Give it time. It's only been 5 days. The Russians will use this as propaganda and accuse the US of trying to poison our Italian allies. And rightfully so. I was a sniper in Viet Nam and we were given LRRP rations instead of C rations because they were lighter and only required hot water to prepare. They were better than C rations but they were still bland. We operated with Mountainyards on our recon missions and they were issued indigenous LRRP rations that were manufactured in Japan. Frankly, they tasted better than our LRRP rations so I always traded my rations with my Mountainyard friends. FTR, we used alcohol tablets to heat the H2O because they did not emit smoke that the NVAs might see. We were a 2-man team and our missions were usually 7 days and our area of operation was the central highlands. Our base of operations was Dak To. Good morning Viet Nam.
Yeah, I once worked with an Italian engineer born in Rome and he REFUSED to go to team lunches at what we call "Italian" restaurants. He said there is only ONE authentic Italian restaurant in all of USA, one in NYC. I don't remember the name. They are definitely SERIOUS about meals!
When deployed we did nato training with italian soldiers. We went to eat at their cafeteria. Half of our unit was ready to switch sides just because of their food. They take their food quite serious. Also were great soldiers to work with
Considering how well Italy is known for its food, you could actually view it as a matter of national pride. I mean, imagine the jokes if the Italian military had shitty food?
@@seededsoulyou also have to consider weight. At least with respect to MRE’s. All of those tin cans and little metal parts adds some level of weight that an individual soldier has to carry.
The first time I went on a trip from France to Italy the thing that stunned me was the amazing quality of the food on their motorways. One place, they were MAKING fresh bread.
My brother it is a war crime, I was excited for it only one time and never again, I’d rather get the Asian beef strip MRE over the pizza one, at least the beef strip one has some decent snack items
In heaven: The cooks are Italian, the police are British and the mechanics are German. In Hell: The cooks are British, the mechanics are Italian and the police are Germans.
As an American who recently visited Italy, it was pretty fascinating at how different the “Italian” dishes are between the US and Italy. I’m sure some people may like true Italian cuisine, me personally, I was glad to get back to the US and eat my “fake” Italian.
I was saying the same thing!! No!! My father was in the Italian Army during the Cuban Missile Crisis cold war era. He probably would jokingly have said, "Oh, this is the best pizza I ever had!" At least if it came with the MREs with the chocolate cake that I remembered many years ago, it would have made up for the "pizza toast."
This idea of exchanging food rations between soldiers belonging to different armies is really nice. As an Italian I would not be offended if the pizza of the US soldier is not perfect, it is still a nice recognition at the our national cuisine. Thanks for this.
Reminds me of all the reality shows, where they like swap the family's wife with another family's wife and they always choose families that are insanely different so it'll have the maximum conflict and hopefully entertainment value.
Yeah I kinda wish they did 1-to-1 rations. These are used for much different purposes. You can have your American MRE in your pack, not so much with this Italian one that is meant to be kept at camp. They definitely have one more like the american MRE that they use.
They didn’t explain that, for the Italian troops, when it’s time to eat, a man named Salvatore sets up tables and brews espresso while a man named Pasquale plays accordion.
After years of pineapple pizzas, carbonara with cream and other distortions we are slowly getting used to the fact that once we leave the national borders everything becomes a culinary farwest
@@alexyorha1650 Come to Japan! We have a lot of authentic Italian food. Also a lot of not so authentic food. But our carbonara is always made with eggs!
Our town in Australia was devastated by flooding in 2022. Several pallets of Singapore Army MREs were donated to the local flood recovery centre. From memory there were around ten different main courses (all good), plus biscuits , coffee candy , fruit bars , and electrolyte drinks . While not restaurant quality they were pretty damn good . They kept us fed for a month while we rebuilt our lives. Thankyou Singapore!
American: "here is some smoking explosive reactive chemistry in a bag" Italian: "here are some toothbrushes and toothpicks for breakfast for after your coffee"
I think that she compares the ragù to the minestrone because of the vegetables for the soffritto (the initial phase of preparation) and the passata instead of the tomato concentrate. In US the “bolognese sauce” it’s more like just a lot of beef and spices, a sort of chili con carne or something like that.
As someone who has eaten that MRE before, that’s pretty much how I’d sum it up. They had so many better options to go with and they picked one of the worst ones. It’s very bland and not nearly as filling as some of the other ones.
After 20 days eating Italian rations, we started to exchange our rations with other Army. At the end of our deployment i've learned that sharing food is the best thing to consolidate relationships in every situations.
I served as the US Navy Liaison Officer to the Marine Nationale (French Navy) in the late 80s at BAN Nimes-Garons (South of France). I was treated like a "King". Everywhere I went, I was treated like some "their lost cousin from the New World". The food they served me ashore and at sea was "out of this world" (French service members take their meal time very seriously)! Two of my uncles had died on French soil during World War II (Normandy landings and air war over France). My French hosts honored me like some French hero - I was really touched by their generosity, kindness, and hospitality. Advice for my "fellow Americans", treating foreign nationals with respect (especially when being a guest in THEIR own country) goes a long way. Thank you to all the French Citizens, to the members of La Marine Nationale and to those of La Légion Étrangère for having offered me a memorable tour of duty. Ciao, L (Maine, USA)
I was fortunate enough to spend two weeks training with the Italian Carabinieri, the food in their mess hall was fantastic, and they were also a very nice bunch of guys to live and work with. It was a great experience.
Well, for be a soldier, doing an international exchange, his English was not so perfect, not at the level of i was expecting from our international brigade, but hey, I love the passion and pride about sharing his “typical” ration
Not inside. A random farm field where the 173rd is allowed to jump at in Italy. Not many bases there. The rare unfortunate privates will drift into a hay bale before trying to PLF out there by aviano air base.
These people didn't even address the fact that you field strip an MRE before you go out(open it and get rid of the unnecessary fluff to save space and weight in your ruck). That Italian one seems a bit hard to field strip. There's a reason the US went from C-rations (in a can) to MREs. It's fucking stupid. I could put a pouch of spaghetti in my cargo pocket and slurp it down straight from the bag anytime u wanted during the ruck march.
@Souwth-bawston-is-fuh-luvahs I never mentioned anything about comparing MRE's quality between militaries, I am simply amazed about how the Italian military treats its troops.
@@joeyboi8841 That's because Italian combat rations are meant for a whole day, while American ones are meant for an individual meal. The Italian military privileges logistical practicality over field stripping. Also, the Italian Military does not have the US Military's budget so they have to be more careful with how they use their resources.
@@joeyboi8841 Hot food is much better for morale (and energy) hence why these Italian (and the British) rat packs come with hexamine cookers. Having the main meal in a can means you can shove it directly on your stove, as was shown, then eat it out of there and bin it. Hot food with no dirty mess tins....!
Americans like pizza, we like it differently and have very different forms of it, like deep-dish. But MRE’s are meant to give as many calories as possible in as small a weight and package while still reminding the servicemen of home. I expect they couldn’t get enough calories in the sauce and toppings and had to get more in the bread. But it’s good to have an Italian’s take on it since their idea of pizza is so different from what we like and are used to.
