A good number of Italian chefs seek new pastures and travel the world to develop their skills – but the vast majority of them always return to Italy in the end. That’s certainly the case with Accursio Craparo, who after an initial plan to see the sights of Europe was convinced to return home and realise his potential as one of Sicily’s most celebrated chefs.

Born in Sciacca, an historic fishing port on the southwest coast of Sicily, Accursio’s earliest memories are of watching his grandmother in the kitchen while his father and grandfather worked on the family farm. ‘When I think about my earliest memories of food, it’s always the aromas of lemons and saffron that I can’t get out of my head,’ he says. Remaining on the island to attend the local catering college, his main aim – as with many young chefs – was to see the world, so he set out for Frankfurt, cooking at the Michelin-starred Osteria Enoteca for a year. He was set on staying out there, but during a short break back home he ran into his friend and mentor Corrado Assenza. ‘He took me for a walk in the countryside and taught me how to pick the right herbs and notice all the different wild flavours,’ says Accursio. It was during this walk that Corrado told him he must never lose sight of where he came from, and that he should return to Sicily one day and open his own restaurant.

While he didn’t remain in Sicily, Accursio decided to remain in Italy to work with the legendary Pietro Leemann at Joia in Milan – Europe’s first Michelin-starred vegetarian restaurant. ‘I was there from 2000 to 2002, learning the art of appreciating natural products, natural methods and a lighter style of cooking,’ he says. ‘I also loved how the Mediterranean kitchen was influenced by Asian elements.’ It was here that Accursio truly began to understand how to balance bitter, acidic, spicy, salty and sweet flavours.

Eventually, Pietro and Accursio agreed it was time for him to take the next step in his career, which led the young chef to Massimiliano Alajmo, the chef in charge of the three-starred Le Calandre in Padova. ‘Here I learnt about the harmonic synthesis of dishes; how there was no dissonance between the five senses and that hearing is just as important as taste, sight as important as smell.’ For the next two years Accursio absorbed all the culinary knowledge he could, becoming a fantastic chef in his own right.