Dos palillos E-Book

Albert Raurich

• Herausgeber: RBA Libros
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 1599

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Beschreibung

At the dawn of the 21st century, the elBulli team made several trips to Japan, striking up a cultural conversation between Japan and Europe. Focused on the most sensitive and delicate cuisine in the world, this conversation would gradually become richer over the years. Dos palillos is the result and this is its book. Shall we begin?

Leseprobe

albert rauricha culinary conversation with japan and asiaRBA

PrefacebyFerran Adrià4Introduction by Albert Raurich12Journeys 14· Barcelona-Cap de Creus· Montjoi-Tokyo· BCN-NYC-BCN· Cap de Creus-BarcelonaThe angels of dos palillos 21· The Fluxà family (owners of Camper) and FernandoAmat (head ofVinçon)· The elBulli family· The dos palillos family· Tamae· TakeshiThe sapiens of dos palillos 30· The concept of fusing the tapas philosophy with Asian cuisine· The philosophy of knowledge and respect · The dining areasThe Asian barThe dos palillos barThe terrace and the salon· Our culinaryofferingsandoverviewoftheconceptofourcuisine· Overview of how ourcompleted dishes are categorisedin the menu· Whatyou can drink at dos palillos The recipes of dos palillos2008 582009 1002010 1402011 1782012 2122013 2422014 27620153102016 346Cocktails 384Base recipes390Definition of concepts, techniques and preparations396Catalogue of the dishes at dos palillos 414Who, what, when, where and why

44

55I have said it publicly on many occasions and I shall reiterate it again now: Albert Raurich’s project on Asian cuisine, dos palillos, is the most important in the world outside Asia. WhatAlbertcan do with food from thatcontinent, and primarily from Japan, transcends our technical wisdom and knowledge aboutcooking. His gift is very similar to what theycall duende in flamenco culture: it is a feeling that is hard to put into words but loosely translates as “having soul”, a heightened state of emotion, expression and authenticity, which permeates the concept of dos palillos and all the dishes created there. Without a shadow of a doubt, some of the most memorable meals I have been lucky enough to eat in recentyears were served at dos palillos, which could onlycome as a surprise to those who are still in the dark aboutAlbert’s cooking for some reason. It is haute cuisine for intellectuals, which is what I told him the last time I went there for dinner.I had the good fortune to travel to Japan in 2002. Itwas a unique experience, and mostcertainly my most significantdiscovery in the realm of non-Western cuisine. From thatmoment on, I was in love with that authentic Japan, whose cuisine extends well beyond good sushi and good sashimi and is largely based on howJapanese chefs cook “with their soul”.Albertconveys this same spirituality. In fact, in addition to the impression of being in a fine dining establishment at dos palillos, there is also a feeling of authenticity that he knows how to capture in his cooking. I have often said that eating atdos palillos, especiallywhen Japanese dishes predominate, can provide a more authentic Japanese dining experience than you can find in Japan.His wife, Tamae Imachi, has borne an essential influence with her wisdom and sensitivity. Tamae has steered and continues to steer him and is also a wonderful sommelier who is very knowledgeable about sake, wine and the world of tea. Her selection of teas and wines is as remarkable as it is praiseworthy for achieving the difficult goal of pairing Asian cuisine with the Western world ofwine.Having another former member of elBulli on the team, Takeshi, has helped to build this concept that is so Asian and so Mediterranean at the same time. This is because the Mediterranean also appears in the dishes at dos palillos, especially in the selection of products. Let’s not forget the fact thatSpain, just like Japan, also has an incredible seafood culture. All the old hands from elBulli are proud of dos palillos. Albert’s time at elBulli is clearly felt, where he was head chef and indispensable. He is also proud of this background and boasts of it. Butwhat he has achieved is a unique personal project. As far as I am concerned, dos palillos is a watershed in the history ofJapanese and Asian dining in the West.In the pages that follow, readers will not only get the chance to delve into the culinaryrepertoire of one of the bestchefs I know, a true master, but also to discover an entire culinarysensitivity dedicated to the pleasure of eating based on respectfor the manyroots that nourish dos palillos.Preface byFerranAdrià

life at elBulli shaped ourway or thinking, understanding and doing things. passion for cooking and the utmost respect for raw materials.the concept of the tapa as a way of understanding haute cuisine.simplicity within complexity, a reflection of our cooking.asian cuisine, our challenge;study and work, the path. barcelona, our city.you, ourgoal.

