Welcome To A Dinner Extrordinaire

The signs were in the air that a wonderful dinner was soon to come. First, the presence of a father and son team, Chefs Gene and Gino Gonzalez and their kitchen associates were in town for the Asian Food Festival at the Marco Polo Plaza Cebu-Café Marco, phone 2531111 (www.marcopoloplaza.com) last September 2 to 11.

These celebrity chefs are my colleagues in a gourmet club, La Chaine des Rotisseurs, and they prepared such memorable dinners in the past at the Marco Polo. Logic then dictated that they were going to conjure something wonderful, nearly magical again. The Chocolat Dinner, Dinner Au Chocolat, Kaiseki Dinner from 2007 to 2009 and Sauvage Dinner last year are still fresh in my memory bank.

Then the invitation for a very private dinner came from Marco Polo GM Hans Hauri for the “Classical Cuisine in the 21st Century”. Immediately, I knew that cooking techniques from Chef Fernan Adria of El Bulli Restaurant were going to make its appearance in Cebu for a full course dinner.

First course was the Duck Confit En Croute with Guava Sphere served with a sparkling wine, Blanquette de Limoux. “Confit” is a cooking technique with meat preserved by salt and cooked slowly in its own fat, while “en croute” means to wrap and bake to complete the dish. While flavors are concentrated, something sweet or sour is served to neutralize the saltiness. The guava juices in the sphere played exactly that role.

A culinary delicacy from France was then served: Foie Gras and Raspberry Terrine, Foie Gras Soil and Petit Salade with Crystallized Tunisian Olive oil. You need a good wine to neutralize the very rich taste of fatty liver and the Riesling from the Dr. Loosen Estate of Germany was the perfect match. The crystallized form of olive oil served with the salad was a formal declaration of the application of the techniques of molecular gastronomy.

Chef Gene then proceeded to titillate the diners’ appetite with two types of soup: a Hot Potato Soup with Gnocchi and Potato Hay with its Cold Leek Version with Potato Chip Foam. Many years ago, I was shocked when I first tasted soup (gazpacho) served cold for the first time because cold soup is not found in our cuisine. That night we had the French version with a twist, the vichyssoise with potato chips.

A fish course came next, the Fish en Papillote with a Trio of Cocoons…Lapulapu Cooked in Paper with Three Warm Sachets of Baked Vegetables Sauces. This was quickly followed by a sorbet surprise, the Granita Frizzzante Molto. Murag pop rocks or carbonated candy that created a fizzy reaction or bubbliness when it dissolved in the mouth. That was fun!

Main gastronomic entertainment was Classic Lamb Polignac, Deconstructed Marinated of Worcestershire Meat Glaze, Grilled Blue Cheese Polenta, Fresh Beans, Baby Carrots and Radish. I have no idea how this dish was created…with this Polignac and deconstructed thing, but I had a nice red wine, the Te Mata Woodthorpe Syrah and the lamb was great.

Cheese is usually served in a classic French dinner and we had a Cambozola with a slice of Herb Charcoal Toast. And when you looked at the bread, it was not burned but colored with something black like squid ink in black pasta.

Even great dinners, excuse me, must finally end and with a glass of Offley Tawney Porto, I tasted the Chocolate Marshmallow, Hot Chocolate Mousse, Spiced Flourless Chocolate Cake and Chocolate Cannoli. Unfortunately, there were some empty seats for guests who could not make it to the dinner. For your favorite food columnist to have missed this dinner extraordinaire, he has to be very sick!

ADOBING

Ingredients

200g goat meat, tenderized, cut into 1 inch cubes

15 ml Knorr Liquid Seasoning

15 ml Bango Kecap Manis

10g onion, chopped

10g garlic, chopped

10g ginger, chopped

2g black pepper

15g sugar

60ml oil

10g sili espada

5g onion leaves

10g bell pepper, chopped

Procedure

1. Marinate goat meat in Knorr Liquid Seasoning, Bango Kecap Manis, onions, garlic, ginger, black pepper and sugar overnight. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat.

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add marinated meat with the marinade and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat.

3. Garnish with sili, onion leaves and bell pepper. (Source: Power to the Caterer, Unilever Food Solutions)