Joan Roca has gathered 80 simple recipes from all over the Mediterranean region together with Salvador Brugués in Cooking the Mediterranean . A celebration of the flavors, aromas, preparations and traditional techniques of the most authentic and diverse Mediterranean. Recipes to prepare at home and enjoy with family and friends. Vegetable, fish, and meat dishes, to share and to eat with your hands, sweet and savory, that will take you on a journey through the sea nostrum that we love so much.
From Algeciras to Istanbul there is a sea that has been the cradle of the great civilizations of the ancient world and that currently houses on its coasts an incomparable gastronomic heritage. The diversity of the cuisines of Mediterranean peoples is a reflection of their cultural richness. A living and immense treasure that continues to constantly evolve and that the authors invite you to discover and practice.
From Algeciras to Istanbul
Two of the most interesting cuisines in the Mediterranean are found precisely “from Algeciras to Istanbul”: that of the Iberian coast and that of Turkey. However, and although for me these are the two richest and most interesting gastronomic poles right now in the Mediterranean basin. This sea has historically been traveled from east to west and from north to south. From Mesopotamia to Egypt, from the Anatolian peninsula and Troy to Macedonia, from the Greek polis to the Phoenician civilization, from Carthage to Rome, from Baghdad to Al-Andalus, from Byzantium to the Ottoman Empire and from Alexandria to Bologna.
The Mediterranean has been a witness and cradle of the expansion of the great Egyptian, Hellenic, Roman and Ottoman civilizations. Communication between cultures, facilitated by the peculiar geography of this sea, had a decisive role in the development of the intellectual and philosophical history of humanity. Its banks were home to the seven wonders of the ancient world. From the hanging gardens of Babylon, in Egypt, to the mausoleum of Halicarnassus, in Turkey, which were an example and pinnacle of the technical skill and artistic talent of its people. Astounding architectural achievements, marvels of human imagination and engineering. And the Mediterranean inspires and gives birth.
Antoni Gaudí, the most universal Catalan modernist architect, said that on the Mediterranean coast the light arrives soft, medium, neither as elongated as in the northern hemisphere, nor as zenithal as in the Equator, with a slight inclination of 45 degrees, which is the best to define bodies and show their shape. A light, without a doubt, very special that invites the contemplation of both architectural and natural beauty. Then and now, the different cultures of the Mediterranean have been a constant source of inspiration for the cuisine we make at The cellar of Can Roca.
Cooking the Mediterranean, the wealth of creativity
Contrary to the cliché, Mediterranean cuisine does not have a wide variety of ingredients. On the contrary, it is austere in raw materials, especially if we compare it with the diversity of products offered by the Atlantic Sea or the wide range of vegetables available in tropical areas. However, history attests that it is a territory with exceptional imagination and creativity to combine its resources and achieve excellence.
Those who cook, fish and take care of the fields and livestock in these lands are, in reality, the great wealth of Mediterranean cuisine. Although that name is perhaps not the most appropriate. There is such a variety of cultures and nuances in the Mediterranean basin that it would be more appropriate to speak of Mediterranean cuisines or Mediterranean cuisines in plural.
Mediterranean cuisines
Like all cuisines, Mediterranean cuisine has a series of characteristic recipes that make up its own character and personality. Many of them will be well known to you, because they are part of our family and traditional cuisine. Even so, in this book the authors wanted to include a small guide so that you always have them on hand and they can also help you prepare everyday dishes in your daily life. This book also includes detailed explanations of all the basic techniques used throughout the book. Everything to be able to go to them if needed.
On the other hand, a series of tips on how to prepare and preserve food are also included. Also the preparations to guarantee optimal conservation and avoid food waste. A topic that is of particular concern today and that can be very useful in the domestic environment.
