When we first arrived in Abruzzo, I was used to the English way of serving food. In particular meat and fish would be served boned, filleted, the skin removed and the head, feet and other parts removed. In fact even going to the supermarket you could only really buy meat in small plastic cartons covered in plastic wrap. The contents of these cartons scarcely resembled the part of the animal it came from.

So when I first walked into an Italian deli and was greeted with a whole lamb sitting at eye level on the top of the counter I was disgusted. Having grown up vegetarian for many years I found the site a little distressing. It had been skinned but it’s head was still attached and it was whole. The poor lamb’s glazed eyes were peering out examining me and its huge tongue was blue and lolling like only a dead thing lolls. Shocking to the core.

Things could only get worse as some-one in the queue then ordered lamb and the grocer casually dragged the animal down and took a huge meat cleaver to it. Merrily he hacked away at the poor carcass until it lay in pieces, being weighed up for people’s supper. With every passing moment my knees grew weaker….To me this was a spectacle of horrors.

However as time passed I grew accustomed to the more natural state of animals and butchery in Abruzzo. It just seems to be a more natural and accepted part of life over here. And I must say the meat is amazing.

It is very expected to go to the butchers or even the supermarket and see whole chickens with their heads still on and whole rabbits for sale.

How food is served.

In Britain we are served food that is filleted and easy to eat. Over here it is accepted that the best flavours come when you cook meat on the bone, therefore, it is served that way. Chicken is generally served on the bone, likewise fish, prawns and many other meat and fish.

What is the result?

The result is the most amazing flavours, you have to get your hands (and face) dirty when eating. You have to be prepared to play with your food and get stuck in.

It all makes for a very social and enjoyable experience.

You may think that this is the case just in Abruzzo which can be a bit backwards, but we have eaten in some swanky places and even in the middle of Rome and when we ordered fish, we got a whole fish when we ordered fruit we got an apple etc.

Also even when you buy food in the supermarket you should be ready to spend a long time preparing it. Fresh food in Italy is exactly that. If you buy a huge lettuce in the supermarket you will probably have to wash clods of dirt of it before you can eat it. Also you might have to wash bugs and slugs off it.