12

I’ve been asked countless times and my answer is always: “I’m a chef because I like to eat”.The happiest day of the week for me is Monday, and notbecause it’s my day off, since I use it to catch up on paperworkand organise myweek. No, it’s because I go to either La Boqueria or the SantAntoni market in the afternoon to buyfresh fish brought straight from the port, head home, put on some music, crack open a few beers and cook for myself and mywife.Before I get started, I wish to thank mywife, helpmate andfellow toiler Tamae Imachi for her unwavering support, becauseI know that putting up with me every daycan’t be easy. 珠ちゃん, 私の愛、貴女の辛抱強さ、協力そして理解をどうも有り難う. I would also like to thank mywhole family, my siblings, aunts and uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews and their spouses and partners, because they have always lent me their unconditional support. I want to reserve a very special mention for my mother and father, fighters who have raised a family through effort and love, parents who, despite it all (which was no trifling matter), have always believed in me and have known how to guide me down the right path. They are responsible for me writing this book today, because theywere the ones who enrolled me in cooking school.Admittedly, this is a book about dos palillos and not aboutAlbert Raurich, but since I’m the one writing it, I’m going to put in whatever I want. What I mean to say is thatyou mayalso find a passage or two about my personal life. Now I’m not going to tell you everything, basically because thatwould definitely scare some readers off, but I do think that I should add something interesting to the text, otherwise you’ll justlook at the photos! Besides, whenever you write a book, no matter how professional this one is or aims to be, you never know ifyou’ll be able to write another in the future. So I have to make the most of this opportunity.In total I have written over 400 pages, which is twice whatwe had initially agreed with the publishing house RBA. Theywanted a 200-page book. “Just 200 pages?”, I asked. “We already have more than that justcounting the recipes!”When we started designing the project, we even considered including just the 100 mostrepresentative dishes of the restaurant. I tried, but it turned out to be impossible. Howwas I going to leave out over half my “babies”—I mean, mydishes? So in the end, I chose to include 236 dishes. We feature 170 of these with recipes and a photograph because we thinkthey have been the mostrewarding and have helped us to evolve the most. The others, which are still wonderful and which we’ve served for a long time, appear in the dos palillos catalogue at the end of the book, with a smaller photo and no recipe.This is not a typical cookbook. It is a book about a projectand a book by a chef. Therefore, you’ll find things aboutme and about my time at elBulli and I’ll tell you how the concept of dos palillos came about and who was involved. Then we’ll explore what I call the “sapiens” of dos palillos, from its concept and philosophy to its menu and drinks lists, before presenting the dishes categorised byyear and trying to impartwhatwe have learned, which is never enough, over these first 10 years of dos palillos. All these considerations and reflections, expressed more personally and naturally than technically, reflect our philosophy and standards in the kitchen and consequentiallyin life… and vice versa.13Introduction byAlbertRaurich

top: 1991, at the restaurant Els Pescadors. bottom: 1996, at Cafè de l’Acadèmia.

