Celebrity Chef Giada De Laurentiis Shares What She Eats While Traveling

Food Network star Giada De Laurentiis is known for cooking up classic Italian favorites stateside, but while traveling — to Italy or anywhere else — she enjoys meals with intention and experience in mind.

"Food is a passion for me and it’s really important for me to try local cuisines," De Laurentiis told Travel + Leisure. "With that being said, I like to be mindful about what I’m consuming as I never want to feel sluggish and tired while exploring an amazing place." 

The celebrity chef, who recently launched her own Italian cuisine and lifestyle-inspired e-commerce site, Giadzy — By Giada de Laurentiis, has zeroed in on making authentic Italian cooking accessible for all after having met with farmers and developed new recipes as a part of the endeavor.

“It’s been a dream of mine to bring authentic Italian ingredients to people's homes and I feel really honored to share products, and these farmers’ stories with the world," she said of the site. "We do so much research on the regions and traditions these products are derived from and many of the purveyors are friends or people my family has known for generations. It’s thoughtful and incredibly intentional."

Giadzy is currently home to 150 Italian recipes with 100 more coming before the holidays, she told us.

De Laurentiis also clued us in on her routines and go-tos when it comes to traveling. Naturally the author of "Eat Better, Feel Better: My Recipes for Wellness and Healing, Inside and Out" told T+L, that "everything is a balance," when it comes to eating on a trip.

"I plan my meals," she said. "I get excited about new restaurants to try and [then] leave the rest up to spontaneity."

However, when it comes to travel prep, De Laurentiis trades spontaneity for practicality.

For starters, the food expert is keen on hydrating while on a flight. And if she doesn't have fresh snacks on hand, such as sliced apples or fennel, she'll have Pan d'aria Tradizione Puffed Crackers in her bag.

"I find the cleaner I eat on a flight, the better I feel when I arrive," she noted.

And when it comes to beating jet lag, she readies her mind and body as much as possible before takeoff by setting her watch for the time zone of her destination.

"I also always travel with a scarf to put around my neck because I get cold," she said. "I like to layer so I’m ready for whatever." 

For skincare on-the-go, we can't say we're surprised that De Laurentiis has a homemade recipe for her exfoliant — rice flour and olive oil — that she uses everyday and includes in her travel kit.

Much like all explorers and travel lovers, the chef chalks her workouts up to walking in new places — but will pack a workout band for a post-flight stretch session in her hotel room.

"I find that I’m active all of the time, so an actual workout feels less necessary," she said.