As an Italian, I was laughing a lot, but it is pretty interesting to watch what U.S. soldiers have to eat. We need to keep in mind that MRE food is only for cisis, not for everyday use, so you will survive even with American toast-pizza. It is not meant to enjoy a lavish meal. But it did remind me of pictures and videos comparing what school children in the U.S. eat for their school lunches, and I can tell you THAT is horrible. In Europe, school kids can get much better and vitamin richer lunches, with lots of vegetables, fruit, quality meat, fish, etc. We don't give our children a strange combination of French fries and some strange piece of meat and fruit and milk (not to mention that the U.S. feeds their school kids skimmed milk that contains absolutely no nutrition at all). You don't want to eat meat, fruit and splash it all with milk. The poor kids must get diarrhoea after such a meal! So... the MRS look better to me than the U.S. school lunches.
@@danapertile106 You have no idea how bad school lunches are in the US. I’m a teacher in a higher needs (poor budget) district and the quality is so bad I see lots of the kids skip lunch and just get two drinks. It might even healthier to do that. The cafeteria smells like a paint factory
I have a feeling we’re going to read about this in future history books, how the Americans had the audacity to bring an MRE pizza slice to Italy before World War III
She probably should have brought a couple of MREs just to make up for the fact that he technically gave her a whole days worth and she gave him a single serving of the worst pizza he's probably ever had.
It would seem that the items in the Italian ration pack are loaded with calories, fats, carbs, protein etc. All the things a soldier would need while out wherever they may be. I've had my fair share of actual MREs. I don't know what in the world she had. The ones we had were stuffed full of food an other little things.
Hell no. You want to carry something light, filling, and fast and easy to set up/clean up. Could you imagine carrying all of that unnecessary stuff from the Italian mre? Sure there’s luxuries, but in modern times it’s unlikely that you’ll be out of the supply chain for long enough to miss them.
As a general rule, the Italian and French MREs are the ones most soldiers prefer to eat, while the US ones are the easiest to hump around all day long. It means that US MREs are almost always easy to trade away. No soldier wants to carry more than they absolutely have to.
Yeah, the Italian one had lots of cool things but cans add weight to an already heavy backpack. You can tell the American version was prepped to be lighter weight and take up less space.
As a Hiker who uses them sometimes: I prefer the company tactical foodpack. But it’s all nothing against just taking some stuff to cook with you for a short trip. But on longer Hikes and Bike tours definitely Tactical Foodpack! It’s almost like the American pack and heater but it’s real food just deyfrozen and packaged.
It depends by situations. What you get by you is what you can always count on to complete the mission. Waiting further delivery by headquarter could be not only seriously delusional, but risky or completely impossible sometimes, also incapacitated by enemy activity cutting delivery lines. No soldier can forecast troubles, can plan troubles, how many days he would be compelled nailed in an hostile activity. Perhaps by strategic contingency retaining an enemy proximity position? Food and nutrition is of course important, but drinking water is definitely more vital while engaged, also having some hardware stuffs to improvise alarm traps, to act equipment fixings and cleaning, small medications, to make fire... to sanitize additional water and to cook opportunistically in prolonged survival emergency or to trade with locals for small favors. Having something, especially an additional reserve of water in soup or in fruit salad can pay off itself in some emergencies after two days of intense fighting and running out all the drinking water of canteen with perhaps no available sources to refill because enemy fire.
When I was in military service (Italy) I ate that kind of ration. In the middle of nowhere it's quite comforting to feel the flavors you're used to. It was the year 2002. 😊
@Arno🔌🐰 I can attest to that. Used to work in a call center for a global publishing company, Italian callers were by far the nicest, most polite people I ever spoke with, even when things were going wrong.
Here's the best compliment I ever heard about Italian food- i was in France on business and getting ready to leave to go to Spain. One of the French businessmen said "I'm sorry, but the food won't be as good in Spain (I loved it and preferred it to the French food), but of course, France has the best food in Europe". Then he paused for a few seconds and said "except for Italy- they have the best".
I've never been, but my wife has been to both france and italy and she brings up the meals she ate on her trip literally every single month. She went to europe 10 YEARS ago lol.... So that should give you an idea of how much she liked the food there.
@@alexcrowder1673 this makes me sad as an American because our food is so chemically induced that natural foods taste amazing and create long lived memories. I felt like the food in Japan was so much better than in the US and I'm not just referring to sushi. Literally the KFC and the McDonalds was astoundingly better.
I’ve been to Paris and the south of france along the med, same with south of Spain, Barcelona, and on a cruise ship that stopped in 4 cities on the west side of Italy with a final stop in Sicily. Food in france and Spain was great. The cruise ship tour stops for lunch sucked big time. It’s like they took us to the restaurants no one went to. The only good place was in Sicily.
Durante I nostri operazioni in Iraq, 2003, ho avuto l'opportunita di mangiare con altri Italiani a Babilonia. Per un Italo/Americano che si e trovato nel esercito Americano e stato veramente una cosa speciale di trovare altri Italiani, specialmente durante le operazioni di combattimento.
1. The Italian guy was very polite... we're lucky the American MRE didn't lead to a diplomatic crisis. 2. The Italian MRE looks amazing. Wow. 3. I look forward to more of these videos.
As Asterix used to say to Obelix: 'Remember - the worse the diet, the stronger the army!' - and later in the dining room he added: 'I had no idea Rome had such a strong army...'
Italians are very considerate and easy going, fully understanding that few nations can measure up to their culinary standards. An encounter with the French would not have been so “diplomatic” how dare the les américains expect us to eat this?😂
Although in this case, I assume NATO is just the acronym for "Nutritivo Assortimento per Tavolare dopo l'Occupazione" - because it looks like the Italian soldier did win over the American one with his MRE. :-)
She even said that the ragù tasted like minestrone! None in Italy would even compare the two things at all as they are very different dishes.. props to the guy for surviving
Right? They could've picked anything but they went with the pizza. I've had one and they aren't terrible but it'd be like the Italian bringing a canned cheeseburger for the American lmao
No it isn’t. NY pizza taste much better then pizza from Italy. I have eaten at many different restaurants in Italy. This oh because pizza originated from Italy doesn’t mean anything on taste. Now saying this, Italian pizza is better than the average restaurant here in America just not most places who make real NY style pizza. Heck buy a stone oven pizza cooker from home and you could even make pizza that taste just as good or better with a little practice getting use to cooking it. That’s what we do at home after leaving Italy.
Food is food, are you gonna complain about food you’re not getting while you’re in war fighting? What’s the big deal with him eating pizza, pizza is food.
Fun fact the Italians were one of the last European countries to adopt any food that came from the continent of America IE tomatoes, potatoes, chillies, sweet peppers ect. Contrary to popular belief Italians also did not invent pizza Sicilians did. Pizza was considered to be " poverty food " by Italians until way after the rest of the world adopted pizza as a main stay. But for some reason people associate pizza and red sauces with Italians when it's a Sicilian and American thing.
I was just gonna say - this isnt neccesarily a good thing for the italian mre 😄 I would imagine in the field you want something fast, portable, and light.
All of us Italians love to let foreigners taste our food, we have the same feeling that a magician has in enchanting other people. We are so proud of our food that we like to see the reaction of those who have never tried it. It's probably a bit cheeky to think that everyone likes it, but there's nothing we can do about it... 😄
During an exercise the other group (non-NATO ally) weren't issued their rations (Thank to bad weather and their supply plane got grounded). So, we shared our rations at the time without causing an international incident. They especially loved how we heated up our rations (their country didn't use self-heating packages or heat tabs. They were expected to heat a pot of water in the field and heat up their rations (to be fair this was about 30 years ago). Now most countries use self-heating rations. They liked our MRE's, and we gave them all our leftover MRE units as we were getting resupplied. Their plane never made it, and they had to send a truck a couple of hundreds to their base for resupply after they started running out of what we supplied them. They loved the neat little candy, tabasco, and coffee packs. They said their rations had a weak tea and did little to keep them awake during long shifts. Years later I ran into some troops from the same country and told them about our adventures with a previous unit. They said they were currently buying some of their rations from a NATO ally country (they're now part of NATO), and it was much better than their rations, including an expresso type coffee that would cause the dead to rise. (I suspect their supplier is Italy or Turkey as their coffee is really strong and they both put it in their rations.)