JourneysBarcelona-Cap de CreusHe was born in Barcelona on 14 July1970, though due to his mother’sfamilyline and the love he feels forthe place, he considers himselfhalffrom Cadaqués: his mother, Aurora, is a native ofthe lovelytown andhis father, Ferran, is from Barcelona. He is the third offourbrothers:Ferran, Fredi, himself and Ulisses.He attended primaryschool atEscuela del Marand Los Escolapios deBalmes, though he was nevera particularlygood student. In 1985,when he was just15 years old, he enrolled in the newlyopenedEscola de Restauració i Hostalatge de Barcelona (RestaurantandHospitalitySchool ofBarcelona),where hewasa studentin thefirstclass alongside greatchefs like Quim Marqués, Carles Abellan,Sergi Arola, José Ramón Andrés… and quite a fewothers. Due to hisfondnessforItalianpasta,afterleavingtheschoolhewantedtoworkin an Italian restaurantand was hired atLos Inmortales onCarrerde Sagués in Barcelona underthe direction ofFlavio Ori andRubén Bizzarri. There he learned to playwith pasta and to take onnewresponsibilities. He was hired as an assistant, butdue to staffingissues and partlyhis own merit, he was promoted to sous chefinjustone yearand a half. Atonly18 years ofage, he ran the kitchenbyhimselfforthree months when both the head chefand sous chefwere unable to work!Due to a minormishap ofyouth, the startofhis militaryservice wasdelayed and he tookadvantage ofthis time byworking atanotherItalian restaurant, El Gran Duca, with Daviano Neri. His militaryservicebegan in SantClimentSescebes, in the region ofAltEmpordà, in 1990.There he was assigned to the officers’ residence as a cookwhere helearned to prepare the wild birds hunted bya captain on the weekendsthat he was on duty, whether he liked it or not!Since he was unaware ofwhata stage was, wheneverhe wanted to learn something specific in the kitchen, he looked forworkatarestaurantthatgave him the chance. The time came when he wantedto learn to handle and cookfish, so he wentto workatEls Pescadorsin Plaça de Prim in Poblenou (Barcelona), managed byJosep Mauliniand his wife Toia. Fortwo years, he notonlylearned to handle freshfish, butalso learned aboutthe world ofcod and rice dishes. Itwasa tremendous experience.When he was 23, pushed byhis motherto stop considering himselfachefde partie (station chef) and thanks to his friend Susanita, he startedworking as head chefatthe restaurantCafè de l’Acadèmia in Plaça deSantJustin Barcelona. This was where he made his firstpurchases,invented his firstdishes, managed his firstteamandfeltthe satisfactionofshouldering the responsibilitygiven to him, getting the projectoffthe ground and finallygetting to enjoycooking with the freedom andtrust thatJordi Castellví had always given him. Thankyou, Jordi.In 1997, he wentto stage atelBulli and ended up stayed there for11 years, only leaving to open dos palillos.And before explaining howI leftelBulli to make dos palillos a reality,I will tell you howI gotthere in the firstplace… Itwas late summer1996, in the bar nextdoor to the Hells Angels’ (formerlyknown asthe Centuriones) Harley-Davidson workshop in Poble Sec, and I wasdrinking beer with a friend and motorcycle lover, Sergi Arola. Duringour conversation, he told me thatin a fewmonths he would startworkin a restaurantwith two Michelin stars on the Costa Brava and thathe knewtheywere looking for another chefde partie. The restaurantwas called elBulli and the head chefwas rather peculiar. Rightawayalightbulbcameoninmyhead:IhadheardofhimandIrecalledsome conversations I had had with a friend from the motorcycle sceneand a greatpastrychef: Christian Escribà. Christian had mentioned theplace to me as somewhere I could growand, coincidentally, he was afriend of Ferran Adrià!I gotin contactwith Christian and told him aboutmyconversation withSergi. Christian told me thathe would speakwith Ferran and getbackto me. Ferran’s response was simply: “Tell your friend thatbefore heleaves his job [atthe time I was the head chefatCafè de l’Acadèmia],he should come and stage with us for a fewmonths so he can see howwe cookand decide ifhe likes itand whether it’s whathe’s lookingfor”. I didn’tunderstand a thing. Whether or notI stayed atelBulliwould be up to me? Itwasn’ta matter ofhim liking me (which heobviouslydid), itwas up to me to decide whether or notI liked whattheydid there! Whata wayto startoff. This was the exactopposite ofstandard procedure, atleastbackthen, and also taughtme myfirstlesson:never hireanyonewhodoesn’tlikewhatyoudo.SoImadearrangements with Jordi Castellví, the owner ofCafè de l’Acadèmia,to setme free for three months the following spring so I could workat elBulli. Mywish was granted.One month before I leftfor elBulli, everything was nearlyruined.During a dinner involving Ferran Adrià, Christian Escribà and a famoussinger, whose name I will withhold to protecthis identity, Ferran askedChristian: “AlbertRaurich, thatchefyou recommended to me... Is hegood?” And justas Christian began telling him thathe was fantastic,the famous singer said: “Are you talking aboutRaurich from theHells Angels, who justgotoutofprison?” Ferran’s eyes bulged andhe stammered: “Uh-uh-uh…From, fromprison?”“Yes,”thesingercontinued. “He was charged with arms trafficking, trafficking in stolenvehicles, drug trafficking and illegal association!” Ferran turned whiteasasheet. “Sh-shit,Christian,you’re mad,ifhe-he’sacriminal!”“NoFerran, no. He’s a greatguy. You’ll see. Yes, he was in prison, buthewas there unfairly and was acquitted”.15

