Starstruck Friday with chefs

Margarita Fores. Jose Luis Gonzalez. Julieta Caruso.

Wow! One of the best ways to end the week is to talk food with chefs. And in this case, I was amid three famous chefs, and I just can't believe that I'd beeen speaking with these people! I best know Fores for Cibo, one of the restaurants I frequent when I'm in the mood for pasta in Makati. And she's also behind Cafe Bola, where cousins, nephews, and I used to eat (again in Makati) before we watched a World Cup match in one of the sports bars many years ago. Gonzalez, on the other hand, is the owner of Vask, a Spanish restaurant at the Fort... a restaurant that I will try out at some stage because I haven't eaten in a resto where the chefs practice molecular gastronomy. Then there's Caruso, the former head chef of Mugaritz, just one of the best restaurants in the world.

Who wouldn't be starstruck, right?

But I couldn't go all fan girl mode because they dropped by IRRI to discuss rice. I had to keep my brain in check; they were there for business and I had to put my game face on. 

I learned a lot from their visit to IRRI. For one, Chef Gonzalez had some Arroz Bomba on him... a  Spanish rice variety that is specially used for paella. This is one of those occasions when I was really excited because I have never seen or tasted Bomba before. I wanted to check if the grains were tasty so I munched on some raw grains. It tastes sweet! No wonder it's famous! I just don't know if it tastes the same when Bomba is cooked in water, the way Filipinos do it.

On the other hand, IRRI staff involved in the Heirloom Rice Project were also there to give information about the different types of rice being grown by people up in the Cordillera mountains. These rice varieties are special because the seeds for planting have been passed on through generations. The Philippine government has, thankfully, recognized the importance of the cultural traditions and of the rice varieties, and is currently helping these isolated farmers preserve the rice terraces and continue producing these highly valuable varieties.

There's a tale behind each rice variety and it is fascinating for me, as a rice eater, to learn more about the history and the cultural perspective of the rice I'm eating. The human story behind each packet of rice adds value and adds richness to the experience of eating the rice. And culinary artists, such as these recent visitors, were surely fascinated as well.

I look forward to being in touch with them in the future and eating in their restaurants! Then, I'll be on full fan girl mode. Yumyum!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for dropping by!

Before moving on, please share your thoughts or comments about the post. :)

Thanks again!

Popular posts from this blog

10 things I learned while driving on Marcos Highway to Baguio City

I went on a day trip to the City of Pines, which was around a 700-km drive from my house. I drove  going up there and then from the city to Victoria, Tarlac. After that, my dad took over the driving duties. It was day trip with Tita Ising and Tito Sibing with us. Anyway, this trip was my first time to go to Baguio City with me behind the wheel. As everyone who drives up knows, there are three main routes to Baguio from the lowlands: Kennon Road, which ascends from Rosario, La Union. It was out of my options because it's too dangerous to use that road in the rainy season. The second route is via Naguilian Road, which makes my trip a lot longer because the beginning of the ascent is in Bauang, La Union (further north). The last route, and the one I took, was the Marcos Highway, now known as the Aspiras-Palispis Highway. This 47-km road starts from Agoo, La Union and is touted as the safest route among the three.  As I drove up and then down (on the same day; we were in Bagu
Read more

How MALDI-TOF-MS makes mycobacterium diagnosis faster and more accurate

The laboratory I work in has plenty of instruments that help us characterise and identify microorganisms causing diseases in patients. One of my current projects is to validate an instrument called "matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometer" (MALDI-TOF-MS) in identifying members of the Mycobacterium  species. Many of these organisms are opportunistic, meaning they only cause illnesses in people whose immune systems are not strong enough to fight infections. Mycobacterium leprae  is known for causing leprosy, but we cannot grow this bacterium in culture media, so we cannot isolate it. Mycobacterium tuberculosis  complex, on the other hand, is a group of several species of Mycobacterium  that causes tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a disease that killed 1.6 million people in 2021 alone. It is a leading cause of death globally, second only to COVID-19 since the pandemic began. Identifying the Mycobacterium species that has infected a patient is
Read more

a crash course on traditional Filipino houses

Image
On Dr Jose Rizal's birthday this year, I was back in historic Manila with Ate Bing, Ate Mary , and Manuel . But instead of visiting him, we opted to soak up on Philippine culture. Our first stop: the Cultural Center of the Philippines ' (CCP) Museo ng Kalinangang Pilipino .  Aside from the musical instruments, I noticed the dioramas about Filipino homes. Filipinos living by the sea (the 'sea gypsies', Sama Dilaut or Badjao ) have boathouses; those who live in the mountains, like the Bagobos , have developed interconnected houses in the trees; Filipinos who live along the path of the strongest typhoon winds, such as the Ivatans , have developed houses of thick limestone walls; and people who live in calmer conditions used bamboo and nipa to construct their houses, like the lowlanders and the Agtas . Sama Dilaut 'lepa' and houses on stilts (in the background) Ivatan limestone house nipa hut Ifugao 'fale' Maranao '
Read more