As a former US Service member, I can already see that Italy has more concern for their military. I had a French military guy once give me a week of their MREs and they were AMAZING. Our MREs were like a kindergarten child made them.
When they developed American MRE's they did so after a lot of one on one research with the troops at the time and hearing what they claimed they wanted. Work that into you're figuring how they came out the other end at the MRE factory with the childlike foods. Most of those ground troops ARE between age 18 and 24. Real culinary experts that they would be at that age.
In America's defense most kids make our restaurant food too. Traditionally, speaking mostly every kid I knew in my high-school that had a job was working at a fast food restaurant unless their dad or mom was a boss or owner somewhere. Aside from theater or grocery store that is.
I had to work together with Americans for few days and i gotta say their MREs were very good but they told me after eating them for 6 months you’ll get tired of them
That is most of the American and European experience of NATO, the G7, and UN lol We say something and it causes everyone else distress but they are very diplomatic about it.
I was deployed to Cervia AB in Italy, for the Kosovo Conflict. We were able to eat in the chow hall occasionally, and their food was much better than what we had at our home base.
I was there! 5th Wing, 23rd Fighter Squadron. There was a long line of American airmen and pilots in the mess hall. The quality was very high because Col. Pilot Alessio Cecchetti wanted every airman to eat like a pilot. We had great times with our American friends.
I love how the italian soldier evaluated it as a practical system and not as a quality food. He knows its horrible food, he also knows what the point of it is.
He was extremely polite lol. "It's very good." "Have another bite." "No, no, no thank you." Then he gives it an 8/10 because it's convenient to carry around and it's not like you have to eat those all the time AKA "It tastes like shit but it will keep you alive, right? 8/10"
Indeed, but out of all the choices the US army offers, they decided to give a pizza slice to an Italian. Somebody was having a proper laugh when they thought this up 🤣
well of course the Italian ration is more difficult to carry around, it's basically three MREs in a single package plus some support stuff like heater tablets, toothbrushes and toilet paper 🤣
altho I think the US heater system is better, doesn't require fire to heat food, just some liquid to start the reaction, is quicker and mostly smokeless and odorless.
The real difference is that the Italian box is a full day's rations. While the MRE is one single meal. He would be issued that one box. She would be issued three MREs. Some MREs are more breakfast like, some are more like a lunch, some are definitely a dinner menu.
I don’t remember the exact amount but the way the American mres get away with giving you less is by giving you one high caloric value meal. In bootcamp during training they’ll give you one and tell you to make it last for 3 days
Same here, lol. "Back home, I wouldn't even feed it to my chickens". Additionally a little slice of white flour dough with some bad sauce is a horrible choice of food for someone that needs energy to trek through difficult terrain.
I'm American Military Veteran an I'm not sure I want the US Pizza MRE.. I'd rather have had the Italian MRE in this case.. The American MRE cheese tortellini isn't that bad..
That was the most diplomatic way for that soldier to say the MRE sucked. 😂 It’s okay, we know, and we agree. My mind was also blown when the toothbrushes came out of the Italian ration.
@@dirtdiv3rThe quality of the food in the Cans is quite good. trust me, i tried em. Way superior to stale pizza. To this day i love canned food simply for the practicality ^^
I think the Italian died internally when he had to try his nationaly food (pizza) This seems like a funny series, keep going. Maybe also a swap of the uniform and equipment, to show unique things?
American-Italian food is not Italian-Italian food. I remember a trip from Germany to this area of Italy in 1990. I honestly did not care all that much for the Italian food in the actual Italian restaurants. But hey, I dont expect them to just love a cheeseburger or chicken fried steak in Texas.
We had a small contingent of Italian soldiers on our base in the Middle East back in the day. Turned out to be an awesome group of guys and it was cool to learn about each others cultures.
As someone that has had to eat it. . . Everything he said is spot on. US MRE's are not made to taste good, they are made to ensure your survival with the minimal amount of weight/space taken up. A 12-pack case of MRE's is slightly smaller than the Italian 24h ration shown here.
J.J. McCullough just came out with a video on the American and Italian cultures of pizza. I recommend if you have a few minutes. It's quite interesting. I also find U.S. - Italian relations surrounding pizza to be very humerous 😂❤
In 1980 I was attached to a Recon unit in Norway during some NATO exercises. I was surprised to learn that the Norwegian soldiers had French bread and fresh eggs in their rations. I’ve never met as many sincerely nice people in any other country. The Norwegian people were outstanding hosts. And their military was top-notch.
Giving an Italian soldier an American MRE pizza slice is an act of friendly fire. I'm surprised that this move didn't dissolve Nato.
Wouldn't be surprised if the American ambassador was summoned after this incident.
Give it time. It's only been 5 days. The Russians will use this as propaganda and accuse the US of trying to poison our Italian allies. And rightfully so. I was a sniper in Viet Nam and we were given LRRP rations instead of C rations because they were lighter and only required hot water to prepare. They were better than C rations but they were still bland. We operated with Mountainyards on our recon missions and they were issued indigenous LRRP rations that were manufactured in Japan. Frankly, they tasted better than our LRRP rations so I always traded my rations with my Mountainyard friends. FTR, we used alcohol tablets to heat the H2O because they did not emit smoke that the NVAs might see. We were a 2-man team and our missions were usually 7 days and our area of operation was the central highlands. Our base of operations was Dak To. Good morning Viet Nam.
🤣 I know right!
This was a real friendly fire
Yeah, I once worked with an Italian engineer born in Rome and he REFUSED to go to team lunches at what we call "Italian" restaurants. He said there is only ONE authentic Italian restaurant in all of USA, one in NYC. I don't remember the name. They are definitely SERIOUS about meals!
He had to choose between a parachute drop and tasting the American MRE. He made the bravest choice. Honor to you, soldier.
Should've given him the Vomelette, he would've regretted all life.
@@satuerdandashnaw3700 Those haven't been made for more than a decade I believe
Was wondering about the chutes in the background! :)
I just like the fact that these two are just trying military foods from their country. Meanwhile, there’s people actually doing their job.
at least he's polite.
"We can survive with this." Is literally the nicest possible thing he could have said. 😂
Lmao
Wait… I never got a pizza slice MRE. Wtf?
Lucky he didn't have his side arm
Hes dead on the inside 😂
I was thinking the same, he was being very (or too) polite 😅
"Is good"
"Want another bite?"
"No thank you"
Good as a toast, awful as a pizza
I'm still alive = It's good
That's what my son says when I give him veggies
😂😂
"I mean you can survive with it..." 😆
When deployed we did nato training with italian soldiers. We went to eat at their cafeteria. Half of our unit was ready to switch sides just because of their food. They take their food quite serious. Also were great soldiers to work with
Yeah, that was my perception watching this video. While the quality is lower, it seemed they took their food more seriously.
Considering how well Italy is known for its food, you could actually view it as a matter of national pride.
I mean, imagine the jokes if the Italian military had shitty food?
@@seededsoulyou also have to consider weight. At least with respect to MRE’s. All of those tin cans and little metal parts adds some level of weight that an individual soldier has to carry.
@@m.m.6044 True. What I don't get is how you make a tin you can put fire under without the lining poisoning you.