161996, the Hells Angels of Barcelona in prison.When I heard aboutthe singer’s inopportune comment, I had troubleunderstanding it. We were notclose, butwe had friends in common.We had partied together and had occasionallyended up backathishouse listening to music. To be honest, I flewinto a rage when theytold me, grabbed myHarleyand wentto his house, butnobodywasthere. ThatnightI wentlooking for him in the bars where we used tohang out, butI had no luckthere either. NowI thinkthatwas for thebest, because atthe time myblood was boiling and he’s notexactlyalittle guy! I waited for a fewdays until Thursdayor Fridayand wenttothe nightclub where we almostalways ran into each other and foundhimthere.Wesatataprivateboothtotalk,drankafewbeersandcleared everything up. In his defence, he admitted thatithad beenan unfortunate comment, though with absolutelyno ill will intendedand taken outofcontext, as he was nottalking aboutme personally,butthe motorcycle club. And to be honest, we reallyappreciated thesingerbecause,amongotherthings, he wasoneofthe fewpublicfigures who came outpubliclyto defend us when we were accusedofthatpackoflies and the entire Hells Angels chapter (CenturionesBarcelona) was putbehind bars. Justimagine whatmusthave beengoing on in the heads ofFerran, Juli Soler, Albertand Lalo, the headchef, when a tattooed “criminal” arrived on a Harleyto workatelBulli.Afunnyrelated anecdote is thatFerran and Juli had a partner atelBulli, Miquel Horta. Miquel is a wealthyman who feels called tosupportpeople who have potential, butlittle in the wayoffinancialresources—a patron.MiquelputdownmoneyforelBulli’smajorrenovation in 1992 so thatFerran and Juli could make the necessaryleap; he is a greatperson and verywell loved atelBulli. The surprisewas that, a fewweeks after arriving atelBulli, Miquel came over fordinner with his wife Nitsa and their two sons, Jofre and Sergi. Whentheyentered the kitchen area to greetFerran, theysawme and startedgreeting me effusively—hugging me, kissing me, asking me “Whatareyou doing here?”, saying “We had no idea” and so on. Ferran, Juli andthe bosses were astonished: whatis this “criminal” doing, greeting my

