Duvel

It it - and it is meant to create a mutual „connectednes“ (if that’s the correct word). I have been to two places like that in Japan - both tiny (lile this one - 8 seats only, maybe two seatings oer night, omakase only) - both very memorable dinners. You don’t. You have to know a former patron (likely a regular) who introduces you via an invite (to dine together).

The most prized wild mushroom in Catalonia is the rovellon (lactarius deliciosus). I snatched up a batch at the market - and while they always look a bit “rotten”, be assured they do taste great … I fried them simply with garlic & parsley as a most welcome mid-day snack. The rest … … went into estofat de vedella (Catalan beef stew) … … served with buttery mashed potatoes (with tiny bit of saffron). The family demolished the whole lot 🥳

We are still in Spain and had some friends over. Little one opted for Japanese, so I had to improvise a bit without my pantry … Hakushu highball (not improvised) for the cook … Half of the table (second part was blurry) Pickled cucumbers & pickles radish (on the right) … Edamame … Tuna tataki … Karaage. Three plates of this disappeared in a flash … Fried aubergine, marinated in mentsuyu … Spinach tofu salad with sesame dressing … Okonomiyaki … Steamed shrimp with ginger & mentsuyu … Yakisoba. Little one requested ramen, but that’s difficult for 10 people … “At least make some marinated eggs” … ok 😎 Choya plum as dessert wine, with chocolates & fruits. No complaints 🥳

Leftovers from the Christmas lumch became Trinxat, a savory potato-cabbage pie from Andorra, served with various meat toppings … Yum 🤗

Pizza night - always a bit challenging without “my” oven setup, but I macgyvered it … Llonganissa (the Catalan equivalent of salami) & mushroom with cheese-stuffed crust … Jamom iberico, aragula and shaved Grana Padano .. Butifarra (a raw Catalan sausage), olives & red onions … Encore (leftovers from the three pies before) … No complaints 🥳

Today in the supermarket … 13€ 😎

Making dinner with little one … We wanted to try the „viral“ minced meat Döner, that has been flooding short video platforms in the last months. Essentially, you are mixing minced meat with yoghurt, grated alliums and spices and spreading it out very thinly between two sheets of baking paper, before rolling it up and roasting the roll(s) in a hot oven. Little one decided to serve the meat in the Iskender Kebab style, so I made some fresh flat breads for that purpose … All topped with a tomato-butter sauce and thick yoghurt … Served with the roasted pepper & tomatoes and some chili flakes for good measure. Little one and me were quite pleased, as was the rest of the family, including mit parents-in-laws 🤗

Being in Spain at the moment you can’t find a shop they don’t have it on offer. And for a good reason - sweet, orange-y, with cinnamon & vanilla: it tastes like Christmas. I do like it with some ice cold (lactose free, because it’s sweeter) milk. So good 🤗

Lunch on Christmas day in Catalunya is Escudell i carn d’olla (or soup and meat from the pot). Tradition in my wifes family dictates that every family of the 5 siblings of her parents takes over one festive day, and my parents-in-law have the first Christmas day. So I make soup … The escudella is a two day affair. You boil pigs ears, snouts, skin, beef short rib … Chicken carcasses … Salt bones, beef bones, ham bones … in a gigantic pot outside the house. Two days. The result equals a great ramen stock - salty, umami, a lot of body: it gels once it cools just a timy bit … Veggies … Once the stock is ready, potatoes, cabbage, blood sausage and regular sausages are boiled in it … After that, the pilota - a giant meatball, heavily spiced with garlic and parsley and star of the show - is gently poached. Meanwhile the guests arrive and start with pica pica. I prepared everything, but was too busy to take a picture of the prepared table. It is traditionally enjoyed with red vermouth or beer … Just before service, large pasta shells called galets (“cookies”) stuffed with meat are boiled and the soup is served with them as first course. Wines … Everyone happily slurping away … Second course is a sampler of all the meats, cabbage and potatoes from the pot, served with olive oil and salt. Third course is almost irrelevant, but consists of chicken poached in its own juices together with sweet wine-macerated dried fruits (plums, raisins) and nuts … … followed by a fourth course of stewed apples with savory minced meat filling). The dinner concludes with turrons (assorted sweets probably unchanged since the middle ages), cava (sparkling wine) and brandy. And some whisly for me 🤗 And the kids citing traditional Christmas poems and collecting money from everyone. Little one did well … Total duration was about 5 hours. Definitely no complaints …

Christmas in Catalunya … starts on the 25th. So, tonight just some friends over for pica pica. First a dirty martini for the cook … I prepared truita de patates … Some coca (flatbread) with roasted onions, peppers and aubergines, topped with sardines. And one with beixamel, goat cheese, honey, sopprasata and pine nuts … Some giant prawns with garlic & parsley … Cold cuts … And the usual suspects: crisps, olives, pickles, octopus, croquettes and strangely some freshly baked German rye bread … Nice new discovery: A relaxed evening before the big show tomorrow 😎

I didn’t buy it - for the same price I can get two Bresse rabbits … you know, I am a price buyer 😎

With a round of Reblochon from our journey yesterday I opted forTartiflette for dinner … Potatoes, onion, ham, (Catalan) white wine & crème fraîche, all topped with Reblochon - and baked until golden 🤗 Enjoyed with said white wine. Very good and very filling …

After a leisurely 11h drive, with brief stops in Bourg-en-Bresse … … and Avignon … … we arrived in the small village north of Barcelona that my parents-in-law call home - still in daylight. As usual, noone expected us, so we had to live from the fridge (which luckily contained cold beer) … We brought fresh goat cheese, Rocamadour and St. Maure from Avignon … Embotits (or cold cuts) from the fridge … … and pickles. Wine & brandy and a pleasant night sleep, too 🙏

May if you add some tuna …

Two days ago I made some xá xíu for little ones bánh mì. Of course there were leftovers*. So, today I took a huge chunk of Spiessbraten-roasted pork belly out of the fridge and started to shave off thin slices … Kewpie mayonnaise got mixed with the congealed jus**, elevated with a bit of Dijon mustard and spread generously over some toasted chiabatta*** A pile of shaved pork belly, some hefty dill pickles and I was all set**** … On a productive note: while all this happened I prepared a truita (a Catalan tortilla de patatas) for my wifes work brunch tomorrow. Her colleagues do like authentic Catalan food 🤪 —- *That’s what I tell my wife. Of course there were not leftovers of the xá xíu, but I bought 2.5 kg of pork belly and used only 600 g of it on Saturday. ** You know it must be intense if someone used jus instead of juices. Or the German word, whatever that might be. *** German chiabatta with the consistency of a sourdough rye, but made entirely from wheat and yeast (according to the lady in the bakery, telling me with a facial expression not unlike sourdough rye). **** Full disclosure: there was a Jägermeister involved. Small bottle, though …