The first time I went on a trip from France to Italy the thing that stunned me was the amazing quality of the food on their motorways.
One place, they were MAKING fresh bread.
The italian soldier seemed to consider the MRE pizza a warcrime.
We are cool with it, as long as you stop calling it pizza😅
BREAKING NEWS: Italy withdraws from NATO effective IMMEDIATELY! 😂😂
My brother it is a war crime, I was excited for it only one time and never again, I’d rather get the Asian beef strip MRE over the pizza one, at least the beef strip one has some decent snack items
it is definitely outside of geneva convention
It probably is lol we did him dirty
I respect the diplomacy of the Italian soldier.
His humor and culture are refined.
*American:* "We have American pizza"
*Italian:* "This violates the Geneva convention "
you mean, suggestions?
Enemy: let’s attack the ones cooking and not fighting
We had lunch with an Italian unit in Northern Iraq during Desert Storm. Spaghetti, pork chops, wine, and espresso afterwards. Thanks, Bruno!
😂❤wow! Cool AF!!! 🍷🤗
Apparently French ration packs were worth an entire US sleeping cot in exchange in Afghanistan.
I was at KKMC during Desert Storm, Welcome home.
they banned alcohol in the combat zones for GWOT....
I blame your generation for this atrocity.
In heaven: The cooks are Italian, the police are British and the mechanics are German.
In Hell: The cooks are British, the mechanics are Italian and the police are Germans.
I love that he couldn't even bring himself to call it pizza, as polite as he was. "I think I will call this toast..." 😂
Ide call it toast too tbf
As an American who recently visited Italy, it was pretty fascinating at how different the “Italian” dishes are between the US and Italy.
I’m sure some people may like true Italian cuisine, me personally, I was glad to get back to the US and eat my “fake” Italian.
@@leprechaun3677 Why? Didn't you like Italian food?
@@leprechaun3677noo,😢 why?
@@leprechaun3677 Heh, you tend to like what you're used to and there's nothing wrong with that
Oh no... Don't give an Italian an MRE pizza! The shame, the shame...
You can see the A bit of that man’s soul completely die when he opened that pouch.
I was saying the same thing!! No!! My father was in the Italian Army during the Cuban Missile Crisis cold war era. He probably would jokingly have said, "Oh, this is the best pizza I ever had!" At least if it came with the MREs with the chocolate cake that I remembered many years ago, it would have made up for the "pizza toast."
At least it wasn't an MRE pizza with pineapples! 🤢
That would've been outright insulting. 😅
This is how to star wars!! The marketing guy who had this brilliant ideal, should be fired!! So stupid.
😂😂😂 as soon as she said it...I was like NOOOOO
This idea of exchanging food rations between soldiers belonging to different armies is really nice. As an Italian I would not be offended if the pizza of the US soldier is not perfect, it is still a nice recognition at the our national cuisine. Thanks for this.
Exactly and let's face it, an MRE is an MRE lmao. Can't make miracles with this.
'It's like toast... ok, we try.' Bravest man in the Italian army ,,,,
'We can survive with this.' Bravo 👏! I think he's carrying a future of Italy being a superpower with a supreme army on his shoulder!
Should have gotten a medal for that bite.
No shit, he deserves a medal for that
😂
It’s sauce on bread with cheese
It’s pizza
And it’s an American invention
the Italian ration packs are bigger because they didn't want to break the spaghetti in half
This made my day. Thank you
😂
As italian that make my laugh 😂😂😂😂😂😂
😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣
You get court martialed in the Italian military if you do that
Who ever decided to give an American MRE version of "PIZZA" to an Italian had something personal 😂😂😂
Very risky, would've probably lead to a declaration of war
should have gave him veggie omelet instead
Reminds me of all the reality shows, where they like swap the family's wife with another family's wife and they always choose families that are insanely different so it'll have the maximum conflict and hopefully entertainment value.
Do you mean toast with melted cheese and sauce on on it
Didn't Pizza only become popular in Italy because of its popularity in America?
American ration:
Some pizza, jam and a little of tasteless food
Italian ration:
So, for the first course we serve a whole Christmas dinner…
Yeah I kinda wish they did 1-to-1 rations. These are used for much different purposes. You can have your American MRE in your pack, not so much with this Italian one that is meant to be kept at camp. They definitely have one more like the american MRE that they use.
The reason the Italian ration pack is so large is due to the table cloth, linen napkin, and wine decanter.
you forgot the mandolino, we can't go around without!
And the mocha pot. Don't forget the mocha pot
Underrated comment 😂
Hahaha
They didn’t explain that, for the Italian troops, when it’s time to eat, a man named Salvatore sets up tables and brews espresso while a man named Pasquale plays accordion.
Mad respects to that Italian who kept cool even after having his national cuisine insulted.
After years of pineapple pizzas, carbonara with cream and other distortions we are slowly getting used to the fact that once we leave the national borders everything becomes a culinary farwest
@@alexyorha1650 Come to Japan! We have a lot of authentic Italian food. Also a lot of not so authentic food. But our carbonara is always made with eggs!
@@Raptorsified i do not trust that at all tbh lol
@@Raptorsifiedit's not only about eggs 😂😭
@@alexyorha1650I love pineapple banana pizza. And I'm European. :)
I love how he's explaining the Italian rations while a company of paratroopers are landing in the distance.
Lol, I was going to say the same thing.
AIRBORNE!
3:36 if anyone's wondering
Casual Russian invasion in the background
very casually too
1:15 Had to call it a toast to protect his Italian dignity before eating American MRE pizza
Our town in Australia was devastated by flooding in 2022. Several pallets of Singapore Army MREs were donated to the local flood recovery centre. From memory there were around ten different main courses (all good), plus biscuits , coffee candy , fruit bars , and electrolyte drinks . While not restaurant quality they were pretty damn good . They kept us fed for a month while we rebuilt our lives.
Thankyou Singapore!
Our pleasure to our friends down south :D
You're welcome . ❤
@mcmoose64 that is so devastating so sorry hear what happened to Emilia Romagna was devastated my region too sending love xx
@@rielfamily so lovely the people of Singapore are kind and lovely and warm and friendly 😍
Singaporean food culture is Serious Business and nobody would dare try to foist bad food on their armed forces.
The fact that the Italian rations come with a napkin, menu and wine list says it all.
Underrated comment 😂
"Cordiale" is not a wine, it is a liquor.
Does it also come with a guy playing the violin 🎻 while you eat in the trenches?? 😅
The fancy MRE
the toothbrush and toothpaste and the literal can of food surprised me.
American: "here is some smoking explosive reactive chemistry in a bag"
Italian: "here are some toothbrushes and toothpicks for breakfast for after your coffee"
Ahhhhh, YEP.
EUROPE or USA.
Where to live? Decisions, decisions...
AHAHAHA viva l’italia
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Well, we kinda don't want to have open flame when we are out in the field. It's a safety thing for the soldier.
something my friends like to do with the leftover heaters is put them in water bottles and watch them explode
That was a sick shot at 3:38 with all the parachutes in the background
The Italian guy was so polite. "No-a, I dont think I need another bite thank you." ❤️
It was a kind of: "I rather prefer to stay alive, but thanks".
And only commenting on the practicality of the small package, tacitly being silent on the quality of the food.
its toast
I dont think he liked the American cheese toast.
