Italian Chef Fired Over Cat Recommendation

If you thought eating guinea pig was weird, how about eating cat? This week in Italy food writer and chef Giuseppe “Beppe” Bigazzi was banned from the airwaves for recommending that viewers of his show, la Prova del Cuoco, the Italian version of the BBC show Ready, Steady, Cook, eat “casserole of cat,” which Bigazzi called a “succulent dish.” “I've eaten it myself,” he said, “and it’s a lot better than many other animals. Better than chicken, rabbit or pigeon.” He went on to explain to viewers that the best flavor comes from the cat being “soaked in spring water for three days” before being stewed. RAI, the Italian public broadcasting television network, immediately fired Bigazzi. Francesca Martini, the deputy Italian health minister, said it was “absolutely unheard of for a public service broadcaster to tell people how delicious cats are to eat.” She said cats were “domestic animals and as such protected by law.”