In 2011, chef Diego Muñoz was asked to develop the project of Astrid y Gastón, a passing of the batton from the famous Peruvian chef Gaston Acurio. A huge project in the heart of Lima, Casa Moreyra features three different locations within one place and offers visitors the chance to take a journey through Peruvian gastronomy and ingredient thanks to the diverse tasting menus of and his crew. 

We caught up with the chef at a recent dinner held within Identità Expo S.Pellegrino in Milan, discussing his new role as head chef at the restaurant, the complexity of Peruvian traditions and the great expectations he feels in running the number 14 restaurant on The World's 50 Best Restaurants list.The chef elaborates on his close relationship with Peruvian farmers and producers and the way in which he uses their products, as well as replicates their cooking techniques, for example, baking potatoes underground. A snapshot of one of the most interesting cuisines in the world, seen from one of its most gifted proponents.

Enjoy the video above.

Few foods have been represented in such contradictory terms as poultry: a dish that used to be served up for Sunday lunch and special occasions is now considered an unexceptional weekday choice. On one hand, the market offers much contested cheap battery-reared chickens and, at the other end of the scale, princely Christmas capons^[1] and expensive Thanksgiving day turkeys^[2]. They belong to the vast category of “white meats”, which also comprises pork, goat, veal (see our article on beef)^[3] and rabbit, but here we shall mainly be dealing with poultry. Cooking times will necessarily depend on the age of the animal. So, this is the first question to ask the shopkeeper, if the label fails to supply this information.

To help you in your choice:

- The term spring chicken or young chicken refers to an animal aged between 4 and 6 months and weighing around 600g. The beak and breastbone are flexible to the touch and the skin is almost devoid of feathers (the ideal cooking method is roasting or grilling).
- Boiling fowl is an adult female that produces eggs (perfect for boiling as its name suggests).
- A young cockerel is never older than 10 months (ideal for roasting or spit-roasting) A standard chicken is 1 year old and weighs around 1/1.5 kg (for casseroles or roasting).
- Capon is a cockerel castrated at the age of 2 months and raised to a weight of around 2.5 kg (it can be boiled or roasted and is excellent with stuffing). Of course the younger the animal the more tender its meat will be.

Apart from the age of our chicken, the next thing we need to know is how it has been reared and fed. Unfortunately, most chickens are intensively farmed but try to buy a free-range one, which are now even available in supermarkets. The latter cost more but their meat is generally tastier since they are fed on grain rather than industrial feed. Spot the healthiest chickens by taking a look at their feet, which should be darker in colour and covered with tougher skin. It is more difficult to choose the right chicken meat if you buy it in pieces or slices, such as breast meat. The colour can mislead you because it depends on a substance called myoglobin whose concentration is due to age, feed and species: young animals have less of it and so their colour is less intense.

Chicken breast should be pinkish in colour with streaks of pale yellow fat. It should never look greyish. A frozen chicken breast will be just as healthy but it will not have the same taste and, when cooked, will be less succulent. Make sure you always keep white meat cool, even during the journey home. If you do not intend to cook it immediately, refrigerate to avoid the proliferation of bacteria.

Finally, here are a couple more hints to help you recognize a quality chicken: if it smells vaguely fishy, this probably means it has been raised on feeds of animal origin. When buying chicken, remember that a portion complete with bone should weigh 300 g prior cooking, and that it will lose about 25%. Finally, every foodie’s golden rule is: red meat can be served rare but white meat should always be well cooked.

References

1. ^{^} Christmas capons (www.finedininglovers.com)
2. ^{^} Thanksgiving day turkeys (www.finedininglovers.com)
3. ^{^} veal (see our article on beef) (www.finedininglovers.com)

If the 2015 edition of the S.Pellegrino Sapori Ticino^[1] event has set out to amaze us, it is already well on its way to succeeding – at least judging from the outcome of the first evening. Not a futile competition as to who cooks the most imaginative dishes or presents the most unusual pairings; more than the food and wine being served up or the excellence of the ingredients used, what most arouses our amazement is the capacity to present a format year after year (this being the ninth) in which different chefs gather in Switzerland to share and express their art.