Meanwhile, they have chicken in jelly.😂😂😂😂😂
Asking an Italian if he ever had minestrone soup is like asking a Swiss if he knows what chocolate is. 😂😂
Honestly since she was saying that ragù tastes like minestrone, as an Italian I have absolutely no idea of what her definition of minestrone is
Americans are the type to ask Russians if they ever heard about vodka.
I think that she compares the ragù to the minestrone because of the vegetables for the soffritto (the initial phase of preparation) and the passata instead of the tomato concentrate. In US the “bolognese sauce” it’s more like just a lot of beef and spices, a sort of chili con carne or something like that.
And the pronunciation too! 😭 I guess she kind of corrected it though. A fun video overall.
@@sv6938 Even as a brit thats an abomination... probably still tasty but not a bolognese.
American: Here a pizza.
Italian: A survivable toast.
😂😂😂
he was generous when he said that😂
It’s not regular pizza we eat in america, it’s MRE pizza which is very low quality. real pizza here is amazing
Underrated comment 😂😂😂
😂😂😂
Watching this as a veteran brings happy tears to my eyes. I love to see the comradery.
When he got his MRE pizza his heart was broken. For any Italian, this is a torture 😂😂😂
Yeah it was like my American wife opening a can of Campbell Soup our first wedding night. Geez
We did it on purpose
At least it didnt have pineapple on it. LOL.
It’s an mre. It’s not gourmet. Get over it,
He did have a point that if it's the only thing pizza related for 500 miles around, "Italian Toast" would seem to hit.
I love the European honesty of "we can survive with this"
That’s the point of MRI when you in a middle of a war ,
As someone who has eaten that MRE before, that’s pretty much how I’d sum it up. They had so many better options to go with and they picked one of the worst ones. It’s very bland and not nearly as filling as some of the other ones.
A polite way of saying it sucked.
And polite
Lol it's meant to feed soldiers in the battlefield temporarily. Once they get back to base, they'll get to have hot meals.
After 20 days eating Italian rations, we started to exchange our rations with other Army. At the end of our deployment i've learned that sharing food is the best thing to consolidate relationships in every situations.
❤ bella cosa
Une ration française s'échange contre 4 américaine 🎉🎉🎉
I guess it's because you think like that that Italian army has usually a good image among the population during deployments
Italian meal treats you like a human, the American version treats you like a war dog
All of us can agree that the Italian soldier didn't like the pizza.
But gotta appreciate he said he didn't like it in the most polite way.
We can survive on that, he said.
Merely bare sustenance
The pizza MRE is one of the worst. She should have given him a chili Mac or Mexican beans and rice.
That’s the Italian way. Americans always have to tell you how they feel
Dawg not even Americans like the MRE pizza. when we first got that shit in the field we were stoked. until we opened it.
Well at lest it dosen't taste like cardboard pizza from mazzio's some really do
The food was so good they didn't even notice they were being invaded in the background 🪂
?
Harsh 😂
Ahahahha I immagine Putin on a bear ahahaha
3:38 NATO at it's finest 😁
Italian Guy: Hey i think i can hear a sound of tank rolling behind us?
American Gal: nah, just a regular military exercise
You can see how much food is an integral part of italian culture in how this rations are made
3:37 THEM: just chillling while 90 paratroopers are dropping behind them LOL
Haha I noticed it too. It was the reason I even started scrolling in the comment section to see if someone else noticed it.
I served as the US Navy Liaison Officer to the Marine Nationale (French Navy) in the late 80s at BAN Nimes-Garons (South of France). I was treated like a "King". Everywhere I went, I was treated like some "their lost cousin from the New World". The food they served me ashore and at sea was "out of this world" (French service members take their meal time very seriously)! Two of my uncles had died on French soil during World War II (Normandy landings and air war over France). My French hosts honored me like some French hero - I was really touched by their generosity, kindness, and hospitality. Advice for my "fellow Americans", treating foreign nationals with respect (especially when being a guest in THEIR own country) goes a long way. Thank you to all the French Citizens, to the members of La Marine Nationale and to those of La Légion Étrangère for having offered me a memorable tour of duty. Ciao, L (Maine, USA)
@lancelot1953 You use ( ) way to often and sometimes incorrectly calm down dude.
What a great memory, thanks for sharing 😊
@@NoNo-bz1fz
I suppose there's always one, the petty grammar Police are here 😂😂
Courtesy and respect goes a long way anywhere you go. Two tours in Korea here, know exactly what you mean.
try telling that to all the invaders there...
Giving an Italian a Pizza MRE seems like an act of war against Italy.
That's what I said
Thats how america would declare war against Italy, just giving one italian a pizza MRE.
I cringed when they offered an Italian pretend "Italian" food
I was fortunate enough to spend two weeks training with the Italian Carabinieri, the food in their mess hall was fantastic, and they were also a very nice bunch of guys to live and work with. It was a great experience.
you have to consider that for us, what u eat in a mess hall is cheap garbage
I used to call them the calamaris throughout my travels in Italy. Lol
I like how she kept him distracted while the paratroopers were invading in the background.
We might lose the battle, but we will never miss our lunch 🇮🇹❤️
Lunch and pennichella of course.
"Lose", not "loose".
Well, for be a soldier, doing an international exchange, his English was not so perfect, not at the level of i was expecting from our international brigade, but hey, I love the passion and pride about sharing his “typical” ration
@@luigipati3815 " its Lose not loose" 🤓🤓🤓
@@luigipati3815 Why are you mad?
3:37 I love how theyre doing this inside an actual military base with like paratroopers practicing drops in the background, so cool to look at haha
Plot twist. It's an invasion army landing and they haven't noticed it yet.
looks like little jellyfish lol
Yep, my instant reaction, "Oh hell, that looks amazing!"
For real, giving the enemy an inside look and another piece of the puzzle
Not inside. A random farm field where the 173rd is allowed to jump at in Italy. Not many bases there. The rare unfortunate privates will drift into a hay bale before trying to PLF out there by aviano air base.
Trust the Italians to pack the whole kitchen!
This is my CONTI - MONTE CARLO 3 GROUP - MC-3G-WOOD Espresso machine 300 Lbs. (For emergency).
That sounds like me, I will pack the entire kitchen when I am going on a trip. Don't forget the Pillows.
To preserve the ambience, helps with the digestion.
@@EricT01 XD
ALMOST.
The "Mama" was not there.
😁😁
Great video! Thank you both for your service. God bless!
Damn, the Italian army sure knows how to take care of its personnel.
@Souwth-bawston-is-fuh-luvahs okay but the New Orleans chicken gumbo. There’s no arguing with that or the chili Mac.
These people didn't even address the fact that you field strip an MRE before you go out(open it and get rid of the unnecessary fluff to save space and weight in your ruck). That Italian one seems a bit hard to field strip. There's a reason the US went from C-rations (in a can) to MREs. It's fucking stupid. I could put a pouch of spaghetti in my cargo pocket and slurp it down straight from the bag anytime u wanted during the ruck march.
@Souwth-bawston-is-fuh-luvahs I never mentioned anything about comparing MRE's quality between militaries, I am simply amazed about how the Italian military treats its troops.
@@joeyboi8841 That's because Italian combat rations are meant for a whole day, while American ones are meant for an individual meal. The Italian military privileges logistical practicality over field stripping. Also, the Italian Military does not have the US Military's budget so they have to be more careful with how they use their resources.
@@joeyboi8841 Hot food is much better for morale (and energy) hence why these Italian (and the British) rat packs come with hexamine cookers.
Having the main meal in a can means you can shove it directly on your stove, as was shown, then eat it out of there and bin it. Hot food with no dirty mess tins....!
"We can survive with this" is exactly the reaction the people that made it was going for.
