Gastronomic Region of Murcia 2022
Pablo González reviews the history of the once flourishing Murcian canning industry to evolve it towards dishes of studied creativity
Fear is at the origin of food conservation. The fear of the immediate future, the uncertainty of the days to come, the insecurity caused by wars and famines… in short, the fear of shortages, the lack of daily sustenance. And as on so many occasions, in the kitchen of the society of abundance, these preserves have lost their original character of survival and have fully entered the world of haute cuisine.
The mind of Pablo González-Conejero does not rest. The chef at Cabaña Buenavista (two Michelin stars) has always been clear that what anyone who comes to his house is looking for is not to eat well. That, like the value in the milli, is supposed. He seeks a global experience that appeals not only to the senses but also to feelings and memory. And his gaze has rested on the products of an industry that for more than two centuries has contributed significantly to the development of the Region of Murcia: it preserves it.
«Canning has not had an evolution throughout history. The big industry disappeared and small family businesses remain. And it gave us to think how they would have evolved. That is one of the starting points of his presentation in the Gastronomic Region of Murcia. The other is that “those of us who work behind the bars do not take full advantage of this product, which in Spain is of the highest quality. We put a can of mussels on a plate with some chopsticks and that’s it, “says the cook. Thus, Pablo González and his team have decided to tell a story based on these two concepts and incorporate it into the host of experiences that a client lives when he walks through the doors of Cabaña Buenavista.
that’s how they see it
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Miguel Hernandez | By inheritance
“Our path was taught to us by my grandfather’s bar, Los Toneles: updating that kitchen while respecting it” -
David Lopez | Rehearsal room
“One of my greatest satisfactions is taking an underappreciated product and adding gastronomic value to it”
And so, a can of marinated bonito becomes a tuna neck from which a broth is extracted that spherifies turning it into caviar that is served on a sheet of cauliflower cream; some dead olives end up in some false olives made with the traditional dressing that ends up being served with white savory garlic and a granita of pickled peppers; a canned artichoke ends up being some artichoke gnocchi that is served on the plate with mini grilled artichokes, broth from a rice and bean stew, the rice from the stew itself and slices of ‘matá’ onion; and the typical cheese preserved in jars of oil becomes a fake cheese made from summer blood sausage with its juice, an emulsion of capers and a few drops of the typical Almagro aubergine dressing. Local history evolved towards haute cuisine, local products and recipes and the always irrepressible imagination of the most awarded chef in the Region, compressed into a 45-minute presentation
David López Carreño is one of the Murcian chefs (hellinero by birth) with the most projection at a national and regional level. From his Local Essay, the chef has been associated with science and research, concerned with recovering ancient flavors now faded, native products and varieties in a common project with José María Egea, doctor in Agroecology from the University of Murcia, with whose advice cultivates an organic garden that provides you with some of the ingredients for your menu.
With nature in mind
The chef began by explaining what promising crops are, “those adapted to climate change conditions that could be planted in the Region.” Egea, which also has a marketing company for organic products, clarified that a key concept in the new kitchen trends is that of “recovering biodiversity”. He blamed the industrialization of food and uncontrolled intensive agriculture for the disappearance of a large number of local varieties that were the basis of food security and sovereignty and that were well adapted to the environment and climate change ». In other words, a significant percentage of biodiversity has been destroyed. “A food system that also causes huge amounts of waste,” said José María Egea.
David López put the praxis, showing some ‘snacks’ made from these products grown in the garden. A cut of sour apple, smoked eel salad and shrimp was the first.
«The dishes always have a journey and when you make one a star you have to keep it on the menu. Sometimes we want to change too quickly and it’s a mistake.” Another elaboration was a Latvian cream with spicy paprika, which he calls sea brain fritters with garlic.
For David, “one of the greatest pleasures is starting with a product that is generally thrown away and giving it enough gastronomic value so that it can be served in the restaurant.” An impressive -yes, we tried it- tomato tartar from La Junquera seasoned as if it were veal and stewed beans with pumpkin and a pepper vinaigrette were other proposals. Sustainable, responsible, honest cuisine full of technique and precision, excellent cuisine with science and conscience.
Miguel Hernández is responsible for the evolution of traditional cuisine, centered on the Murcian recipe book and pantry -his grandfather is the owner of the traditional Los Toneles restaurant-, which he has updated and reinterpreted. «At home we had a problem, and that is that we did not have a consolidated identity, by which we were known». And the pandemic time gave them the opportunity to stop and think. “And we had the solution next door, in my grandfather’s bar for life.” That philosophy led him to apply contemporary techniques and ideas to that legacy.
To illustrate such an approach, he made a simple croquette. “Yes, I am very proud. For me, a croquette is childhood, happiness… and we set out to make a Murcian croquette, the best in Murcia». Murcian flatbread and fresh milk from Tallante. A fritter made from a siphon dough stuffed with fried chard, smoked eel and accompanied with ñora mayonnaise -what’s more from Murcia?-; a carpaccio of sea bass buried for twenty minutes in salt and pepper powder and sliced as if it were ham, accompanied by slices of jínjoles and marcona almonds were other ideas on the plate. Kitchen of memory and kilometer zero passed through the filter of a contained creativity.
Salvador Fernández (Borrego Tradicional y Original, Bullas) is committed to cooking Murcia and more specifically the Northwest region. From his gastronomic restaurant – attached to the Borrego Canalla, more ‘casual’ – he uses the products of his immediate environment to invent new methods and techniques with which to extract the maximum from each product. Here is your rice with wine: the cereal is macerated for a few hours in Monastrell grape wine while it hydrates, in such a way that when it is made, the cooking time is greatly reduced while the aromas of the wine are integrated. But the wine is also used for a crispy wine sandwich with garlic rabbit. Vineyards, mountains… Bullas, after all.
A caramelized almond wrapped in mullet roe and crystallized in monitol and a cold croquette of beef sirloin tartare and a false blood sausage made from fish were some of the ideas that the chef from Bullas showed. The region of the Northwest put on the plate.
#Haute #cuisine #drag