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Chef Jorge Acereto Ponce has come armed with cheese, sausages, tenderloin, rice, countless herbs and even tomatoes. “The tomatoes in Spain have a different flavour, thanks to the Mediterranean sun,” he says with a smile.
Apart from giving Delhiites a taste of authentic Spanish dishes at The Claridges, the 32-year-old Ponce gave his inputs for the hotel’s soon-to-be-launched tapas counter at its Mediterranean restaurant, Sevilla.
Ponce has been cooking since he was five years old. And post a culinary course in Spain, he started his career in 1994 as a kitchen assistant. Thereafter, he worked in a range of restaurants in Cadiz in the south of Spain.
He joined the Sol Melia group, a leading hotel chain of Spain, in 2005 and today is executive chef of Melia Sierra Nevada. Ponce takes care of three hotels of the brand and of these two are ski resorts in Granada. He shares three of his favourite recipes with us.
Solmorejo Cordobes
(Bread and Tomato preparation with Ham and Egg from Cordova)
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| Tortilla de Camarones |
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| Solmorejo Cordobes |
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| Championones Rellenos de Verdures Crema de Queso Cabrales |
Ingredients Salmorejo: 500gm tomato 5gm garlic 200gm bread 30ml vinegar 3gm salt 200ml oil For the garnish: 2 boiled eggs 50gm Iberian ham Dill for garnish
Method Put the bread in a mixing bowl. Blanch the tomatoes in hot water, peel, de-seed and cut into halves. Mix the rest of the ingredients in the bowl including the bread and add the peeled tomatoes and blend with a hand-blender reserving the oil which should be added little-by-little to obtain a thick paste. Presentation: Place the paste on a ceramic plate and add the diced eggs and Iberian ham. Garnish with fresh dill.
Tortilla de Camarones
(Wheat and Chick Pea Flour Tortilla with Shrimps)
Ingredients 100gm whole wheat flour 100gm chickpea flour 350ml water 5gm salt 15gm chopped parsley 75gm shrimps (Camarones) 50gm chopped onions 500ml olive oil to fry A small bunch of lettuce leaves
Method In a bowl, mix the whole wheat flour and the chickpea flour with water to make a thin batter. To this batter, add salt and chopped parsley followed by shrimps and onions. Set aside. Heat olive oil in a pan and carefully spoon some mixture with the help of ladle. Fry until crisp. Serve with a lettuce bunch.
Championones Rellenos de Verdures Crema de Queso Cabrales
(Mushrooms with Vegetables and Cabrales Cheese)
Ingredients 200gm mushrooms 100gm leek 200gm zucchini 150gm red bell pepper 100gm onion 75gm carrot 50gm artichoke 20gm garlic 300gm asparagus 200gm tomato 150ml milk 100gm Cabrales cheese (Spanish blue cheese) 75gm rice 10ml saffron water 100ml oil 30gm Manchego cheese (sheep’s milk cheese) 100ml vegetable broth Salt to taste 1 parsley leaf
Method For the garnish: Keep the tips of asparagus. Clean the mushrooms, remove stems and set aside. Cut half the vegetables into thin, long strips and the other half into dices. Fry the strips and stuff the mushrooms with them. Put the mushrooms in the oven and drizzle them with grated Manchigo cheese, placing the asparagus tips on them. Leave them in the oven till the cheese melts and set aside. Fry the vegetable dices in a paella pan (a Spanish shallow pan), add the rice, salt, saffron water and vegetable broth. Boil for five minutes on high flame. Remove and put in the oven for 10 minutes allowing it to dry a bit. Put the Cabrales cheese with milk in a pan and cook on a double boiler until the cheese melts completely. Make a sauce and blend to smooth consistency. Presentation: Place the bed of risotto on the main course plate. Arrange the stuffed mushrooms on the risotto and sprinkle the sauce on top. Garnish with asparagus tips and chopped parsley.
