Sammic Basque Stages Athena and Tracy had another action-packed week in the kitchen of Martín Berasategui.
They spent the first part of the week (their weekend) in Astigarraga, home to many of the area’s sagardotegiak, or Basque cider houses. They stopped in at the Museum of Cider first, to learn the process of turning apples into the unique cider typical of the region.
Later, they enjoyed the traditional cider house meal in Sagardotegi Zapiain, one of the only cider houses whose txotxera (the man who dispenses cider from the giant barrels for diners) is an enologist. The traditional menu is hearty: tortilla de bacalao, bacalao with peppers and onions, and steak, followed by Idiazabal and walnuts. Then it was back to work on Wednesday, which the girls spent prepping for a special event. This special event was the next round of Sammic videos. Athena and Tracy filmed with some of the equipment from Sammic, such as their vacuum sealer, and they also prepared for the next video. Can you tell what it will feature from the photo?
Kokotxas! The girls will prepared the traditional kokotxa, or cod jowl/cheek, dish and will also create their own modern take. The photo above is Athena’s practice plating of her kokotxa with chive gelee and berberechos. Kokotxas were not the only special sea creatures floating around the Berasategui kitchen. This week Athena also brings us a post about some of the incredibly fresh mackerel and sardines that come into the kitchen via local producers and fishermen. And Tracy posts about a semi-frightening sea creature rarely seen on US soil: the barnacle. And she’s not talking about the cute white bubbles that grow on old ships. These are reminiscent of the dinosaur era, and as Tracy’s chef Joseba shows her, they’re quite difficult to gather.
Stay tuned as the girls enjoy another weekend off during one of the biggest celebrations of the year: Carnaval! More to come for next week’s update.