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August /September 202 2 X MAGAZINE FOR A NEW SUPPLY CHAIN PHILOSOPHY A: With a network of local producers, the supply chain is shortened. The middlemen are eliminated because a direct line to the farmers is re-established, an open dialogue with the farmers, in an educational exchange between chefs and producers. COOKING WITH HEART AND... REASON. Alberto’s cooking is heart and just the right amount of reason. I have always sought a cuisine that asks the heart what it can do and leaves to reason what it can give. Because irrational and free, creative and expansive love excites and a life without emotions is not fully lived, but reason allows the rigorous application that culinary technique needs in order to give vent to the heart. I learnt this long ago. And Alberto Toè knows it too. __________________________________ CREDITS: 1 (Guzman, Corriere della Sera) 2 (Rimbaud, Sensation) 3 (Hikmet, Goodbye Brother Sea) __________________________________ AT PAGE 30 YOU KNOW WHAT? Shining star of the Orient NOT ONLY CHINA AND JAPAN, WHICH ARE NOW WELL ESTABLISHED BUT STILL HOLD MANY SURPRISES IN STORE: FAR EASTERN CUISINE IS POPULAR AND CONQUERS PALATES EVEN AT OUR LATITUDES. THANKS TO DELIVERY, WHOLESOMENESS AND A DYNAMIC RANGE by Anna Muzio The star of the Orient shines, and not only in the morning. Oriental cuisine in Italy is becoming increasingly popular and well- known, extending well beyond the traditional Cantonese menu to other regions of the Far East. And it is reaching homes: confirmation comes from the well-established thermometer that is delivery. According to a survey by Nextplora for Uber Eats, Chinese cuisine (loved by 64% of respondents) topped the list of preferences among ethnic food in delivery, followed by Japanese (at 61%). Cuisines that have the advantage - see sushi - of “holding up” beautifully to transportation, a big problem for Italian restaurateurs, especially gourmets. But let’s see trends and characteristics of this new oriental ‘wave’. CHINESE The first to arrive here, it also remains the most mysterious. Of the eight regional macro-regions, the one from Zhejiang, a province south of Shanghai, from where Chinese immigration into the world over the last two centuries started, in particular from the city of Wenzhou. The restaurateurs abroad therefore reproposed the most popular cuisine in the area: that of Canton, simplifying it and adapting it to Western tastes. Hence spring rolls, almond chicken and Cantonese rice, simple and cheap dishes, the same as in Prague or New York. Now Chinese cuisine is evolving: first came the hot and spicy flavours of Sichuan. The latest frontier is Hong Kong cuisine (in Milan at Hekfanchai), a Chinese ‘revisited’, thanks to 200 years of British protectorate, in the service and in the choice of avoiding flavours that are too spicy or edgy, with highly scenic layouts. Dish: Cascade of fried noodles JAPANESE Sushi has conquered the world and can now also be found in supermarkets, appealing to all age groups and ‘holds’ delivery well. But Japanese cuisine offers even more, from Ramen, now available in dedicated restaurants, to katsu, teriyaki and yaki udon. To be really ‘in’ though, you have to try the ultra-chic version: the Omakase. You leave carte blanche to the chef, who cooks in front of a few lucky diners at the counter. Like at Iyo Omakase in Milan. Dish: Ramen KOREAN Much talked about but little seen. But Korean cuisine - publicised by successful films and TV series such as Parasite and Squid Games - is liked first and foremost