Spanish TV program , Are you going to eat it?
A few weeks ago I was invited to participate on a Spanish TV program with the great Alberto Chicote and it was a fantastic experience.
Alberto Chicote (Madrid, 23/06/1969) is very well-known chef in Spain, with many programs in TV and radio. Now he is presenting a tv program that is broadcasted on La Sexta under the name "¿Te lo vas a comer?".
It was pleasure to collaborate with him, my mission was to talk about some products that you can find in different stores in the UK under the name "Spanish".
I have to say that despite everything, the thing that hurt me the most was talking about the Iberian ham that I found in one of the most prestigious supermarket chains in the UK. I don't want to say that this supermarket chain is lying to their customers, the problem is that they are buying in the wrong supplier.
Jamón Ibérico is not maths, I mean you can have a good jamón but also you can find a really bad jamón. During the tasting that we did, we open several packs and each one was worse. Honestly I'd recommend to the buyer's team of this supermarket that they should take some advice before they choose their jamón supplier.
I've been living in the UK for more than 10 years, and I've learnt that English people love to create their own recipes of everything, but also I've learnt that there are also great foodies that are looking for authentic Spanish food. What I want to say is that many people don't care about food but also there are many people who want to try the best authentic Spanish recipes.
That is why here, in the UK you can find different restaurants working under "Spanish" trendy . But one thing is clear, If there is a restaurant open, no matter how bad it is, if they have customers, it means their customers love the food that is cooked there. During this hard moments that we have lived I have to congratulate to all of them who have survived the pandemic, it doesn't matter if their Paella, or their Patatas Bravas are not the best ones. The important thing is that they are alive!
To finish this post I would like to say proudly that Spanish gastronomy is a great success in the UK. There are amazing restaurants alongside the UK where you can enjoy authentic Spanish food. And the British society knows how to appreciate this.