17partner as iftheywere friends? I still laugh justthinking aboutit. Aftera while, Ferran, Juli, Lalo… everyone came up one byone and askedme howI knewMiquel Horta. Like myfamily, the Hortas summer inCadaqués and have been friends of ours for manyyears.Mythree-month stayatelBulli came to an end and we had already agreed thatI would be a chefde partie for the upcoming season. Itwasalso Ferran’s express wish thatI would sleep and live atCala Montjoi (atthe restaurant). I thinkhe was waryofletting me loose in the streetsofRoses atnight! Such a fantastic newworld had opened up for methatthe nine-month waitseemed like an eternity. IfMichel Guérardreturned to France after visiting elBulli in 2002, puffed up with pridein his profession atthe age of69, professionallysatisfied and thinkingthathaute cuisine had been given a breath offresh air, justimaginehowI felt! And thatwas despite the factthatthe firstthing I tried at elBulli was the smoke foam and I almostthrewup! Anyway, as I wassaying… I couldn’tjustleave Jordi Castellví hanging, so I asked FerranifI could keep going to elBulli atthe weekends during the 1997 seasonto workand learn, and he agreed. I worked atCafè de l’Acadèmiafrom Mondayto Friday. Atone in the morning on Saturday, when Ihad justended the Fridaynightshift, I would hop on myHarleyandride to elBulli, nearlya three-hour trip. I would reach Montjoi andsleep on the beach or even on mymotorbike no as notto bother Lalo,the head chef, or Puig-Pey, the pastrychef. The nextday, theywouldtell me thatI should have sleptin the room, butsince I had arrivedatfour in the morning, I hated the thoughtofwaking them. Some“criminal”… Obviously, in the end I ended up sleeping in a bed. OnSaturdayatnine in the morning, withouthaving eaten a thing forbreakfast, we were alreadyup and cooking. On Sundaynight, as soonas myshifthad ended, itwas the same drill: I grabbed mymotorcycle,leftMontjoi atone in the morning and arrived in Barcelona atfour,for justfour or five hours’ sleep. Atnine I wentto La Boqueria market and then worked all weekuntil the weekend came, when I headedback to elBulli.Really, theywere months ofveryhard work, buttheywere also veryinteresting and exciting atthe same time. Products, techniques,surreal characters and extravagantconcepts danced in myhead.There was so much information thatI never could have used orapplied even one per centofit. So much passion for cooking hadbeen aroused in me. I alreadyhad passion, butitwas for Harley-Davidsonmotorcycles,andIsawthatelBulliandtheHellsAngelswere incompatible. Both passions required dedication, so I madeone ofthe hardestand mostimportantdecisions in mylife: I leftthe motorcycle club thatI had been a partoffor eightyears and where I had greatfriends so thatI could devote myselfheartand soul to cookingandelBulli.Forobvious reasons,myrelationshipwithmygirlfriend at the time ended too.Mymother always told me something veryimportant: when itis time tostudy, studyand when itis time to play, play. I switched studying withworking, and the gamble didn’tturn outhalf-bad, as atthe end ofthe2000 season, Ferran Adrià appointed me head chefofelBulli, whichmeantmore workand more responsibility. I feltso much responsibilityand was so committed to elBulli thatI actuallystopped smoking todevelop a more receptive and discerning palate. I didn’teven wanttobacco holding me back.Montjoi-TokyoAtthe beginning ofthe 21stcentury, the elBulli team tookseveral tripsto Japan. These trips would end up shaking the veryfoundations of elBulli and give rise to a culinaryand cultural conversation betweenJapan and Europe. To strike up this conversation in the firstplace, it was veryimportantfor us to establish a good rapportwith HattoriNutrition College, with which we exchanged know-howthroughdemonstrations, cooking classes and other activities. On a morepersonal note, myrelationship with Tamae Imachi was also veryimportantfor enriching the conversation. She came to elBulli in 2002,rightwhen the foundations for itwere being laid. Needless to say,Tamae is responsible for what dos palillos knows aboutJapan.One ofthe mostsignificantoutcomes ofthis conversation wasundoubtedlythe visitto Cala Montjoi earlyin the 2002 season bythelegendaryrestaurantKaiseki Mibu in Tokyo.Theycameto cookforour customers and for a fewluckymembers ofour team, includingme. Actually, rather than coming to cook, theypacked up and movedtheir restaurantfrom Ginza to elBulli for a week, a pop-up ahead of its time! elBulli broke newground once again! As a resultofthis visit,during which we soaked up the essence and spiritualityofauthenticJapan, AlbertAdrià invented his incredible Natura series, one ofthemostpowerful culinarymasterpieces in history, which has influencedchefs all over the world. The high pointofthis conversation for theAdrià brothers was Ferran Adrià’s decoration with the highesthonourthatthe Japanese emperor bestows on those who help to spreadJapanese culture, the Order ofthe Rising Sun. The two mostimportant results for me personallyare myrelationship with Tamae, which truly is an intense dialogue with Japan, and the inception ofdos palillos.BCN-NYC-BCNOne ofthe privileges ofworking atelBulli was the factthatitwasclosed for sixmonths, normallyfrom October to March, and the stablecore ofus focused on elBulli Taller, our workshop in Barcelona. Apart from officiallyclosing the season thathad justended, analysing andcategorising everything we had done and preparing for the nextseason, we also used this time to honour commitments and do things