The Italian cuisine is a very old one. And while there are very traditional dishes, Italians have always tried new ingredients as they came available. Tomatoes, for example, were brought to Italy in the 1500s from America. We didn’t turn our noses at them for sure. Today, we live in a global village. Businesses take ideas from other cultures all the time. And food is no different.
While my food is always at its heart Italian, I do use ingredients from other countries from time to time. I was making my new hamachi crudo with peaches and I was not happy with the peaches that arrived one day. So I threw them in the trash and came up with a new dish.
I combined coconut milk, tamarind, chili, mint and lime and then put some fried ginger on top. We Italians love dishes that have a balance between sweet, salty, spicy and acidic and so do the Thais, who obviously influenced this dish. At its heart, it is Italian. But many of the ingredients are Thai.
Every culture has its ways that work. But you can always learn from other cultures to make products that will improve the experience for your customers.