Coast, Sierra, Oriente and Insular are the four regions that inspire Alexander Huertas to prepare dishes that represent the three pillars of their cuisine: identity, history and innovation. orchards He is the executive chef of Restaurant 3500, located in the Ecuadorian capital, a space that pays homage to local gastronomy and that brings together the flavors of every corner of Ecuador to give you an experience gourmet and ancestral to the palate.
With his high trajectory in signature cuisine, orchards It has managed to stand out nationally and internationally. Precisely being honored on this occasion in the VI World Championship of Tapas City of Valladolid in Spain, where he is one of the 16 finalists who will compete for the award for the best tapa, this Wednesday, November 9, 2022. The dish that represents him bases its concept on miscegenation, explains the chef, who wants to show a bit of Ecuador through of the ingredients it uses.
“From the Coast we have used export bluefin tuna and watermelon impregnated with lemon and orange to give our plate freshness. From the Sierra we take quinoa, a typical super product of the Andes that highlights its high nutritional value, we have also used a crispy corn that has the shape of the skeleton of the fish. From the Orient we use cocoa, Ecuador’s flagship product in the world, and we have turned it into honey or citric and sweet vinegar at the same time. We take the best insular coffee from the Galapagos which, after grinding its grain, adds a roasted and smoky flavor and aroma to the dish that is incredible”, he describes. orchards. For a final touch, the man from Quito has added an ingredient from Spain to the tapa, Serrano ham.
Until a few years ago, orchards, 32 years old, had no plans to belong to the world of gastronomy. He had studied Psychology and Jurisprudence at university, but a position as a dishwasher in a hotel led him to become interested in cooking and later to train in it at the Universidad de Las Américas in Quito and finally specialize at the National Autonomous University. from Mexico.
It’s not just cooking, it’s feeding the soul, the intellect and being a part of educating people.
Alexander Huertas
He has been in the same restaurant for five years now, where the opportunity arose to show himself to the world through this competition. “A food critic came to the restaurant and he encouraged me to compete. I didn’t know much, but they ask you for the cover to have a cultural identity, to talk about the country, to have a concept, among others”, says the participant. For two or three months, the agency that organizes gastronomic events E-Spain, which selects the finalists, was in charge of qualifying the chefs from various parts of the world, “today I can say that we are the only finalists chosen from South America,” he adds. .
The participating countries are Canada, Ecuador, the United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, Spain, the United States, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Panama, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Also making their debut in this sixth edition of the championship are Australia, Egypt, Malta and Singapore.
The chef has taken advantage of the week he has been in Spain to promote Ecuadorian gastronomy. “As a representative of 3,500 we are having dinners with Michelin chefs from Valladolid, to make Ecuadorian products known”, he comments. For orchards It is important that Ecuadorian cuisine move forward. “As traditional, we are not doing badly, but I think that all countries in the world suffer a stage like this, from being a market kitchen like Peru or a rural kitchen like that of France, where cooking becomes an engine of social change. I believe that transforming the kitchen is also motivating Ecuador, it is about feeling proud and wanting to get ahead always valuing our roots”.
The championship will take place this Wednesday at the Cúpula del Milenio, Valladolid, starting at 08:00, and the 16 chefs will present their tapas to eleven Michelin-starred juries, among whom are Mario Sandoval, Rui Paula, Henrique Sá Pessoa, Elena Lucas , Rocío Parra and Lucía Freitas. As president of the jury, the Colombian Eleanor Espinosafrom the Leo restaurant in Bogotá, named the best female chef in the world, according to the British magazine’s The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list Restaurant, and prizes will be awarded to the first three places. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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