In the latest episode of CNN’s Searching for Italy, actor Stanley Tucci continued his journey in southern Italy with a stop in Puglia (POOL-ya), located, as he says, “in the heel of Italy’s boot…with 500 miles of coastline and 60 million olive trees, one for every Italian in Italy.” 

The town of Foggia, he noted, is the “bread basket of Italy,” producing much of the nation’s durum wheat. He stated that “50% of Italy’s olive oil comes from this region,” describing its taste as “peppery” (good adjective). And he compared the region’s pasta as being “like its people – fiery, uncompromising, and it breaks all the rules.”