Culinary ambassador Peppe Zullo

This farmer-chef of Orsara, in the province of Foggia, has brought the culinary culture of his native region to the world with “simple food for intelligent people”.

Peppe Zullo is the farmer-chef of Orsara, an ancient village in the Dauno Mountains. With is his genuine smile and keen look, he has become known as the ambassador and spokesperson for Puglia cuisine in the world and this because he has been able to restore the pride his native region deserves. The fil rouge of his life has been his unconditional love for his own roots. After emigrating and achieving his American dream, he returned to Italy in the 1980s to discover that the most beautiful place in the world is the one you love and where you have your roots.

The food of the past is the food of the future and at the table one must rediscover the flavors of long ago and the pleasure of being together. “Simple food for intelligent people” is his favorite slogan and the key to understanding his quest. He uses uncomplicated words with everyone to discuss biodiversity, seasonal products, sustainability, the fight against waste and the importance of territoriality. His dishes are simple, without fuss, and made using common yet tasty ingredients.

Forbes recently named his as one of the 100 proponents of Italian excellence and he is incessantly on the go to talk about good and healthy food, as the point person during many conferences and with the recipes he brings as a permanent guest on the Rai3 TV theme program Geo&Geo. And every year, he invites to Orsara international journalists, chefs and producers to celebrate and appreciate food culture during a two-day event called Appuntamento con la Daunia (A Meeting with Daunia), the next edition of which will be the 25th.

“Twenty years ago, I was considered a mad man due to my ideas that, at the time, were considered extravagant. In reality, they were farsighted,” Peppe Zullo tells us. “From the land to the table is not just a slogan, even if it may be over-used today. The fact is, the prime ingredients I use come from less than a kilometer from my farm. We are what we eat, there is no vision without tradition. At this particular moment in history, nature is the future. If we respect it then we will be fine, if we treat it badly we will suffer. Italian cuisine is the most loved and envied and everyone copies us. One need only look at the three Ps: pane (bread), pizza and pasta. Our region has up until now experienced an extraordinary moment, unfortunately, we do not pay proper attention to our resources and carrying originality to the extreme does not pay off”.

His famous Orto dei Sapori Perduti (Garden of Lost flavors) is 22,000 square meters in size and currently in season are fresh fava beans, peas, borage and spring onions among the over 100 varieties cultivated. Before the pandemic, Peppe Zullo’s restaurant was only open for lunch. Among the things to try were the wild asparagus with homemade cavatelli pasta with vernini tomatoes. According to Peppe, every pasta has its sauce and every sauce has its pasta. The one-inch cavatelli should only be used for pasta fagioli, two-inch with tomato and cacioricotta cheese and three-inch pasta with vegetables.

All of Zullo’s activities take place at his farm in Piano Paradisio. Aside from the restaurant, there are wonderful venues for weddings at Villa Jamele (home also to his cooking school) and Nuova Sala Paradiso. Of particular interest is the Cantina del Paradiso that was created in collaboration with the late Severino Garofano to bring back to its former glory the ancient, native varietal Tuccanese. In the hectares surrounding the winery they also cultivate Nero di Troia, Merlot and Cabernet which are used to make three wines sold on-site: Uraria, Aliuva and Daunia IGT. The winery with the vineyard above it were designed by architect Nicola Tramonte and decorated by master artist Leon Marino. In 2010, the project was selected to take part in the Venice Biennale’s International Architecture Exhibition in the section dedicated to “The Cathedrals of Wine”.

Related Products