The audacity to bring that Italian man an American MRE of pizza is a very American thing to do. 😂
She has no say in what's in the MRE.
Americans like pizza, we like it differently and have very different forms of it, like deep-dish. But MRE’s are meant to give as many calories as possible in as small a weight and package while still reminding the servicemen of home. I expect they couldn’t get enough calories in the sauce and toppings and had to get more in the bread. But it’s good to have an Italian’s take on it since their idea of pizza is so different from what we like and are used to.
I think she was trying to give him the best we have.😂
As an Italian, I was laughing a lot, but it is pretty interesting to watch what U.S. soldiers have to eat. We need to keep in mind that MRE food is only for cisis, not for everyday use, so you will survive even with American toast-pizza. It is not meant to enjoy a lavish meal. But it did remind me of pictures and videos comparing what school children in the U.S. eat for their school lunches, and I can tell you THAT is horrible. In Europe, school kids can get much better and vitamin richer lunches, with lots of vegetables, fruit, quality meat, fish, etc. We don't give our children a strange combination of French fries and some strange piece of meat and fruit and milk (not to mention that the U.S. feeds their school kids skimmed milk that contains absolutely no nutrition at all). You don't want to eat meat, fruit and splash it all with milk. The poor kids must get diarrhoea after such a meal! So... the MRS look better to me than the U.S. school lunches.
@@danapertile106 You have no idea how bad school lunches are in the US. I’m a teacher in a higher needs (poor budget) district and the quality is so bad I see lots of the kids skip lunch and just get two drinks. It might even healthier to do that. The cafeteria smells like a paint factory
173rd skysoldiers I was in vicenza back in 2013-2015 loved italy, would go back in a heartbeat
The Italian guy using his entire energy not to INSULT the Pizza 😂
Don't call it Pizza!
He would call it Toast an than it is fine for him. But for a Pizza, ...🤭
The Italian soldier was given a medal for eating the MRE pizza.
Aww they’re not bad at all, especially the jalapeño cheese
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
😂😂😂😂😂
I have a feeling we’re going to read about this in future history books, how the Americans had the audacity to bring an MRE pizza slice to Italy before World War III
Not a good tactical maneuver.
it'll be like a fun history fact in the future
Like the opposite of the Christmas truce.
We ain't at war but we'll try.
Wouldn't be surprised if Italy instantly declared war on this "pizza slice" 😂
Waaaaaaa😂😂😂😂
I've worked with the Italians and I gotta say - I love their hospitality. Very hilarious too!
She probably should have brought a couple of MREs just to make up for the fact that he technically gave her a whole days worth and she gave him a single serving of the worst pizza he's probably ever had.
Not probably, Definitely haha
This is American Military 101 dude. This is who we have running our ranks. Please enjoy the disappointment lmao
She should have brought the chicken and rice.
You mean toast
Just not the New England clam chowder. Wars have been started for less, like the assassination of an Austrian archduke.
To be honest, you would want Italian rations as it is a luxury.
It would seem that the items in the Italian ration pack are loaded with calories, fats, carbs, protein etc. All the things a soldier would need while out wherever they may be. I've had my fair share of actual MREs. I don't know what in the world she had. The ones we had were stuffed full of food an other little things.
But try to carry rations for three days...
Especially the ones with cordiale
Seriously, that was a fail from the get-go.
Hell no. You want to carry something light, filling, and fast and easy to set up/clean up.
Could you imagine carrying all of that unnecessary stuff from the Italian mre? Sure there’s luxuries, but in modern times it’s unlikely that you’ll be out of the supply chain for long enough to miss them.
As a general rule, the Italian and French MREs are the ones most soldiers prefer to eat, while the US ones are the easiest to hump around all day long. It means that US MREs are almost always easy to trade away. No soldier wants to carry more than they absolutely have to.
Yeah, the Italian one had lots of cool things but cans add weight to an already heavy backpack. You can tell the American version was prepped to be lighter weight and take up less space.
As a Hiker who uses them sometimes: I prefer the company tactical foodpack. But it’s all nothing against just taking some stuff to cook with you for a short trip. But on longer Hikes and Bike tours definitely Tactical Foodpack! It’s almost like the American pack and heater but it’s real food just deyfrozen and packaged.
The Korean MRE's are pretty good (saw it in a youtubers video)
Figured, just looking at them side by side the American MREs look much more manageable.
It depends by situations.
What you get by you is what you can always count on to complete the mission.
Waiting further delivery by headquarter could be not only seriously delusional, but risky or completely impossible sometimes, also incapacitated by enemy activity cutting delivery lines.
No soldier can forecast troubles, can plan troubles, how many days he would be compelled nailed in an hostile activity. Perhaps by strategic contingency retaining an enemy proximity position?
Food and nutrition is of course important, but drinking water is definitely more vital while engaged, also having some hardware stuffs to improvise alarm traps, to act equipment fixings and cleaning, small medications, to make fire... to sanitize additional water and to cook opportunistically in prolonged survival emergency or to trade with locals for small favors.
Having something, especially an additional reserve of water in soup or in fruit salad can pay off itself in some emergencies after two days of intense fighting and running out all the drinking water of canteen with perhaps no available sources to refill because enemy fire.
I was genuinely waiting the italian soldier to take out candles and a bottle of wine from the box.
France puts wine in rations
ahahah lol very good joke! :)
Simply- yup. No wine??? I would not survive 😂
European rations are so much better
For real
When I was in military service (Italy) I ate that kind of ration. In the middle of nowhere it's quite comforting to feel the flavors you're used to. It was the year 2002. 😊
I really enjoyed this video😊it made me smile
We're glad to hear that! Thank you for watching! There are more ration swaps here: ua-cam.com/play/PL_vlwQEsZAbzA5OikUd8nZlu3YtiPQC0S.html
The Italian was trying so hard not to be insulted 😅
Italian guy's reaction was so genuine and politely restrained
"restrained" is the Main word in this line! :)
To say the least lol!
@@vasiovasio He would need restrain considering what he had to suffer.
They gave pizza MREs to an Italian?? I'm surprised he didn't declare war 😅
Ikr lmao
we're more tolerant than it seems
😂😂😂
@Arno🔌🐰 I can attest to that. Used to work in a call center for a global publishing company, Italian callers were by far the nicest, most polite people I ever spoke with, even when things were going wrong.
Did you see what happened in the background!? Definitely came close.
Here's the best compliment I ever heard about Italian food- i was in France on business and getting ready to leave to go to Spain. One of the French businessmen said "I'm sorry, but the food won't be as good in Spain (I loved it and preferred it to the French food), but of course, France has the best food in Europe". Then he paused for a few seconds and said "except for Italy- they have the best".
This is so real and so funny... 🤣🤣
I've never been, but my wife has been to both france and italy and she brings up the meals she ate on her trip literally every single month. She went to europe 10 YEARS ago lol.... So that should give you an idea of how much she liked the food there.
That shaved away at least 5 year of his lifespan to say... French people are very nationalist.
@@alexcrowder1673 this makes me sad as an American because our food is so chemically induced that natural foods taste amazing and create long lived memories. I felt like the food in Japan was so much better than in the US and I'm not just referring to sushi. Literally the KFC and the McDonalds was astoundingly better.
I’ve been to Paris and the south of france along the med, same with south of Spain, Barcelona, and on a cruise ship that stopped in 4 cities on the west side of Italy with a final stop in Sicily. Food in france and Spain was great. The cruise ship tour stops for lunch sucked big time. It’s like they took us to the restaurants no one went to. The only good place was in Sicily.
