00:01Ciao, I'm Cuoppo, Cuoppo Napolitano, and I'm the king of the streets of Naples.
00:06I'm a paper cone filled with a delicious mix of breaded fish, seafood, vegetables, or potatoes.
00:12Soft on the inside and crispy on the outside, no doubt.
00:16I'm better than fish and chips. What kind of question is that?
00:20Oh, come on, it's a completely different level of taste.
00:24Of course, I taste better. Get more out of it.
00:28It's a specialty. You simply have to try it.
00:32We tried it based on her recommendation, and it was excellent.
00:38You can find stalls like mine in almost every corner in Naples.
00:42I am the street food of this southern Italian city.
00:46People even line up for me.
00:48I come in different varieties, but more about that later.
00:54First, let this master of the deep fryer show you why I'm special.
01:00I'm Gabriele Zocchi, chef at Il Cuoppo Frigatori Napolitani.
01:05And I'm glad that our Neapolitan specialty has made its way in a paper cone onto the streets.
01:11I am brought into the world in this plain room.
01:15I need shrimp. Gabriele peels them first.
01:18Then he grates lemons, only the best ones for me, of course.
01:21They come from nearby, from the Campania region.
01:27We only grate the lemon peel, because it adds aroma and freshness, while the juice has a sour note.
01:39I love rice.
01:41Gabriele cooks it with saffron, pepper and lemon zest in a vegetable broth, similar to a risotto.
01:46The shrimps are added to be cooked briefly.
01:49Then Gabriele adds a mixture of pecorino, grana padano and scamorza cheese.
01:56The rice should be cooled in the refrigerator before it gets shaped into balls.
02:01See you in a minute.
02:04Finally, my rice balls see the light of day again.
02:07Now they go into a hot oil bath.
02:09They prefer sunflower oil.
02:11But when can they come out again?
02:15The cooking times are based on experience.
02:18I do this every day.
02:21You also have to look at the balls.
02:23If they're golden brown on the outside, they should also be hot and cooked on the inside.
02:33Certainly, I'm more than just the balls known as limoncetto.
02:36I can also include fried calamari, anchovies, zucchini and eggplant.
02:41I'm typically served in these cone-shaped paper bags.
02:45That's how I got my name.
02:49The paper soaks up some of the oil released by the balls after they're fried.
02:54And it's more practical for takeaway.
02:57Would you like to know where I came from?
03:00According to legend, I have been around since the 19th century.
03:03My birthplace, Naples, is situated along the Mediterranean Sea.
03:07Fishing used to be a significant industry there.
03:11Fresh catches were sold at the fish market.
03:14But some of it could not be sold.
03:18Small fish of no particular value, often considered bycatch and typically thrown back into the sea,
03:24were instead collected and fried.
03:27These fish were then served as a delicious dish in small bags on the street.
03:32Yes, I was initially a makeshift solution, and so what?
03:36This meant I was affordable for poorer Neopolitans as well.
03:40They could even buy me on credit.
03:41I used to be just a simple fish bag, but now I love variety.
03:46You can find me served with chicken croquettes as a cuopo della terra,
03:50or loaded with seafood as a cuopo di mara.
03:57We have a seafood cuopo and a so-called land cuopo.
04:01Anchovies, stockfish, shrimp, and a zeppolina.
04:04That's a dough ball.
04:07Would you like to try me, cuopo napolitano, king of the streets in Naples?
04:12We'll see you next time.
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