# Tu vuo fa l'Americano

# Mericano!
Mericano... #

Real chilli fried and zingy.

So, just roll them,
roll them, roll them.

I have managed to wrap
a meatball in pasta.

# Tu giochi al basebal

# Ma e solde pe
Camel chi te li da?

# La borsetta di mamma

# Tu vuo fa l'Americano

# Mericano
Mericano

# Ma si nato in Italy

# Siente a me,
Nun ce sta niente

# Afa OK, Napolita

# Tu vuo fa l'American
Tu vuo fa l'American

# Comme te po' capi
Che te vo bene... #

Cut.

You could add wine at this stage,
but I prefer vermouth,

not least because...

Sorry!

This is not my day! OK.
It really is. So sorry. Oh, my God!

It's just... Calm. OK.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd