Delicooks

The important thing for a restaurant is that you enjoy it.

> www.manelguirado.com

Manel Guirado is versatile and enthusiastic. He is not afraid of challenges. Passionate about everything regarding Asia, is part of a new gourmet generation promoting the use of oriental products. In this interview he tells us more about his relationship with the kitchen.

Chef, journalist, critic, teacher…which of the facets of your job do you feel most comfortable?

Well, it depends on each project. In general, as a teacher, it is a moment to share with other people one that i usually don't have. I spend much time writing at home.

Do you remember the first time you approached a stove?

I remember that I always liked everything Asian, maybe because manga comics (Dr. Slump, Little Chef...) and martial arts movies. We’ve all got a past. My parents bought me instant noodles and then I tried to imitate the recipe at home with spaghetti and soy sauce. I ate them with disposable chopsticks that came in noodles packaging. I didn’t know anything about sesame oil or ginger….The flavor was far from the real (after twenty years, I think that I imitate them quite well).

I remember later and for a couple of Christmas, my father and I made New Year's Eve dinner. The first year I was about 11 or 12 years. We did a hake baked with olives and everybody liked it. We drew it from El Racó d' in Binu, a groundbreaking book about cuisine in our country. After this, I took care of making the dinner that my parents celebrated for their silver wedding. I was about 15 years old. I guess when you are complimented for something, unconsciously you catch the taste. And I still do.

And your first professional job, your first time “alone facing danger”?

I always feel that way to anything that I am going to do: When i stand before a blank paper, when I have to prepare a class…It’s the feeling of having the possibility of a thousand options and having not chosen yet. Anecdotally, last year I was doing a gig for a wedding. It was organized for a well known Catalonia restaurant. When I arrived they asked me: “You are Japanese teacher, right?”, I had to make sushi for about two hundred guests.

You've trained as a Communicator, Chef and Sommelier, what else do you need to learn?

Turn to say “everything” and “never stop learning”, right? The other day I read someone said that one should always be there when you have the feeling of learning. If not, it is not worth continuing. It’s true. When I have an issue at hand I relax and feel confident and sometines it does not work. I like that somebody proposes new subjects, to have to research, look at books, cooking, try….Seen that way,  I have a great job.

There are also people who learn from you.  If you were a student of Manel Guirado, would you say that as a teacher he is

...It depends on what student. If the student smiles, I smile. But if the studnet does not stop chattig  with the next…I am going to let Groucho Marx wreck: I would never attend a course where classes are taught by somebody like me. Or conversely, I would never teach students like me. Ultimately, impossible to answer. But many people repeat, so I am not be so bad. You have to come to one of my courses and find out.

Done! In your role of critic and food journalist, you have been in many restaurants. Are you surprised easily?

Well, people think I am going to restaurants daily, and is not true. For work I have been able to go to interesting places but in a day to day  I am cooking at home a lot and go to the same places. When I work I try to enjoy it. I am  always accompanied by somebody because I don’t like to go alone. I try to come up with a general feeling and then remember specific things, very good or very bad (if any). And depending on the publication, the reader and the category (real or alleged) of the place, I write  about in one way or another: not everyone cares about the same regarding cups quality or tablecloths material; you can’t demand the same in a simple menu restaurant as in one of 120€ silverware. The important thing for a restaurant is makes you enjoy it.

Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to ask you a confession: Is there any dish that you cannot resist?

Depends on how you look at it.There is not always a same dish because there are numerous parameters whose combination is infinite and always varies. That is the grace of an artisan work, isn’t? It may be better or worse, but it’s always unique. Although the ingredients or other parameters are crucial, I have noticed that generally there are personal factors that most influence them: mood, good feeling for cooking, rush, concentration, rigour…Although is a cliché, cooking is love. And in general, any work done with passion comes out better.

And any dish which resists to you?

When I was a kid there were many things that I did not like and took me time to accept: lentils, beans, green beans… served me at “school” and I hated them. My grandmother insisted on me eating tomato sauce with onions and lied saying that it had no onions (i later discovered that she lied to my father too). It was not a problem with the product or the recipe, but how it was cooked.Children are not stupid and have a very sensitive palate. Be clever and sensitive at teaching them to appreciate their food.

On the other hand, I must say that I was in China last summer and I went through quite a few dishes, something that was very instructive. I acknowledge that I have trouble consuming animals that I am not used to by tradition, but it all depends on how they are presented. Refuse, refuse…A little. If anything, I hate raw vegetables and fruits, I like sauces or cooking them some way.

A dish you find irresistible.

Anyone with rice or pasta. I also love the soups and stews with meat and fish, especially offal, which is very undervalued and it seems wonderful to me. Another weakness that I have are dairy products: cheese, curd, panacotta….And I ‘ve become a fan of bread. Until recently I thought I did not like it, but I what I didn’t like is the French bread that they sell at a gas station for 60 cents. It’s something I think is very sinister. The new wave of traditional bakeries is a blessing, fashion and snobbery aside, they have returned to make real bread, something that seemed destined to disappear. People say that the new artisan bread is expensive, but so is the French bread that is pure gum before coming home and the next day can be used as a weapon. A good bread will last days. I am worried thinking that this happens with many other products such as meat, fish or vegetables. We know what we get, so therefore we do not have a reference of what quality is.

 Do you have any fetish ingredient?

Lately I often use sesame oil. I discovered it when I inmmersed myself in Japanese cuisine and it goes with anything: meat, fish, salads…what’s more, it consume is very healthy. It is a must at home.

Tell me what recipes you would associate with these ideas:

Friends: Barbecue and wine.
Summer: Tender beans with tomato and green onions, salad with a glass of dry sherry.
Spoon: Vegetable stew and red wine with my grandfather.
Christmas: Escudella and cava (although sherry is better for that).
Childhood: The soup my mother made with an ice cube, fried sole and water.
Business: Sushi and pilsen beer.
Sandwich: Anchovies with cheese and rosé wine or water.
Seduction: If I cook, anything (laughs). Probably a cheese board with a good bread and a generous wine, a little bit sweet.