AS a diplomatic correspondent, my usual stomping grounds are stiff summit rooms and formal press briefings. But part of the job also means diplomatic receptions, which usually come with food. Each embassy likes to show off its own culinary pride.
A few months ago, BusinessMirror publisher T. Anthony C. Cabangon had an epiphany of sorts: Why not do a podcast for EnvoysandExpats-something in the same spirit as Freshly Brewed? Editor Mike Policarpio and I thought, why not turn it into a cooking show, with diplomats and resident expats as our guests?
So, for the pilot episode of Freshly Brewed’s Kitchen Quest, we decided to shake things up. The idea was simple: get envoys out of their element and into the kitchen to see if we could cook up some real intercultural dialogue.
Our brave first guest was Ambassador of the European Union to the Philippines Massimo Santoro, who met me and Chef Conrad Nuñez at Blanca Pizzeria in White Plains, Quezon City. The mission: to whip up an authentic Italian spaghetti al pomodoro while untangling the complexities of EU-Philippine relations.
The idea may be simple, but the execution was difficult. We are men and women of letters, not visuals. I had my share of television experience, but it was all in the planning stages, never in production.
Despite two pre-production meetings, Murphy’s Law took over. Our cameras overheated, our audio crackled, and then the habagat rains poured down. Good thing that Ambassador Santoro was a good sport about it, staying longer than expected and powering through two takes of cooking.
He brought his own ingredients, even a tomato masher and grinder of sorts. That’s when I realized I had to unlearn the Filipino style of cooking. I quickly learned that when an Italian ambassador takes over the stove, you play by his rules.
Getting it right
THE ambassador grew up spending his Sunday mornings in the kitchen with his mother and grandmother, and he brought that strict Italian culinary heritage straight to our counter. He immediately laid down the law: no hotdogs, definitely no condensed milk, and absolutely no banana ketchup.
A true pomodoro relies on the quality of a few basic ingredients like extra virgin olive oil, garlic, fresh tomatoes, and basil.
I also committed a near-fatal error by suggesting we break the spaghetti before dropping it in the pot.
The envoy explained that breaking pasta is a culinary ‘capital sin:’ Every strand has to go in whole.
When it came to enjoying the dish? Twirl it with a fork. No knives. And if you ever find yourself in Italy, do not even think about using a spoon.
Deals, dining, diplomacy
WHILE we waited for the garlic to turn a perfect golden brown, I steered the conversation toward a different kind of recipe: the ongoing free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between the Philippines and the EU.
It turns out simmering a good sauce isn’t so different from forging an international trade deal. The ambassador explained that the FTA is essentially a massive framework meant to connect our 100 million Filipinos with the EU’s 500 million consumers across its 27 member states.
If it goes through, it means zero tariffs on goods and services, which translates to lower prices at the checkout counter and a huge boost in local jobs.
For our farmers, it could finally mean Philippine mangoes on European grocery shelves. He also highlighted an entire digital chapter within the agreement designed to link our robust business process outsourcing and startup sectors with European firms, alongside strict sustainability rules that ensure agricultural waste is recycled and indigenous rights are protected.
Recipes for results
DESPITE arriving right in the middle of a typhoon in September 2024, Santoro has completely thrown himself into Philippine life.
He shared that he has undergone two-hour Tagalog lessons every Monday and has traveled extensively across the archipelago.
In fact, the EU is a major development partner in the Bangsamoro Region, heavily supporting local agriculture, fisheries, and the peace process. But before anyone asks him for a favor, he quickly cleared up a common misconception: he cannot issue a Schengen visa.
The EU Delegation doesn’t actually have a visa section; that power belongs exclusively to the individual embassies of the bloc’s 27 member states. Still, he noted that EU programs like Erasmus scholarships do help Filipino students secure visas for European studies and internships.
By the time we tossed our perfectly al dente pasta into the pan, adding just a dash of freshly ground pepper, the parallels between the kitchen and the negotiating table were hard to miss.
Just like waiting for the tomatoes to break down and coat the spaghetti, getting 27 European nations to reach a consensus requires an incredible amount of tiyaga (patience), said Santoro. But as we sat down to partake in the classic-style Italian spaghetti, which, for me, was perfetto.
Honestly, I’m not sure if my sweet-spaghetti-obsessed daughter would agree. But it was clear that the simplest ingredients really do yield the best results, especially when borders are open to sharing them.