[Kitchen Talk]
Envoy lets the food do the talking

Spanish Ambassador Juan Lena and his wife, Carmen. Photos by Jeong Chi-ho

Sometimes a reputation can precede something long before you get a chance to know it.

Take Spanish football, for example. For the past several years, the Spaniards have relied on a possession game, keeping the ball close and striking on the counterattack with their superb passing. So opponents know what to expect when facing the Spaniards.

Food lovers may have some idea of Spanish cuisine through word of mouth, expecting a lot of seafood drawn from the country’s natural resources, embedded with traces of various cultures.

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned while roaming the diplomatic community sampling traditional food, it’s that - to borrow from an old adage - tasting is believing.

It’s an exercise in mental preparation to rid myself of stereotypes that could put a leash on my adventurous spirit.

At Spanish Ambassador Juan Lena’s residency, before the meal started I saw a mini menu outlining each course in Spanish.

Dining is never about the food alone. It starts with little neat things like this that make the overall experience better.

By the same token, a meal is never about the main dish alone. The appetizer sets the tone and a good one unlocks your taste buds and is often a catalyst that kick-starts the mouth watering for the remaining courses.

Our meal started with the jamon iberico, the famous sliced Spanish ham that whets the appetite.

The fact that the meat was thinly sliced probably added to the positive experience as it can be eaten with your hands or just a fork. It is also available in some stores here.

Had the ham been cut into much larger pieces I think the strong meat taste would have overshadowed the main meal.

These wafer-thin slices provided a nice way of tasting the meat without really saturating the remainder of the course.

Often it’s the little things that make an impression.

Paella with chicken and shrimp.

While I was getting a taste of Spanish cuisine, my host had also prepared a finger bowl of lemon water to wash my fingers after having used them to grab the ham.

A very simple measure, but one I found very effective in getting rid of the food smell.

When I eat seafood like prawns at home and the whole affair is over, I have to soap my hands several times because it’s very hard to completely get rid of the seafood smell. The lemon water did the trick effortlessly.

The Spanish omelet that followed was a little bit heavier in appearance and mass than a normal omelet since it uses potatoes.

With the taste of the cured meat still lingering in my mouth, the omelet provided a welcoming smooth change. It is often served in bars as a snack, the ambassador tells me.

The garlic soup was as hearty as you would expect, but not too heavy, almost like a halftime breather that you get in between football matches.

By now, I was as ready as you can get to attack the main dish. Boy, how much had I heard about Spain’s national dish, paella.

All I knew was that the main ingredient was rice and that little knowledge gave me some comfort. The rice, prepared by the ambassador’s wife, Carmen, was mixed with chunks of chicken, shrimp and vegetables.

Sometimes, you don’t have to have exotic ingredients to make a meal outstanding. The right mixture of what you have at hand is all it takes to create a great dish.

After the paella I was stuffed, but I knew there was something missing: dessert.

Garlic soup.

The crema catalana popular in the Northeast Catalunya region was indeed sweet, but the coldness of it was very soothing.

I could feel it glide down, and the creaminess of each spoonful was absolutely delightful. Prepared with milk, cinnamon and egg yolks, and topped with a caramelized crust, I knew the moment I tried it that this would become my own sweet reminder of Spanish cuisine for years to come.

With all this, I sipped a deep-colored 2006 Torres Merlot Atrium that felt very rich with a fruity taste.

One important aspect of food is how the cuisine, while being unique, should attract different people from different cultures who may never have had any exposure to the food before.

If you have read this far, you may have noticed that I mention very little of what was being said among the ambassador, his wife and I.

Ambassadors are the bridge between their home country and the host country. They strive to promote their country’s products and culture.

In Spain’s case, as far as food is concerned, Ambassador Lena and his wife did an excellent job of picking the right dishes and the way it was presented.

It was just superb and he let the food do the talking. To sum it all up, one thing he said that stuck with me was this: “People like Spanish cuisine such as rice because it’s very common.”

As Ambassador Lena put it, plain ingredients that are easy to find here make Spanish cuisine stand at the very forefront as far as foreign food comes.

If I were you I would make it a more frequent meal. Whether for lovers looking for a romantic dining experience or a family dinner, paella is the perfect companion.

Or, for that matter, don’t be afraid to venture out further into Spanish culinary territory. Ambassador Lena recommends cuisine from the Basque region as the place offering the very best of Spanish cuisine.

From what I have tasted, I am taking his word for it. It’s well worth it.

By Brian Lee Staff Reporter [africanu@joongang.co.kr]