Tastes From the Melting Pot

He says his pie mission is to convince people that California-style pizza is not so hard to make and that it's, well, pizza. "There's bias. People are intimidated," says LaDou. "If it isn't what they grew up with, they think it's no good."

LaDou will demonstrate recipes at 2 and 4 p.m. tomorrow in the Melting Pot kitchen and Garden Kitchen, respectively; at 1 and 3 p.m. Friday in the Melting Pot and the Home Cooking kitchen, respectively; at 1 and 4 p.m. Saturday in Home Cooking; at 1 and 3 p.m. Sunday in Melting Pot and Garden Kitchen, respectively; and at 1 and 4 p.m. Monday in Home Cooking and Melting Pot, respectively.

LIDIA BASTIANICH When she's not taping a cooking television series, writing, visiting her restaurants in New York, Pittsburgh and Kansas City, or hosting her gourmet tours, Lidia Bastianich returns to her native Italy to keep a close eye on what's evolving in the food culture she loves.

" Crudo Italiano -- the raw fish craze -- is crawling up the peninsula these days," she told us by phone while vacationing in the Adriatic last week. "It's very traditional in the south and in Sicily, but now you see it in the middle of Rome and Milan. The restaurant Uliassi [in Senigallia on the Adriatic coast] has built its reputation on its crudo.

"And, of course, it's made its way to New York and even California," she says. Bastianich reports that the raw fish is served with condiments no more obtrusive than a sprinkling of lemon or orange juice, or a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

She thinks Americans' taste for sushi has paved the way for the Italian version of raw fish and finds the cultural overlap fascinating, a topic she plans to explore in her talk this weekend.

She says simplicity, fresh ingredients and minimal treatment of artisanal products are keys to Italian cooking: "Exalt the product itself. Use the right vegetable in the right season. You put artisanal products [such as balsamic vinegar or cheese] on a plate, you don't need to do anything else."

If you're planning to ask Bastianich for her recommendations on which olive oil or tomatoes to use, she may turn the tables and ask you to trust your own "gustatory apparatus": "Buy two or three different ones and taste them next to each other," she says.

Bastianich will demonstrate recipes at 3 p.m. Friday in the Melting Pot.

SUVIR SARAN One of the most talked-about chefs in New York, Suvir Saran wants to show home cooks how they can incorporate Indian techniques into American cooking. "I make a mean macaroni and cheese by frying rosemary, thyme and basil in butter with flour and milk," says Saran, owner of Devi restaurant. At the same time, this New Delhi native wants to "dispel the myth that Indian food equals cream and butter and hours of preparation." He plans to share his knowledge of medicinal herbs and spices, seeds and plant stalks when he takes the stage at the festival.

In New York, the latest trend in restaurants is what Saran calls "simple, Indian street foods." An example is bhel puri -- the No. 1-selling appetizer at Devi and the dish he will make on the Mall. He predicts that Indian restaurants in this country will start incorporating more exotic, unlikely ingredients into dishes, such as morel mushrooms, basil seeds and lotus seeds as well as green mango. He also thinks they will stop using red and yellow food coloring in dishes. "Young Indians here don't want that," he says.

Saran says Indian restaurants in the Washington area "are a decade behind what we do in New York." His favorite D.C. restaurant is Ceiba in downtown Washington, where "I love the Latin flavors, the ambiance and especially the desserts. It's one of the most exciting restaurants I have ever visited."(See recipe, Page F6)

Saran will demonstrate recipes at 1 p.m. Friday in the Garden Kitchen, followed by a book signing; at 1 p.m. Saturday in the Melting Pot; and at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Melting Pot.

--Interviews by Bonnie S. Benwick, Walter Nicholls and Candy Sagon.

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