How can different heads and hands, unknown to each other until the day before, be catapulted into an alien kitchen and still manage to create such delectable treats for the palate? The protagonists of this year’s event will be 8 top-ranking international chefs (here is the full programme)^[2]: 28 Michelin stars and dozens of Gault&Millau points.

The first dinner celebrates the marriage between Ticino’s fine food tradition and the best 5-star establishments of Switzerland united under the Swiss Deluxe Hotels brand: we are gathered in the Hotel Splendid Royal in Lugano, and this evening is the equivalent of a delicious appetizer introducing the rest of the event.

With the sunshine of Ischia in his DNA, Giuseppe Colella is chef of the Grand Hotel Park di Gstaad where he supervises as many as 4 restaurants. He has worked with Sergio Mei and Ernst Knam. "Respect the nature of each product and its original taste" is his mantra. Melon is a predominant theme. His dish, "Blue lobster in court-bouillon with Cantaloupe melon and caviar" plunges us straight into summer while providing a perfect example of horizontal plating. The ingredients are spread out on the plate like colours on an artist’s palette. The blue lobster rests on a “fruit salad” of tiny melon balls and a spoonful of Imperial caviar seems to have turned up accidentally. But, everything comes together beautifully on the palate. Especially with a sip of Bellavista.

At Les Saisons in the Grand hotel du Lac in Vevey, 37 year old Thomas Neeser is in charge, having learned the trade from some of the most outstanding names: Herbert Langendor, Peter Liebold and as a sous-chef at the mythical "Auberge de L’Ill" under Paul & Marc Heaeberlin before becoming executive chef at the "Lorenz Adlon" restaurant. An expertise that transpires from his lacquered black cod with black bean sauce served with cauliflower presented in three versions with sweet pepper jelly.

The third dish is signed by house chef Domenico Ruberto and is endowed with an Italian personality only ravioli can confer. For his filling, he has selected braised beef cooked at 63 degrees for 48 hours and then morel mushrooms as a tribute to French cuisine with a puree of fresh fava beans to celebrate spring. Topped by a sprinkling of Roman pecorino cheese shavings.

Our attention is immediately drawn to a six litre bottle of Galatrona from the Petrolo Tuscan estate. It is a single-varietal Merlot and a worthy companion for the king of haute cuisine, the Bresse pigeon. This was the courageous choice of Dominique Gauthier, chef of the Beau-Rivage in Geneva. The inevitable difficulty involved in cooking fowl has been solved in this case by initial steaming, after which the pigeon flesh was lightly truffled and left to rest in the oven for a few hours. The dish was served with asparagus prepared in three different manners: as a mousseline, stewed and finally, in the form of delicious chips. The meal drew to a close on the notes of a great Sauternes Sigalas Rabaud and a dessert by the chef of maison Ruberto: a triumph of fresh fruit and vegetables. A composition of stewed carrot with two scoops ice-cream quenelles of different flavours, celery and mango.

References

1. ^{^} S.Pellegrino Sapori Ticino (www.finedininglovers.com)
2. ^{^} this year’s event will be 8 top-ranking international chefs (here is the full programme) (www.finedininglovers.com)

S.Pellegrino Young Chef 

This week on Fine Dining Lovers we announced the candidates who made it through the first stage of The S.Pellegrino Young Chef competition.

We also announced the list of international chefs who will sit on the jury at the Grand Final during Expo Milan in June.

See the candidates - See the Jury.^[1][2]

The Miracle Fruit

It’s rare to come across truly unique ingredients that do things no other ingredients can do but when you do it’s great.

The week we took a closer look at synsepalum dulcificum - aka Miracle Fruit - a special berry that, once eaten, makes all sour flavours taste sweeter.

Sounds crazy but it’s true - find out more.^[3]

Brazilian Cheeses 

We also took a trip to Brazil to explore some of the new cheeses that are being produced in the country.

Brazil has a strong emerging cheese scene and this is a snap shot of what is happening.^[4]

References

1. ^{^} See the candidates (www.finedininglovers.com)
2. ^{^} See the Jury. (www.finedininglovers.com)
3. ^{^} find out more. (www.finedininglovers.com)
4. ^{^} snap shot of what is happening. (www.finedininglovers.com)