Among other things, Giuseppe “Beppe” Bigazzi is known for his prize-winning cookbook La cucina semplice dei sapori d’Italia (The simple cuisine of the flavours of Italy). But as of this week, the flavour with which the TV gastronome is likely to be most closely associated is that of stewed cat.
Bigazzi is familiar to millions of viewers of the publicly-owned RAI network as the white-haired co-presenter of a popular pre-lunchtime programme, La prova del cuoco (The proof of the cook). But this week he was experiencing his first day without television commitments in 10 years after being axed for expressing his enthusiasm for the flesh of felines.
His remarks came after mentioning how, in the desperate conditions of post-war Italy, some people had taken to boiling stray mogs.
As his fellow-presenter, Elisa Isoardi, looked on aghast, the 77-year-old Bigazzi told viewers that, far from being a last resort in times of near-famine, gatto in umido was “one of the great dishes of the Valdarno [in Tuscany]”.
The secret, he disclosed, was to leave the cat in a fast-running stream for three days. “What comes out is a delicacy”, he enthused. “Many a time I’ve eaten its white meat.”
Isoardi, herself a cat owner, tried to interrupt, but to no avail. Cat in a thick sauce was “better than chicken, rabbit or pigeon”, he said.
During a commercial break, the producers unsuccessfully attempted to persuade the celebrity gourmet that he should apologise when the programme resumed. Soon afterwards, RAI’s switchboard was jammed with calls from appalled viewers.
Bigazzi was on Tuesday quoted by the newspaper Corriere della Sera as saying he had been referring to events in the past, adding: “You can’t judge things from 70 years ago”.
But that was not enough for Italy’s National Animal Protection Board, whose president, Carla Rocchi, announced she had instructed its lawyers to begin proceedings against Bigazzi for inciting cruelty to animals.
A junior minister in Silvio Berlusconi’s government, Francesca Martini, said what had happened was “of the utmost gravity”.
Not everyone agreed, however. The blogosphere was today buzzing with comments, some in Bigazzi’s favour. One maintained that it was “truly astonishing” that Bigazzi had been dropped by RAI “for having recollected a recipe from his native region, albeit one not acceptable to most people”. – guardian.co.uk