There was a time when I used to think that the single biggest driver in great food was the person cooking it.  The fact of the matter is, without great ingredients, most chefs would have a hard time making great food.  Does this mean that chefs aren’t really all that good at what they do?  Absolutely not.  It merely speaks to the importance of using great ingredients in your cooking.

Without a good starting point, it’s very tough to make something taste delicious, and, thankfully the reverse is true.  Take the recipe below (Bucatini all’Amtraciana) from Lidia Bastianich’s Lidia’s Italian American Kitchen.  It has 7 ingredients, and takes about 30 minutes to make.  With good, quality ingredients, it’s delicious.  Without them, it’s meh.

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