Uno dei video più belli mai visti
Durante I nostri operazioni in Iraq, 2003, ho avuto l'opportunita di mangiare con altri Italiani a Babilonia. Per un Italo/Americano che si e trovato nel esercito Americano e stato veramente una cosa speciale di trovare altri Italiani, specialmente durante le operazioni di combattimento.
👍👍
Fantastico! Sono molto fiero che abbiamo degli Italiani in America a rappresentarci! Grazie per il tuo servizio, spero vada tutto bene ora :)
Spero che avevano altro che la "pizza"😅
@@gabrielboi3465 Gabriel, you're no doomer, stop the self pity.
You're cool, man.
Greetings from Germany
@@gabrielboi3465 new york Italians are all I know
1. The Italian guy was very polite... we're lucky the American MRE didn't lead to a diplomatic crisis.
2. The Italian MRE looks amazing. Wow.
3. I look forward to more of these videos.
As Asterix used to say to Obelix: 'Remember - the worse the diet, the stronger the army!' - and later in the dining room he added: 'I had no idea Rome had such a strong army...'
That would explain the British Empire.
It`s the stong US Army!!
Brilliant
No joke, the Romans used to eat some absolutely disgusting stuff.
@@DavidLee-vi8ds Well, fish looks a pretty strong diet, pasta on the other side..
Seems a bit of an unfair trade considering the italians forked over a 24-h ration compared to the 1 MRE.
"it's out pizza slice cheese mre"
And you can already see the terror in his eyes and him planning a strategic retreat
The Italian army motto is "not a step back!... Unless an anglophone serves you food."
he quietly died inside 😂 but kept it together
It was that look of „aw come on why you gotta do us like that ? What did I do to you ?“
Italians at the frontline addressing the enemy: ''Hey HEY hey, is it possible to have a break? we are trying to eat here! THANK YOU!!!''
Hey Ivan my mom made ravioli , let me eat in peace than I restart shooting You , meanwhile have your vodka Daaaaa !
The enemy would comply because Italians are like that
They could invite them for lunch, and win battles, just make them eat in a good way... (Wish was that easy)
Russian squaddies: "Talk about crimes against humanity, we haven't eaten in three days! We surrender."
- What nonsense is that? It's another hour for the three o'clock tea!
The food at the Italian Airborne School was awesome I think I jumped that drop zone. I loved Italy. I spent 3 years there.
The video is geolocated by YT: that's Maniago, close to the Aviano airbase.
even on the battle field italian cousine is unbeatable 😂😂😂
Italians are very considerate and easy going, fully understanding that few nations can measure up to their culinary standards. An encounter with the French would not have been so “diplomatic” how dare the les américains expect us to eat this?😂
As an Italian, that is a N.A.T.O. moment
Although in this case, I assume NATO is just the acronym for "Nutritivo Assortimento per Tavolare dopo l'Occupazione" - because it looks like the Italian soldier did win over the American one with his MRE. :-)
That Italian dude is a class act. Not only did she hand him American "pizza," but the MRE version of it. Imagine trying to be diplomatic at that.
She even said that the ragù tasted like minestrone! None in Italy would even compare the two things at all as they are very different dishes.. props to the guy for surviving
Yeah, bc it’s an MRE exchange…
some would consider this an act of war ;)
when he heard it's pizza he quietly died inside 😂😂
Pizza not American ! Well it is now anyway
Cool. Enjoyed the video
Who thought it was a good idea to give an Italian a “pizza” MRE … he was so kind about it.
Right? They could've picked anything but they went with the pizza. I've had one and they aren't terrible but it'd be like the Italian bringing a canned cheeseburger for the American lmao
literally the kindest reaction ive ever seen from an italian in regards to "pizzal 😂
No it isn’t. NY pizza taste much better then pizza from Italy. I have eaten at many different restaurants in Italy. This oh because pizza originated from Italy doesn’t mean anything on taste. Now saying this, Italian pizza is better than the average restaurant here in America just not most places who make real NY style pizza. Heck buy a stone oven pizza cooker from home and you could even make pizza that taste just as good or better with a little practice getting use to cooking it. That’s what we do at home after leaving Italy.
Food is food, are you gonna complain about food you’re not getting while you’re in war fighting? What’s the big deal with him eating pizza, pizza is food.
Fun fact the Italians were one of the last European countries to adopt any food that came from the continent of America IE tomatoes, potatoes, chillies, sweet peppers ect.
Contrary to popular belief Italians also did not invent pizza Sicilians did. Pizza was considered to be " poverty food " by Italians until way after the rest of the world adopted pizza as a main stay. But for some reason people associate pizza and red sauces with Italians when it's a Sicilian and American thing.
Trying american MRE: 1 minute
Trying italian MREs: rest of the video
The American MRE is meant to be eaten on the move during a thunder run to the Russian capital. The Italian MRE not so much.
lol pretty much
That sais something
I was just gonna say - this isnt neccesarily a good thing for the italian mre 😄 I would imagine in the field you want something fast, portable, and light.
@@thegeneralist7527Italian MRE: Fine dining
US MRE: Light enough for combat
He looks so excited to show her all the stuff inside, like a child showing off his toys 🥺❤️ Very wholesome!
And that's what most of it was toys! 😅
Exactly what i thought.
He seems really proud.
We Italians are straight forward and polite
European MRE'S are pretty good, in some cases better than the US ones.
All of us Italians love to let foreigners taste our food, we have the same feeling that a magician has in enchanting other people. We are so proud of our food that we like to see the reaction of those who have never tried it. It's probably a bit cheeky to think that everyone likes it, but there's nothing we can do about it... 😄
During an exercise the other group (non-NATO ally) weren't issued their rations (Thank to bad weather and their supply plane got grounded). So, we shared our rations at the time without causing an international incident. They especially loved how we heated up our rations (their country didn't use self-heating packages or heat tabs. They were expected to heat a pot of water in the field and heat up their rations (to be fair this was about 30 years ago). Now most countries use self-heating rations. They liked our MRE's, and we gave them all our leftover MRE units as we were getting resupplied. Their plane never made it, and they had to send a truck a couple of hundreds to their base for resupply after they started running out of what we supplied them. They loved the neat little candy, tabasco, and coffee packs. They said their rations had a weak tea and did little to keep them awake during long shifts. Years later I ran into some troops from the same country and told them about our adventures with a previous unit. They said they were currently buying some of their rations from a NATO ally country (they're now part of NATO), and it was much better than their rations, including an expresso type coffee that would cause the dead to rise. (I suspect their supplier is Italy or Turkey as their coffee is really strong and they both put it in their rations.)
As a former US Service member, I can already see that Italy has more concern for their military. I had a French military guy once give me a week of their MREs and they were AMAZING. Our MREs were like a kindergarten child made them.
You can't go out in a firefight with a box of happy meal - Italian soldier said it himself.
I was in the legion until recent. Fondest memories of giving other armies our rations ahha - it was the little wine bottles that sold it
When they developed American MRE's they did so after a lot of one on one research with the troops at the time and hearing what they claimed they wanted. Work that into you're figuring how they came out the other end at the MRE factory with the childlike foods. Most of those ground troops ARE between age 18 and 24. Real culinary experts that they would be at that age.
In America's defense most kids make our restaurant food too. Traditionally, speaking mostly every kid I knew in my high-school that had a job was working at a fast food restaurant unless their dad or mom was a boss or owner somewhere. Aside from theater or grocery store that is.
I had to work together with Americans for few days and i gotta say their MREs were very good but they told me after eating them for 6 months you’ll get tired of them
He talked nice about it but you know deep down that MRE American pizza caused that Italian some distress.. 🤣
That is most of the American and European experience of NATO, the G7, and UN lol
We say something and it causes everyone else distress but they are very diplomatic about it.
He was a PERFECT GENTLEMAN....
😄😄
😂
I think MRE pizza causes some Americans distress as well.
He dealt with it mentally by calling it toast LOL
Nope, thats not pizza, nosirree.
Italians, very generous people. They offer the most food and the best compliments!
they also swear all the time, lol
She was no slouch
@@WastedContender That's mostly in the North-East (Veneto especially)
That was a great demonstration on what the Italian MRE had to eat in the field. Nice 👍 we back home would never know. Thanks for sharing.
I was deployed to Cervia AB in Italy, for the Kosovo Conflict. We were able to eat in the chow hall occasionally, and their food was much better than what we had at our home base.
Omg I'm in cervia right now, crazy hahahaha
I was there! 5th Wing, 23rd Fighter Squadron. There was a long line of American airmen and pilots in the mess hall. The quality was very high because Col. Pilot Alessio Cecchetti wanted every airman to eat like a pilot. We had great times with our American friends.
@@aleeezena Quinto Stormo! I had many deployments during my time in the military but my two deployments to Cervia were my favorites.
I love how the italian soldier evaluated it as a practical system and not as a quality food. He knows its horrible food, he also knows what the point of it is.
He was extremely polite lol. "It's very good." "Have another bite." "No, no, no thank you."
Then he gives it an 8/10 because it's convenient to carry around and it's not like you have to eat those all the time AKA "It tastes like shit but it will keep you alive, right? 8/10"
Indeed, but out of all the choices the US army offers, they decided to give a pizza slice to an Italian. Somebody was having a proper laugh when they thought this up 🤣
okay, summarizing:
USA:
-slice of pizza,
-crackers with butter,
-cashew nuts,
-applesauce
Italy:
-three tootbrushes + toothpaste
-napkin
-spoon
-water sanitizer
-salt
-istant coffee
-condensate milk
-chocolate
-toothpick
-portable stove
(...here, all this stuff just for breakfast😅)
The Italian was a 24h rations, so it covered a whole day.
They didn't show you the best part: the cordiale an alcholic beverage included in the Italian mre.
There is a lot more in the MRE they didn't cover. No tooth brush though.
Russian Army: ratpack with real rat.
@@JelMain 😂
He looked like I do at Domino's with the same EXACT FACE - "THIS is NOT pizza......" !
At 00:29 u can hear the Italian para's heart breaking in half 💔
well of course the Italian ration is more difficult to carry around, it's basically three MREs in a single package plus some support stuff like heater tablets, toothbrushes and toilet paper 🤣
altho I think the US heater system is better, doesn't require fire to heat food, just some liquid to start the reaction, is quicker and mostly smokeless and odorless.
Prima avevamo anche il liquore strega dentro il box della colazione
@@micio_meow l'hanno tolto? davvero un peccato lo Strega è ottimo
In my Experience with German EPAs for example we open them up, take what we eat and stash it in our Rucksack. I suppose they do the same.
@@PferdeLasagne Exactly. Or just split the three boxes.
The real difference is that the Italian box is a full day's rations. While the MRE is one single meal. He would be issued that one box. She would be issued three MREs. Some MREs are more breakfast like, some are more like a lunch, some are definitely a dinner menu.
Not sure if things changed since 2008, but it used to be that you were only issued (and only supposed to eat) two MREs a day, not three.
I don’t remember the exact amount but the way the American mres get away with giving you less is by giving you one high caloric value meal. In bootcamp during training they’ll give you one and tell you to make it last for 3 days
Yes and no. 1 MRE is an average of 2500 calories, as they are designed to be your 1 meal for the day whenever necessary.
And also that parachute pic was pretty epic 4:35
How can one not love Italy? Even their rations seems good 😁
Cool cars and great food
As an Italian, i can read exactly what he was thinking about that "slice of pizza"😂
Same here, lol. "Back home, I wouldn't even feed it to my chickens". Additionally a little slice of white flour dough with some bad sauce is a horrible choice of food for someone that needs energy to trek through difficult terrain.
When you're hungry, you will eat anything, especially in war.
@@Mav_Fyeah, but its better to your mind if your meal is tasty and satisfiting
@@Mav_FExactly, anything tastes good when you are starving.
I'm American Military Veteran an I'm not sure I want the US Pizza MRE.. I'd rather have had the Italian MRE in this case..
The American MRE cheese tortellini isn't that bad..
That was the most diplomatic way for that soldier to say the MRE sucked. 😂 It’s okay, we know, and we agree. My mind was also blown when the toothbrushes came out of the Italian ration.
who says italy's rations don't suck? all rations are processed and made to last forever, none of it is fresh food
They saw the British Soldiers
@@w9ill856idk why people have this misconception Brits have bad teeth, we get free dental unlike Americans
@@dirtdiv3rThe quality of the food in the Cans is quite good. trust me, i tried em. Way superior to stale pizza.
To this day i love canned food simply for the practicality ^^
3:45 50 paratroopers casually in the background XD amazing ahah
I think the Italian died internally when he had to try his nationaly food (pizza)
This seems like a funny series, keep going. Maybe also a swap of the uniform and equipment, to show unique things?
i mean yeaah look at the thickness of the dough😂
i died when he went 'oh it's like a toast'
I think Italians still die internally when we consider pizza their nation's food 😂
To be fair, it's a 'pizza' that can be stored for 5 years.
American-Italian food is not Italian-Italian food. I remember a trip from Germany to this area of Italy in 1990. I honestly did not care all that much for the Italian food in the actual Italian restaurants. But hey, I dont expect them to just love a cheeseburger or chicken fried steak in Texas.
Felt him wanna yelling : THIS IS NOT A PIZZAAAAA 😂 . When he was unboxing the Italian meal , he was soooo proud 🇮🇹
He did but in a nice way. He said "I have another conception of pizza"😂😂
We had a small contingent of Italian soldiers on our base in the Middle East back in the day. Turned out to be an awesome group of guys and it was cool to learn about each others cultures.
@@johnahn1117 Maybe it's cooler to learn about the tyrant CCP regime...
Casually gets invaded in the background 😭😭😭😭
As an italian i can assure you that putting a pizza slice in an mre is the most american thing i can imagine ❤
Yes it is! 🤣🤣🤣 only we can find a way to squeeze an entire meal into a envelope 🤣🤣
We couldn’t reasonably fit a burger in there lol
I’m American, but I admit, that’s funny. Not offensive. Just telling it like it is.
As someone that has had to eat it. . . Everything he said is spot on. US MRE's are not made to taste good, they are made to ensure your survival with the minimal amount of weight/space taken up. A 12-pack case of MRE's is slightly smaller than the Italian 24h ration shown here.
J.J. McCullough just came out with a video on the American and Italian cultures of pizza. I recommend if you have a few minutes. It's quite interesting. I also find U.S. - Italian relations surrounding pizza to be very humerous 😂❤
In 1980 I was attached to a Recon unit in Norway during some NATO exercises. I was surprised to learn that the Norwegian soldiers had French bread and fresh eggs in their rations.
I’ve never met as many sincerely nice people in any other country. The Norwegian people were outstanding hosts. And their military was top-notch.
Now I'm wondering what the Finns would have.
Great people, yup.
@@Kenobi_Cowboy Probably a 3 course dinner lmao